Six Key Variables to Consider
Before Pricing a Web Project
By Rebecca Matter

I may have a project for you …

I’m getting ready to launch the new Wealthy Web Writer website, and I need a sign-up page, thank you page, auto-responder series consisting of five emails, and two bonus reports written for the e-letter signup.

How much will you charge?

Wait! Don’t answer yet!

There are many variables you need to consider before naming your fee.

And it’s perfectly acceptable before striking a price, to let the client (in this case me) know you’ll get back to them after you’ve evaluated the scope of the project.

So now that you’re not answering on the fly, you have time to sit back and look at the project from six important angles …

First up, what does your self-marketing strategy look like?

If you’re just starting out and are looking to build up your portfolio, it may make sense to charge a little less. You’ll be able to acquire a lot of samples, and quickly warrant higher fees by proving that you can deliver results.

On the other hand, if you’re a seasoned online copywriter with more work than you can handle, you should be working your way up the pay scale. You can afford to raise your rates with current clients, and go after new clients who will pay you higher fees.

Now once you’ve got your intention down, it’s time to look at the project itself. Have you done a project like this before?

How much experience do you have writing this particular kind of web copy? Do you have any results that you can share with the client?

Quick tangent … but this is actually a really cool benefit of writing for the web that I want to point out …

If you’re worried about not having a lot of experience, don’t!

Thanks to the growth of online marketing over the past few years, more and more web projects are being introduced all the time.

So even though a competing web writer may have a fairly solid portfolio with a wide range of work, they still may have less “hands-on” experience writing for social media, blogs, emails, online videos, etc.

As a newbie, you can quickly get more experience than seasoned writers, and compete with them head-to-head in no time!

Ok, back to the pricing …

After considering your own experience, evaluate what the project is worth to the client.

Remember, this is why good web writers make so much money …

Because their clients make a lot of money! And the more money your web copy will potentially make for your client, the more bargaining power you have.

Next up, the size of your client. How big or small?

Are you writing copy for a Yoga Studio in Austin, or are you writing for NewsMax?

Now look at the length of the copy.

Is the landing page you’re writing for a coffee maker, or for an investment advisory service?

If it’s for the latter, the sale will most likely require much more copy, which means you’ll have to spend more of your valuable time writing it.

As you can see, one price will not fit all when it comes to web copy.

And finally, how long is it going to take you to write this copy?

With every project you price, estimate how much of time it will take you to complete. Then multiply the number of hours by an hourly rate you’re comfortable with.

And don’t charge less simply because you’ve become more efficient at what you do. As you perfect your web writing skills, the hours a project takes will go down. But that just means the price of each hour spent should go up!

You can see why very few web copywriters actually list how much they charge for their services. There are a lot of variables you need to first consider before naming your price.

At last year’s Bootcamp, I gave pricing ranges for some of the most common web projects you’ll be offered. Of course since then, the number of opportunities for web writers have exploded, and the variety of projects has almost doubled!

So this year I’m planning to introduce you to all of the new web opportunities out there, show you how to land them, and then help you price them accordingly.

If you’re going to be at Bootcamp, remember to send me an email or a tweet so that I know you’re coming. I’d like to make sure we have a chance to talk one-on-one so that I can learn what your goals are, and hopefully help you achieve them!

And if you haven’t signed up yet, do it now!

Bootcamp is well is over two-thirds full now, and with the early-bird discount ending on Monday, those remaining seats will fill up fast.

Fellow web writer Henry Bingaman originally told me he couldn’t make it, but then went ahead and signed up last week. I asked him what finally pushed him over and here’s what he told me:

“There are actually three reasons I decided to come to Bootcamp this year.”

“The Web Writing Intensive in Austin was the first live copywriting event I ever attended, and it completely launched my career. I'd probably still be working in my $20,000 a year airline job if I hadn't gone … and Bootcamp has three times the number of unbelievable speakers.

The second is Dan Kennedy. When I got an email announcing that Dan Kennedy was going to be speaking at this year's Bootcamp, I knew I couldn't miss it. That's like getting Michael Jordan coaching you in basketball. There's no one in our industry that has more talent and knowledgeable than Dan Kennedy.

And the third was the payment plan that didn't cost any extra. The three payments really made the decision affordable without breaking the bank. All I have to do is take on 1 or 2 extra projects and I can easily afford it. Plus, with the new skills I learn at Bootcamp, I'm counting on being able to go back to those extra clients I pick up and be able to offer more valuable (and more expensive) services to them.

And after all of that, there's the job fair where I have the chance to walk away with enough work to immediately get a full return on my investment. I believe that in this economy, the only thing worth investing in is yourself. I'm counting on Bootcamp to pay dividends for years to come.”

Henry, that’s actually more than three reasons!

Between the incredible line-up of speakers, face-to-face interactions with the masters, clients looking to hire AWAI copywriters, learning what’s working now in the industry, and the networking with fellow attendees, Bootcamp is an opportunity that every copywriter needs to experience.

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Published: August 26, 2009