Show your rates on your website....or not?

[Silas Barker]

Do you show your rates for commercial or film work on your website?

[Don Bloom]

Nope. Since I don't know what might be involved I can't set a rate until I talk to the client. If they just need to know my hourly, 1/2 day or daily rate for running a camera that they supply then fine I'll tell them. If they need to know how much it is to run a camera and I supply the camera then it depends on the type of gear they want so thats when you need to know typical rental rates for your area for different types of gear. Short answer is no I don't post rates too many variables.

[Oren Arieli]

I'm with Don. If you want to be treated as a commodity, then post your rates. It will make a potential client run to you, or from you...but their main consideration would be pricing. Sell yourself as a problem solver, that is what people are hiring you for.

[Silas Barker]

Makes sense,
Would you apply this towards Events and Commercials or one of those?

It seems like it might be good to have some srt of pricing so that cheap skates don't call?
Right now on my website I give a range ( Music Videos will cost from XXX to XXXX)

[Chris Davis]

I like prices on a website if you have easily defined packages for easy to predict jobs - like weddings. I think it makes perfect sense to have "The Premium Wedding Package" for $2499 and "The Budget Wedding" for $1299, for example.

However, in working corporate video for six years, I know that every single job is very different. Each job requires a discovery meeting (or two) followed by a detailed estimate. I could not imagine offering package pricing for corporate video.

Originally Posted by Silas Barker

It seems like it might be good to have some srt of pricing so that cheap skates don't call?

While I understand that, I want everyone to call - even cheapskates. In my experience, "cheapskates" are just potential customers that need to be educated. Sure, it's very rare you'll upsell and close the deal on the first call with a "cheapskate", but you'll get them thinking and they may call back once they've wrapped their head around the true value of your work. I know that's happened with me.

In trying to ward off the cheapskates, you may unintentionally push away a customer who is willing to pay far more than your price range, but you've already set the expectation of lower cost (perceived as lower quality) work.

I'd recommend talking to each potential customer, even the cheapskates. Find out what their needs are, then talk price.

[Don Bloom]

Events and Commericals are different animals.
For example I do a lot of EVENTS. Cut and dry! When you hire me are you also hiring my camera? Then I can give you the proper rate (with or without a basic camera kit). Do I need to rent something? If I do then I can add that to my rate. My rates are very easy. I have a Full Day, 1/2 Day, Hourly (with a minimum) and an Overtime rate. Gear is cut and dry. Basic camera kit is $XX dollars, more gear means higher rate for the gear. If you want me to edit here's my rate for that! Total it up and there you go.

Commericals on the other hand well, that can involve a whole lot more. Not just in gear and editing but in the hours of preproduction as well. For example say you do a treatment for a 1 minute web-a-mercial By the time you write the concept, get it approved, shoot it, say 2 set-ups in 2 locations, don't forget you might have to script it and if you get lucky and supply professional talent thats a cost added, if not plan on spending more time shooting, so you might need to have a telepromter available for the non=pro talent so you don't have to spend your entire day on location, oh yeah, don't forget travel time, and what about green screen if needed, you need someone to monitor audio, script, run the prompter help set up and strike....before you know it, you've got 2 or even 3 people involved at a location for 6 or 8 hours which is really up to 24 man hours plus all the gear you hauled in. NOW you get to go and edit. Might need a graphics package you need to design or have someone else do it but that's money, need a music be? Even if you own 1000 or 5000 royality free pieces I can just about guarantee the client will want something different (it never fails), you might spend 20 hours doing an edit then the famous " hey great job, just 1 thing we'd like to change..."
So what I'm getting at is EVENTS and COMMERICALS are totally different so what I suggest is, figure out an hourly rate (I have a 2 hour minimum-no one ever hires me for that but I have it just in case), 1/2 day rate (5 hour), full day (10 hour), a rate for a basic cam kit, basic lighting, basic audio outside of the basic camera kit, editing rate, etc. Make a rate card and keep it close. When I talk to a client I ask a whole lot of questions I ask them to explain what they want how they envision it, how they plan to use it, who their audience is and what they think this idea of theirs is going to cost! Then I take that information and do a proposal with pricing. I've been doing this long enough I have a good idea what the job is going to take from a standpoint of hours, workload to do all that needs to be done and the "fudge factor" needed .
Anyway not to write a book but that's what I do and why I don't publish pricing for commerical work. You never know what you're gonna run into.
HTHs

[Silas Barker]

Great thoughts!

I am thinking of keeping event prices (weddings & events) handy on the website. That way anyone who needs an event covered can easily get an answer. I am hoping to less events and more commercial work which brings me to this:

For commercial/corporate clients I am thinking about having a basic day rate available, but also a range system for typical jobs and a "request a quote" for your unique video. That way you can sort of get an idea of what things will cost, but you still need to contact me to find out what it will cost because I have no idea without knowing the details about your video.

Thanks for taking the time to inform me too, I really appreciate it alot!

[Josh Bass]

I actually have a bunch of ads on different sites for my servives as a videographer/dp, and ive listed a basic rate for myself (no gear, just labor) and then add that cameras, audio, lighting, etc. incur different fees depending on whats used.

One reason i did this is cause if i simply put "paid work only" in the ad i still got calls from folks without a clue wanting full service for $50 a day. The rates discourage that.

Reason im so vague (labor only specifically priced on the ad) is cause i STILL dont have an hd cam of my own and dont want to draw attention to that fact...that i have to rent whenever i shoot hd. Vague wording allows me to fill in prices once i get real details."oh, you want an ex1? Sure thats...$$$." If and when i get a cam (shooting isnt the majority of my work) i may revise ads with a package price for cam, one mic and me for a full and half day (as you can see i dont shoot huge productions).

As for jobs being too complex to price, i try not to act as a production company...simply a camera guy and occasional editor if need be. I dont want to produce, script, etc and i dont court that type of work.

[Tim Polster]

I would say price out what you can and say the rest is on a per quote basis.

This is very dependent upon your work and customers. People in the upper levels of say broadcast advertising would not need a rate published. A guy who wants to put together a 2 min promo for his local business probably would like some guidance early on to know what it will cost.

To me, this is kind of like putting your phone number on your website. Many people including myself trust a company more when they display an option to call them. For a lot of smaller work, seeing a rate might help the customer trust you more from the beginning. But it really is different for every person/situation. So I put a framework of rates on my site.