10
votes
Accepted
How do I tell a client that I'm working fewer hours because they pay me much worse than my other clients?
Simple, either raise their pricing or drop the client. It's business. There's little point in working even a few hours for less money than you could earn with another client. Businesses typically do ...
- 17.4k
8
votes
Should I accept a low hourly rate while in between contracts?
Don't do it.
Clearly they don't value your work, a 60% discount is what you ask for haggling in a North African marketplace, not development work with a freelancer. And keep in mind that although ...
- 1,629
7
votes
Accepted
Rude and confusing client but possible important job
He said he wanted to talk about the website. We agreed to contact again the week after to fix a meeting date and hour.
This didn't exactly happen, did it? You drove across town, and back, to sit ...
- 5,363
7
votes
Client wants free and half-rate meetings
I think you know the answer to this, but may be a bit apprehensive about losing the client if you fail to attend these meetings. That's always a possibility.
It's your business. Your pricing and what ...
- 17.4k
6
votes
Raise price of hourly rate for existing client
Every one of us has come to this point. In my case, at some point when I got "too many" clients, I started filtering them on those keep working and those that simply take my time.
I sent circular ...
- 14.4k
6
votes
Complicated situation with client and a never ending project
Why do you allow being treated like this? "Calling me every 2h and messaging every 15min + threatening" - WFT bro????
I would never, NEVER, N E V E R allow being treated like this.
Now, aside of ...
- 14.4k
6
votes
I grossly under estimated my costs for a job and want to renegotiate compensation. Should I?
No matter how you present it, that is blackmail. And I very much doubt a bank did not let you sign an NDA which prohibits you from using this data elsewhere.
Fixed price is exactly what the name ...
- 1,629
6
votes
How do I tell a client that I'm working fewer hours because they pay me much worse than my other clients?
In 5 years of working with this client, your skill level has probably increased: you definitely do the same job faster than 5 years (and even a year) ago and most likely you do your job better. This (...
- 301
5
votes
Should I accept a low hourly rate while in between contracts?
If someone would ask me a 60% discount off my hourly rate it would be offensive to my worker's dignity. I would not even keep up a telephone conversation with someone like that.
I would consider a 5%...
- 2,084
5
votes
Accepted
Decision and negotiation of long term time-consuming job
Well from what I can see, you are a good photographer and you have more work than you can handle. So this is a good position for expansion. The same happened to me in the programming field.
...
- 14.4k
5
votes
Accepted
Freelance programmer's monthly fees, expectations too high?
Ah, the good old fashioned "stuff works and never breaks" assumption from a non-it manager.
First up, DBA requirements. Advise them that if they do not wish to procure DBA support from you, they will ...
- 1,030
5
votes
Rude and confusing client but possible important job
It sounds to me like he treated your interview as if he was interviewing a potential new employee, rather than interviewing a freelancer. He most likely wanted to meet you and get a feel for you as an ...
- 1,670
4
votes
Rude and confusing client but possible important job
He does not look odd to me. Just another overpotent I-am-the-smartest CEO. He is busy and you are some geek programmer who is doing something that his nephew could do, but just a bit better.
Would I ...
- 14.4k
4
votes
Rude and confusing client but possible important job
Whether or not the guy was "rude" is really your call. That's often more of a percieved thing. While what you've detailed doesn't really sound so much rude as possibly inattentive, his attitude really ...
- 17.4k
4
votes
Accepted
Is there a way to delegate bureaucratic tasks or social interactions?
Flat: assign a realstate company to rent it for you. They will take a considerable chunk of the rent, but 100% of the problems.
Taxes: I'm sure there are sass that will handle invoicing and taxing for ...
- 563
3
votes
Accepted
Should I discuss price of underestimated fixed price job?
Always and always, in case of miscalculations, talk to the client first. Explain to him why you missed estimations and how you worked much more than you initially thought.
Ask the client if he is ...
- 14.4k
3
votes
Accepted
How to write technical offer?
Not sure what you mean by a technical offer. Perhaps this will help.
You write down what you are going to do, how long it will take, what the customer will get delivered at the end of it. This is ...
- 1,760
3
votes
Essential elements on contracts
Payment Terms
Payment terms are imposed to ensure that payments are received by you within a reasonable period of time of finishing the work. Many freelancers miss this important component.
I ...
- 5,363
3
votes
What is implicit common practice in licensing software (client Javasript) for evaluation?
OK. Your client doesn't want to sign a licensing agreement. Here's how to look at this:
If the work has not already been performed, and you do the work, it's technically a work-for-hire, and the ...
- 5,363
3
votes
How to sell a project to your competitor? Documents, Warnings, Considerations
From a business college student's point of view, you will need to do a few things to sell your idea to your competitor.
Protect your idea.
Good job on thinking about this. As a market researcher, ...
- 265
3
votes
Advertise through email
Have you ever, for any reason, answered a marketing/sales email from a sender you did not personally recognize?
I get about 6-10 of the, "Hi, I'm a web developer that can improve your site" emails ...
- 17.4k
3
votes
Advertise through email
If you really can create something and then sell it, and you need to convince others that you can do it well, it's much better to really create something and show the world what you've got. No need to ...
- 301
3
votes
Advertise through email
Cold calling is hard work. I have had some success emailing potential clients by:
making it clear I am a web developer in the same geographic area
describing a specific (non-trivial) problem with ...
- 2,038
3
votes
Advice when pitching a day rate to maximize billable time
My day rate is considerably more than merely 8 x hourly rate.
Day rate means I can't take calls, answer emails, etc. and am exclusive to that client for that day.
Being entirely exclusive to one ...
- 17.4k
3
votes
How to convince customer to buy its own products
You shouldn't have put yourself in this situation in the first place.
We order PCB's from a dozen places across our product lines. We sign multiyear staggered shipment contracts when we don't want to ...
- 131
3
votes
Which one brings more benefits to community? Blockchain or Traditional bank?
Maybe my answer can help you especially involving the blockchain technology and working freelance. I wrote a answer about the use of blockchain technology for freelance work and how this could help ...
- 367
2
votes
Client comparing estimates
If the guy isn't complaining about the price, stick to it. If you change it, you send a message that you might have been (unintentionally or not) ripping him off/unnecessirily over charging, and it ...
- 467
2
votes
Freelance programmer's monthly fees, expectations too high?
It's almost impossible to predict how many hours it may take to maintain some system. Every system that has users who use it can have a person full-time maintaining it.
Now, I also know that many ...
- 14.4k
2
votes
Rude and confusing client but possible important job
Should I contact him again?
Yes, you should.
Whether you are interested in working with him or not, do contact him and let him know as (effective) communication is one of the key elements to ...
- 227
2
votes
Decision and negotiation of long term time-consuming job
You've already answered your own question.... " I don't feel like disregard or abandon other clients because if this client will go elsewhere (as already happened) I'll remain with no other clients."
...
- 17.4k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible