If you are searching through this site chances are great that you either have a client that needs a website, or you are about to land one. Terrific! This series of ten posts outlines basic advice for WordPress website designers on how to deal with clients.
2. Don’t negotiate your rates.
There will be times when you volunteer your services or take on a project because you want to help out someone in need. We have all done this and it makes sense in a lot of situations, set out the parameters of what you are willing to do in the spirit of philanthropy. Where possible, ask the business that you donated your time to for a letter of confirmation for tax purposes or work out a trade that is mutually beneficial to both of you. If you change your price you will feel compromised from the very start which isn’t the best way to begin any project.
At WordPress Theme Advis0r, we have built hundreds of sites and dealt with an enormous amount of clients, we are here to help and help you learn from some of our mistakes. Any feedback? We would love to here, just leave a comment below.
See Tip 1. Advice to Web Designers on Dealing with Clients: Signed Contract
My take on this, after being succesfully self-employed since 2009 is this:
Never discount your rates.
There is one exception though: My long-time clients aren’t subject to rising rates, so as time passes, they’re essentially getting lower rates, compared to newer clients.
And that’s the way it should be: Loyal clients deserve better rates.