From Budget to Quality: Transitioning to High-Dollar Jobs
Posted December 11, 2009 in Business, Getting Started 31 Comments »
Almost every freelancer starts out by taking “budget” projects to build their portfolio. Without a proven track record of happy customers and excellent pieces in your portfolio, it’s difficult to track down the big, high-dollar jobs.
Many freelancers get into a cycle of doing low-budget work, and then get stuck with a portfolio of low-budget work that only yields more low-budget clients. It can be difficult to break the cycle.
In this post, we’ll discuss the importance of moving from low-budget clients to higher paying clients, and we’ll show you a few ways to break the cycle and start finding higher-dollar jobs.
Why You Should Target Big Jobs
There’s several obvious reasons to try to get the big jobs:
- Less time fighting with the feast and famine cycle — Bigger jobs typically occupy your time for weeks or months at a time, rather than in and out the door in a few days.
- Higher quality work — You can spend extra time on the project, polishing and spending time on the extras that typically don’t get a lot of attention. You can actually be proud of the work you do rather than focusing on hitting the budget.
- Higher quality client — A client who is less concerned about the bottom-line is a client who understands the value in what you do.
But, how do you break the cycle? How do you use your current portfolio to get projects larger than your typical budget?
Baby Steps
Let’s be honest. You’re not going to make the jump from $1,000 projects to $100,000 ones overnight. The process takes a long time, but here are some steps you can follow to help you along the path.
- Charge a bit more — Figure out what you would normally charge, then add 15%. Most customers won’t worry about the small increase and now you’ve got a little extra wiggle-room in your project.
- Get a little, give a little — The client gave you a bit more of a budget to work with, now spend a little extra time with him to give him a really stellar client experience, and give your project a little fine-tuning, spit and polish and produce something you’re really proud of.
- Out with the old, in with the new — Your shiny, new, higher-dollar project should get top billing in your portfolio. One of your older pieces should get tossed aside. The same applies to client references. Your latest client is so ecstatic with the customer service that they will give you a rave review with anyone who contacts them.
Of course if you’re finding it a hard sell to get a little extra budget, there are a few steps you can take to get your portfolio closer to the quality you’re looking for.
- Redo your own stuff — If you’re a designer, put a lot of time into designing your site, business cards and stationary. Make your marketing materials look like a high-dollar designer’s, not a budget designer’s. Don’t overlook the little things. Put that shiny new logo on your contract, proposals, and outgoing emails. Make yourself look more professional and polished and you can demand a little more respect, and budget, from your client.
- Volunteer — Charity work is good for your karma, good for the community and good for your portfolio and testimonials. Charities will usually be easier to work with, since they’re getting the work for free. Just produce something amazing and you’ll have the benefit of a great portfolio piece, excellent referral, and of course helping a charity in need.
- Temporarily lower your prices — I know, it sounds counter-intuitive, but consider taking a lower-cost job and giving them a higher-quality result. Your customer will be very excited and give you a great referral, and you still have a great portfolio piece, even if you had to take a temporary hit to your hourly wage to get there.
The first step to asking for more money is a really killer portfolio and great client testimonials. While you’re still working with budget-minded clients, sometimes you have to over-deliver to ensure a great testimonial and portfolio piece. Consider it a temporary hit for the greater good.
Now that we’ve explained the first step towards getting higher paying work, let’s look at the next steps.
Now What?
The next two steps towards moving to the higher-dollar work are the hardest.
- Ask for it.
- Turn down budget work.
If you’re used to negotiating budget-minded projects, throwing out a number much higher than usual may be a little uncomfortable for you. There is no way to make it easier other than just getting used to it. If the potential client balks at the cost and wonders how you justify the expense, mention customer service, training, accessibility for phone calls and emails, and a much better client experience overall. These things are usually extremely valuable to clients and, unfortunately, usually the first thing to go with dealing with budget-minded clients.
If business is slow and you’re looking to fill some gaps in your production schedule, accepting lower-budget jobs isn’t universally a bad idea. Sometimes your time is better served in marketing efforts to get larger-budget clients, but sometimes you just need a quick job to stay profitable. There is nothing wrong with budget work if you can create a good product and maintain a good hourly wage, but if you believe the budget doesn’t come anywhere close to the work involved, it is time to say no and move on to greener pastures.
Saying no is not easy, but it is a necessity in business. If the client can’t make the project attractive financially, it is time to keep looking for one who can.
Your Turn
We’ve discussed the importance of moving from accepting low-budget work to taking higher paying jobs. We’ve also shown you a few methods that you can use to get higher paying jobs.
How did you move from low-budget work into high-quality work? Tell us your story in the comments below.
