Switched from hourly billing to flat rates for web design projects after a nightmare in Seattle last spring

I used to charge by the hour for every website build. Then I had a client in Seattle who kept asking for tiny changes over 8 weeks. My invoices got ugly and they argued every one. Finally switched to flat rate per project phase last year. Way less stress. Anyone else ditch hourly and regret it or love it?

2 comments

2 Comments

hugo372d ago

A buddy of mine tried flat rates and got burned on a project that dragged on for five months.

ivancoleman1d ago

So @hugo37, what do you think the biggest red flag was that your buddy missed before taking that flat rate job? I read somewhere that a lot of freelancers skip writing a really tight scope of work because they trust the client too much. That five month drag sounds like the client kept adding stuff without paying more, which is a classic flat rate trap. Had a buddy of mine who learned the hard way to always add a clause about extra charges for any work outside the original agreement. Did your friend ever try to renegotiate partway through?