So a client calls…
Hey man, I want a super duper website, graphic, tv ad….
It’s got to be wicked cool, mad fly and totally awesome!!!”
I’m already excited at this point… (yes, I get excited easily)
OK, cool! This sounds great, let’s get started. It’s going to cost $20 and it’s going to take me 2 weeks.
I have already started spending the money in my head.. I’m going to pay off for this.. I’m going to by some new shoes.. I’ll do this, I’ll do that…
Oooh.. I didn’t really budget for that… Can you do it for $2? (big smile on their face)
Insert sound of recording scratching and me being jerked back to reality.
Hey, I know… the world economy is bad, and the famine and the drought and all the bad things in the world but I need to make a living.
I need to take care of my six kids. I don’t do this for fun.
Can you walk into an auto dealership and say..”Hey, that price on the car is no good.. I’ll pay you 25% of that price.”
No you can’t…and you can’t do it with a number of other situations. So why do you think it is acceptable here.
If you want to pay me 25% of the price I ask then be ready to accept 25% of the work you ask for. Be ready to accept 25% response to your calls, emails and requests…
I have no problem with negotiation. Someone I worked with a while ago told me me that there are 3 prices. The price you would love to have ($22), the price you really want ($20) and the price you would accept with a little negotiation ($17)….
Let’s negotiate to $17…even $16… but please… have just an ounce of respect for my craft, my skill, my talent.. what ever you want to call it.
Cookie
April 9, 2011 at 2:27 am
You couldn’t have put this any better. It urks me at what we go through as professionals here PARTICULARLY IT professionals and freelancers. It’s like they just come in with this notion ‘hey it’s Guyana, things cheap and sweet.’ Times are changing and if we wanna be first world we need to catch up so we’re giving the clients top notch, up to date work and we expect fairness.