Freelancing can be a lucrative career path. You have the freedom to set your own goals and to price your services as you see fit. Yet for many freelancers, pricing becomes a self-defeating feature of their business.
Their prices are too low and they compete against other freelancers to undercut one another still further in order to attract clients. Unfortunately, low prices attract bad clients instead of the dream clients you so dearly seek.
An alternative to keeping prices low is to take advantage of some clever pricing strategies that can help freelancers in all industries earn a lot more money. You don’t need to race to the bottom and burn yourself out and ruin your dreams. As a freelancer you can enjoy all the benefits working for yourself brings as well as a high income.
Selecting an effective pricing strategy needn’t be difficult. If you have the skills and experience, the positive reviews, and a good portfolio, then modifying and raising your prices is often just a case of self-confidence.
Below we’ve brought together 5 pricing strategies ideal for freelancers looking to boost their freelance income.
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Package Pricing
Package-based pricing is when you bundle together individual services and/or products into one advertised package. For freelancers, a collection of services would become a service-product, available for clients to order much like they would a regular product such as a book.
Instead of working out how long an individual service project would take and the many different variables, the service package allows the freelancer to deliver a more concrete selection of services with pricing already cemented.
For example, a freelance social media manager might offer 20 social media updates per week on 5 different social media platforms – no less and no more – at a single price. Take it or leave it.
Package pricing also allows you to add complementary products you may have created. The social media manager might add an eBook on social media marketing for small businesses, which allows the total package price to be raised, all without any extra work.
Packaging services (and potentially products) makes decisions easier for prospects and also a lot simpler for you when it comes to defining a new client project. The package price can be scaled up, with the addition of more services and products (including affiliate products). You can also have a selection of different sized packages (see versioning below).
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Prestige Pricing
Look remarkable. This is the simple premise behind prestige pricing, and it’s what experienced and skilled freelancers should be doing anyway. Prestige pricing is where you convince prospects your services are of an exceptionally high quality, based on higher prices.
Instead of competing with your competitors on price, by trying to undercut them, you raise your rates instead. You figure out the higher end of your industry pricing range and set your rates accordingly.
Prospects will assume that because you can demand such high rates, your ability and the results you achieve must be worth the extra investment. This type of pricing strategy also requires you to improve perceptions as a whole, including a more sophisticated website and brand design, more persuasive marketing copy, and real examples of great work you’ve carried out for previous clients.
When you combine all of these, together with a dose of self-confidence, you can potentially create a powerful incentive for quality clients to choose your services.
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Versioning Pricing
Versioning your pricing provides an effective way for clients to select a service or group of services they’d like you to carry out. This pricing model is where you sell a particular service at a variety of different prices, depending on the complexity and scope. The service is essentially the same but just with different versions.
The freelancer offers a low introductory price that attracts people to the barebones of a service. When the client has had a positive experience with the service they can then be provided with further service features at higher prices.
For example, a freelance search engine optimization specialist might offer a basic introductory SEO website audit. For a higher price, the client can receive a more in-depth audit plus a consultation. For a higher price still, they can get a variety of other directly related SEO services.
The client has freedom to choose the level. For many people it’s difficult not to image what they could get with just a little extra investment.
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Temporary Discount Pricing
Discount pricing is a common occurrence in retail yet it can also work for freelance professionals. Discounts attract the eye and appeal to the logical side of buyers’ brains. When it comes to discounting as a freelancer however, it’s important the discounts have a time limit.
Offering permanent discounts on bulk services for example, might seem like a good idea in the short-term but in the long-term you’re losing a lot of money for skills you’ll inevitably be getting better at.
Temporary discount pricing can be enacted for seasonal sales, most applicably in the run up to Christmas or New Years.
For example, you can offer a 10% discount for the first three months of a service if the prospect orders the deal within a certain time frame (in the month of December). This adds impetus to your offerings and persuades people who are dithering to actually make an order.
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Value-Based Pricing
Value-based pricing is a little trickier than most pricing models yet it can potentially be the most lucrative for experienced freelancers. The value-based pricing model involves charging different clients different fees for the same service and amount of work. The clients are not paying you for your time but rather for the solutions you bring to their unique business.
The solutions you deliver are worth much more for one company than they are for another, despite requiring the same amount of effort on your part. It’s all about how you can help each particular business make more money and how much that business owner is satisfied to pay to achieve those results.
Your ability to use value-based pricing depends on a number of things but chiefly among them is the results you’ve achieved for previous clients. If you can demonstrate exceptional results from previous delighted clients, then you can charge higher rates as an ‘expert’.
Intelligent Pricing Strategies for Freelancers
These pricing strategies can be used individually or collectively. They will quickly help you establish a more professional image and will potentially see your earnings rise exponentially.
When you want to earn more money but at the same time work fewer hours, then employing intelligent pricing strategies can help you achieve these goals, and more.