Client only wants to know your hourly rate.
Overview
It’s always in your best interest to inquire about the full scope of a project. Simply quoting an hourly rate ($55/hour) puts you at a disadvantage because you immediately position yourself as an interchangeable, replaceable order taker. You want to position yourself as an in-demand expert who is looking to partner with clients.
Hi <Client>,
Great to hear from you!
Your project sounds exciting and it’s something I have experience with. I recently completed <recent project> that resulted in <project results for the client.>
I don’t quote hourly rates because to give you an accurate proposal, I need to know more details.
What kind of timeline are we talking about? What’s the big picture vision?
How can I best help?
<Insert anything else you need to know>
Let’s set up a time to have a call Zoom / Skype / Facetime so I can better understand your needs and evaluate the scope of the project.
After looking at my calendar, I have the following times available.
<Day, date, time>
<Day, date, time>
<Date, day, time>
Please let me know which of these times work for you.
I look forward to hearing from you and learning more about the project.
Best regards,
<You>
Notes & Strategy
When a prospect asks you, “what’s your hourly rate?” it’s very early in the relationship.
Things are fragile and tentative. They’re trying to get to know you.
They are highly tuned to even the smallest signals.
You demonstrate confidence by pushing back on their request, and now you’re having a conversation on your terms, not theirs.
By not quoting an hourly rate, you set yourself apart from the crowd.
There’s no “market rate” for freelancing services. There’s only what you charge, what your clients can afford, and how you justify it.
If most potential clients can’t afford your price, it could be that you’re in the wrong market, one that doesn’t have big enough budgets to cover your costs or one that doesn’t value the work you do.
Your niche often plays a significant role in your earning potential.
A few key reasons hourly billing is not a good idea:
Punishes you for being a pro. The more expert you become at your craft, the better your skills are and it takes much less time to complete tasks. You should be paid more for your expertise, not less.
Turns you into a commodity order taker. By the very nature of this pricing model, clients see you as a “paid-task-doer,” not a respected problem solver. Over time, this erodes your credibility and denigrates your expertise.
Limits your income. There are just so many hours in a day you can bill for your time. This puts an artificial ceiling on your income potential.
Creates tension with clients. The longer a project takes, the better it is for you and the worse it is for your client. You get paid more for more hours you bill. Clients review your billed tasks and begin to ask, “Why did this take so long?”