9th Dimension

How can you offer fixed prices?

I like to offer clear and simple pricing to my customers, while being able offer competitive quotes but still earn an hourly rate I am comfortable with of just £11 per hour. I can afford to do this as I keep my overheads low. I work primarily from home, and also temporarily at client's offices if needed.

Offering a fixed price for a job means I am also being fair to my other clients - rather than offering one client one rate and another a very different one. I see working with clients as a long term relationship - one I hope will grow and be mutually beneficial for all parties.

But the fixed price offer is not without it's basic conditions and limitations.

I can offer a fixed quote primarily on the basis that ALL the information/criteria for the project is supplied and I can look over and assess the scale of the project.

After many years working in design and other creative fields, I've got a very good idea of how long a certain task or project will take (once it has been broken down into it's elements). I then factor in how many hours I estimate it to take, and then based on my usual hourly rate of £11.00 that is the limit I set the cost of the project.

So a project that I think will take 3 and a half hours I will quote you and contract for £38.50.

Likewise, a project that I feel will be 35 hours is going to be £385.00

I won't give a fixed quote for an open ended project or a project in development/not yet fully defined (though I can give a best estimate and offer advice).

But for a project where a client can say, supply all the copy text for a website FULLY complete (or near as), along with all images and logos, and a clear and definite design remit, I can give a fixed quote that they are able to consider and contract to.

I feel this is the best way forwards for both parties. In all my years of (in particular - web) designing, projects where the client is still working on copy, and keeps changing their navigation elements, adding/deleting pages, rewriting sections etc - this can in many ways double and even treble the full design time. Not good for the client or the developer!

So I now work very closely with the client in the initial stages to ensure they have all the materials assembled before we commit to a design so as to save a huge amount of time and money and to be as efficient, expedient and cost effective as possible.

This doesn't mean I won't start work on the project until all the necessary items are assembled.

In many cases, especially where time is of an issue, I can begin to draft layouts and ideas before I receive the final copy. But experience has taught me many times that pressing ahead with a design without these essentials at a clients request often means having to back track later on which as I've mentioned, means hours of design time mushroom as things have to be re-done. This is not part of my 'fixed price offer' so again I prefer a 'work-smart' way of progressing to ensure that your price is as low as possible, and my hours that I design for you are as fully productive as possible.

Once the project is complete, often there are things to be added at later dates (again, more so for websites) such as news updates or extra photographs to a gallery. For these additions I charge a flat rate of £11 per hour, and all hours are logged via my time sheet software and are presented as full pdf reports along with my monthly invoice.

If a client prefers to have me work on projects in an ongoing manner, that too is fine, and I can charge them my flat rate and keep them up-to-date on work completed and timescales via these timesheet reports.

Can I transfer my domain / website to you?

Yes. I can manage that for you and your are also free to leave at any point. I don't bind you in with extensive contracts. I regard offering good service and value for money as the best way to keep my clients!

I can make changes and revamp your website too if you require, as well as maybe make it more search engine friendly.

Can you register a domain for me?

Yes. I regard a domain as an essential part of a person's business, and as such make absolutely sure that any domain I register is in their name, and that I am just listed as the technical contact. This is for many legal and ethical reasons and is to protect the clients interest and also mine.

I don't bind you into a contract, and should you wish to transfer your domain you are free to do so, but you must make any and all transfer payments the domain/ISP may levy (such as, the going rate for transfers of a .co.uk domain at the moment is about £11.50).

Your domain is one of the most valuable tools for your business, and I make sure it is managed and protected with all due care and consideration.

Do you host / design adult content websites?

I'm not a prude (by any stretch of the imagination!) but for many practical and some ethical reasons I don't host/design explicit adult websites.

However I have worked on model's websites before, which can and do sometimes include fetish/topless/tasteful nude work. So there is some scope if that is what you are after - but the kind of pay-for websites that are around I don't work on - even if they are lucrative.

Can I book you as a DJ?

Yes - and no! It very much depends on the type of DJing, what my current workload is, and if it clashes with my monthly club night.

I do love DJing though, so drop me a line if you think you have something fun/interesting/lucrative.