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Hourly Rate vs. Project Rate: Which Is Most Fair for Both Sides?

The New Customer Relationship: Counterintuitive strategies for what to do after you earn a customer.

It’s Not About What You Get – But What You Give

Everything in business is an exchange of value, whether you are pricing a product or pricing services. If both sides feel like they’re getting a good value, then the transaction works. That’s a good exchange of value.

If your business is a service business, conventional wisdom says to use project rate rather than hourly rate. My opinion: Project rate is not good for the client.

There are a few reasons why hourly rates work for me – AND for my clients:

  1. I work fast. If this were not the case, it would never be worth it for the client. You can’t rush organic growth, but you sure can accelerate through the things that support it.
  2. I round down. Content strategy teaches you that generosity is always the best policy, no matter what business you’re in. So I always round down in the client’s favor.
  3. I am flexible. Traditional retainer agreements are not great for the client, and I don’t ever want my clients to feel like they’re “wasting” hours or rushed to use them.

Listen to Episode 109 (here or in your favorite pod player) hear a more detailed explanation of the pros and cons of hourly rate, and how to engineer an exchange of value that works for both sides.

Show Notes

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