Image by squeakymarmot
About the author: Tim Wasson a freelance website design and developer based in Peoria, Illinois. He serves clients large and small through his company, TJ Dub Web Design. You can see his personal site at timwasson.com, or follow him on twitter @timwasson.
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31 Comments
Shankar Siva
December 11th, 2009 at 12:49 pmGreat article.
I’m redesigning my website and planning to launch by first of Jan next
year.
Thanks for the info.
SS
http://www.astagramstudios.com
Nick Parsons
December 11th, 2009 at 1:09 pmThanks, Tim – these are some great insights. I’ve been thinking about this a lot myself, and I really like your suggestions.
I’d say the most important thing you mentioned is “Redo your own stuff”, because it’s so important to have that professional image. The longer I’m around, the more I realize how much people judge the book by it’s cover. Thanks again!
Elliott (Set Yourself Freelance)
December 11th, 2009 at 1:33 pmGreat article Tim!
I find the key to charging higher rates is to specialize…
If you can fill a very specific need of a certain type of client, then you will generally get paid higher by that type of client than any old Joe Schmoe would.
Find a specific need by a certain type of client in your industry, then become the go to guy for being the designer, writer, etc… that caters to people working with that specific need.
I market myself to AD’s and CD’s in advertising agencies who are in crunch mode, and urgently need extra help on a project that is nearing deadline. It is a really specific market, and that is all that calls me. What I get is medium to short-term projects that are easy for me, and which pay me pretty well….which is exactly what I want!
Elliott
Ryan Reid
December 11th, 2009 at 1:38 pmGreat, honest posting. It can be a little diffcult to find new work. Thanks for the imput. It was very helpful! I have learned personally what works and what doesnt. Making business partnerships, ie in another design field. This is a great way of getting ‘quality’ work. If someone with a local business gets inquires for designers or consultants., You got to have the passion and shine for what you are good at.
Ryan Reid
studio R
studiorinteriordesign.com
Lexi Rodrigo
December 11th, 2009 at 1:50 pmThis is an essential step for freelancers to achieve our income goals. However, it can be difficult to ask for more money. I’ve found that sometimes, the lack of self-confidence can stand in the way. We may not actually feel that we’re worthy of receiving more.
I find that a good approach is to ask, “How can I provide $(fill in dollar amount) value to my client?”
The answer could include little ways we can go the extra mile for our clients, or enhance our skills with training, etc. The end result is that we actually become more valuable to our clients, and stand out in comparison to our competitors.
Greg
December 11th, 2009 at 2:33 pm“Temporarily Lower Your Prices”, while this tends to pass the common sense test, in practice, it’s often a terrible idea. Over deliver and under promise a full rate project, not a discounted one, less you end up with that target demographic- wanting the world for a song.
How about marketing yourself a little more with the downtime?
I forget where, but a large survey revealed that people assessed price as the driving factor behind a lost deal (70%) while only 30% of those same respondents considered price a driving factor for their wins.
Paul Pennel
December 11th, 2009 at 2:43 pmThanks for this article, I’m working on this myself. I’ve been slowly raising prices, I think now is time to go back and redo my portfolio, and make my recommendations more prominent.
Arevik
December 11th, 2009 at 2:57 pmLexi’s right, lack of self-confidence. Even though I’ve been working for 2 British companies doind both written and consecutive translation, but as a newbie to freelance I have to work for lower price and still had 2 orders although both of the buyers were totally satisfied with my job.
Anyway, even now I feel that I really need to make up my own stuff. I’m learning Web-Design, so I’ll soon have my card-like site (the one I have now is just a Ucoz system template one without any reconstruction), also obvious I feel the need for my own business card :)
Thanks for the tips! I read this blog quite often and glad I’ve found it – so much interesting ideas and thoughts!
Regards!
Laura Spencer
December 11th, 2009 at 3:48 pmThis is an issue that nearly every freelancer faces, sooner or later.
Figuring out how to find more lucrative freelancing projects can be a challenging, almost daunting task, because it takes us out of our comfort zone. You’ve outlined some very practical steps that nearly every freelancer should be able to take.
Thank you!
Shabbir Hussain
December 11th, 2009 at 5:15 pmGreat insight in an worrying issue for early freelancers. Just reading at it I’ve made a pretty nice plan with working for non-profits and academia. They are really good are referring.
Andy Wilkinson
December 11th, 2009 at 9:27 pmThese are all very insightful, and upon review I notice that I’ve been subconsciously putting some of these into action over the past few months.
Good article!
