5 Reasons To Charge By The Project Not By The Hour

Copyright ©2009 Kimberly Reddington and CereusWomen.com. All rights reserved.
5 Reasons to Charge by the Project, Not
by the Hour
by Kimberly Reddington | www.CereusWomen.com

Charging by the Hour
• You put in the time
– You know how much to bill the client
• Then you get paid
– The client knows how long you worked
– Client pays you for your time

Drawbacks of Hourly Rates
• Your time in each day is limited
• You max out your income

Does your client care how long it took
you to complete the tasks, or does
he/she only care how much she is
paying?

Clients are really only interested in the
final cost to them.

Charging by the Project
• One set price for the whole project
– Price is determined by scope of work
– If scope changes, price changes
• Determine what the project is worth to you in
time, expenses, etc
• Determine what the project is worth to your
client

Charging by the Project is Better
1. Your client knows exactly how much to expect
the project to cost.
2. There will be no surprises when the client
receives the bill.
3. If you work fast, you may be able to finish the
project in less time.
4. Clients may be more willing to pay a higher
price for a project than for an hour.
5. There are only so many hours in a day.

1. Client knows what to expect
• Determine what project is worth to you
– Time
– Expenses
– Adjust for unexpected circumstances
• Determine what project is worth to client
– What is their budget for the project?
– How important is the project?
– How much would they pay others for it?

1. Client knows what to expect
• Client will often pay more for a project when it is
placed in terms of need and quality vs. how
much you will receive per hour.
• Your rate becomes dependent on your skills
and quality vs. what a going rate might be for
your field.

2. Eliminate surprises
• Have you ever worked with a client and found
that it is taking longer to complete the task than
you thought?
– Client receives bill
– Bill is more than estimate
– Client is not happy

2. Eliminate surprises
• Charging by the project:
– Client knows price upfront
– Client knows it fits in budget
– Client doesn’t breath down your neck about
hours you put in
– Client is happy
– You are happy

3. Project moving along faster than
expected
• If the project is moving along faster than
expected
– You still receive the same amount of pay
– Client may receive project quicker
– You get the job done sooner
– You still get paid top dollar

4. Clients will pay more
• Based on experience I find that clients are more
willing to pay a higher price when the number of
hours is not considered
• Client likes that he knows upfront how much it
will cost
• Client knows what he can afford and doesn’t
need to take into consideration that your
estimate might go over

5. Only so many hours in a day
• Charge by the hour, income stays steady
• If you raise your rates, you may lose clients
• If you want more money, you must work more
hours
• Charge by the project, get paid for project even
if you didn’t work as many hours
• Hire others to do some of the work and client
won’t complain about the hours they work

Experiment with charging by the project
• Estimate how long it will take you then add
some to the total to allow for unforeseen issues
• Don’t offer to your clients how many hours you
will be putting into the project
• Present Project Price and state that it will be the
price they will be expected to pay for the scope
previously laid out
• If scope of work changes, price should change

For More Information
Kimberly Reddington
Moms in Business Thoughtleader
www.CereusWomen.com
twitter.com/kimreddington
www.kimreddington.com
Who am I?
I am a Moms in Business Thoughtleader and the founder of Cereus Women. I have been an entrepreneur
since 1995 and understand the struggles and challenges that a mother faces when trying to grow a
business and raise a family. I built a 6-figure consulting business working part-time in a field where others
were working full-time all while raising 3 children.
How can I help you?
Through CereusWomen.com, I take other moms step-by-step through my proven process of building a
successful home based business. I teach the importance of developing the confidence to take your
business to the next level, as well as the know-how to balance your business and your family.

5 Reasons To Charge By The Project Not By The Hour

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5 Reasons To Charge By The Project Not By The Hour