Lucas
December 12th, 2009 at 2:52 amYo he logrado aumentar el valor de mis trabajos gracias a una mejora en la calidad de mis productos. Cada sitio que diseño implemento mas tecnología y buen gusto, pero también más funcionalidad y usabilidad.
Hay que tener cuidado con aquellos clientes que solo quieren un presupuesto bajo, a veces es mejor dejarlos pasar y tomar aquellos que de verdad quieren invertir en un proyecto web de calidad.
Muy buen articulo
Drey
December 12th, 2009 at 4:24 amThose were great insights. My concern is a little different though. I don’t know if you’ve written something it before. In my case I have 2 clients that I’ve been working with for almost a year now and I don’t know how to ask for a raise. One of them i work for a fixed rate the other on an hourly basis. I have enjoyed working with them and I guess, I’ve made a great bond with them as well. But lately, I’m getting a couple of offers that’s really tempting. What would you do if you were in my place?
Nikhil
December 12th, 2009 at 12:36 pmThanks Tim for this excellent article!
Getting the high dollar jobs are one of the most difficult part in the freelancing. You have explained the transition very nicely.
Thanks again for this post.
Taskcity
December 13th, 2009 at 2:23 amGood writing!!
Thank you very much!!!
Hope all freelancers can get rich!!!!!!!!!
Amy Gelfand
December 13th, 2009 at 12:21 pmDrey: When I had to announce a rate change to a longtime client, I said: “As of Month ##, 20##, I need to increase my rate to $### to bring you in line with my other clients.” You might explain that this due to rising expenses/inflation, etc, but I didn’t. Time goes on, and rates change; that’s business. I did give my client plenty of advance notice to make a decision about whether to stay with me, and since I was in the middle of a project with her, I finished the project at my old rate. It was a difficult message to deliver, but it turned out all right in the end.
The problem with taking a job that pays less than your desired rate is that you can find yourself not putting in 100% effort to do a stellar job. I’ve taken such jobs and told myself it was for the experience or the potential referrals (which were good reasons), but ultimately I felt burdened by the job.
I enjoyed this article, but I’d like to hear more about specific ways to get the “right” kind of leads. My one large-scale project (a contract with a large government entity that has lasted through this calendar year and will continue into 2010) was handed to me by a contact I already had. I didn’t seek it out.
I am an independent designer, and I am seeing some success by partnering with bigger companies as a subcontractor, as these companies are more likely to snag bigger clients with bigger budgets. But I’d like to snag some of these clients on my own as well.
Carol Tice
December 14th, 2009 at 12:52 amI mentor other writers, and eventually, they all say the same thing to me. “So I should just turn down the $15 an article work?”
Yes. That’s right. You just say “no.” And invest the time finding better-paying clients. Everybody’s afraid to do that, give up a penny of income now in hopes of finding a dollar. But it really is the only way out of the low-earning pit.
Carol Tice
http://www.caroltice.com
http://Twitter.com/TiceWrites
Latest blog: 5 Good-Paying Writing Niches: http://caroltice.com/blog/32
Mike B
December 14th, 2009 at 8:57 amThese are some great tips. Winning large clients and projects is really important to prevent yourself from just scraping by. Plus its a lot more motivating isn’t it!
Eliza
December 14th, 2009 at 10:05 amI am fortunate to have a husband/business partner who has already ‘been there done that’. His very first piece of advice to me was “charge what you are worth”. He did that and ended up with a extremely successful and lucrative business with high end clients.
I do realize this will take longer to create a client base, and I have the luxury of that time because I am keeping my 9-5 job until my business allows me to quit it. However, this does make it difficult for people who are trying to make a full time living off their business. There are the realities of life. Money is money and it pays the bills. The fear of not getting a contract because your prices are too high can be very strong.
I guess the trick in the beginning is to find the balance of charging what your are worth, and taking jobs to make ends meet.
James Galt
December 15th, 2009 at 11:05 pmI love the part about “Ask for it”.
Most people never ask for the business, some people just put their foot a little farther inside the door when opportunity presents itself. I am not one of those people, I would rather do the work. thankfully there’s always new work coming in.
Luke
December 20th, 2009 at 9:13 am* Ask for it.
* Turn down budget work.
So so so true. At the start I found it very hard to turn down budget work, but it is a necessary step. You can only produce better quality work if you charge more, otherwise you have too much work, not enough time, and results suffer.
It’s especially hard when you’re in a dry spell from higher paying work – but still extremely important!
Austin
December 27th, 2009 at 2:24 pmI haven’t been able to transition to high-dollar jobs. I’m not able to provide phone support, and I can’t really work that many hours, so it would be hard for me to provide my clients with some of the things that they would expect if they’re paying me the higher prices.
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