Extended Contract Work Pricing Question

Brett Mickelson · October 10, 2006

I'll try to give the shortest version of the story possible.

I was offered a contract in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. I will be taking photos and doing some print media design for the department of housing authority. I'll be moving out for 2-6 months (yet to be determined). Basically, Jackson Hole is one of the richest towns in the country and the median home cost is up to about a million dollars, but the working class there cannot afford anywhere near that. The housing authority has worked to open up affordable homes, and it's been a success, but they are losing their PR battle and want me to take photos and use the photos in print media to brighten their image, put a human touch on it, and generally make them look better.

I've been a photojournalist for 5 years and done small contracts (weddings, events, etc.). I've never done anything longer than 2 weeks. I've very excited about this project, but I'm not sure what the standards for pricing something like this would be.

Do I charge a flat base fee and then a weekly or monthy salary on top of that? What kind of figures should we be looking at? I need to put together a few packages that account for length of time, whether or not I do design work, etc. Suggestions? Ideas?

Please don't respond with "charge what you think you're worth," because that doesn't help me at all. I'm looking for ideas from people who have done this type of work before.

Shay Stephens · October 11, 2006

Well, since no one is responding, I think I will chime in even though you probably won't like it

How much do you need each month? Assuming this project is full time and you won't have an opportunity to do other work, you need to make enough to not loose money. You have to be able to pay your regular monthly expenses, all the project related expenses, travel, materials, taxes, etc. Then you need to add profit. Who else but you is going to know these details?

There is nothing inherently tricky about pricing, you just have to sit down and add up the costs and add to that what you want or need to make in addition to that.

In a case like this, make sure you have provisions so if they extend the time, you continue to get paid for that. And don't be afraid of the big numbers this type of work will generate for a price quote. Remember, you are not your client, don't construct the price to be attractive to you as a customer, cunstruct it so you finish the job with a profit in the bank. If you can't do that, what is the point of doing the project?

Scott_Quier · October 11, 2006

Shay Stephens wrote:

Remember, you are not your client, don't construct the price to be attractive to you as a customer, cunstruct it so you finish the job with a profit in the bank. If you can't do that, what is the point of doing the project?

Besides. like you said, Jackson Hole is built on $$. High figures are not going to surprise anyone. Especically as the cost of living there is so very high.

Like Shay said, this is a *relatively* simple exercise in arithmetic. The hard part is identifying all the costs that need to be accounted for before you start negotiations. Some ideas:

Travel costs
Food/entertainment (called per diem in some circles)
Equipment depreciation
Is there any equipment you need but don't have. Need to amortize the purchase cost or include the rental costs.
Cost of insurance
Cost for your time. Question to ponder - How much of your day will be theirs?
What does your profit need to be?
Taxes - WY as well as FED and your home state all come into play here (I think)

There are probably others, but these are the basics that my 15 year old MBA degree suggests I would look at. The next step would be to talk to my accountant to make sure I didn't miss anything. At $100/hr, this is cheap advice.

BTW, this is not tax advice. I'm not a CPA. This is not legal advice. I not a lawyer. I'm just a peon software engineer.

Brett Mickelson · October 13, 2006

Thanks for the advice, guys!

ONESHOT · October 16, 2006

Think Of A Figure And Double It. Then See If They Smile When U Say How Much.
I Bet They Say ''yes'' Thats How I Gave Quotes For My Business
Give It A Try, They Can Only Say No. But I Wage They Will Say Yes.:d :d :d :d

Brett Mickelson · October 17, 2006

ONESHOT wrote:

Think Of A Figure And Double It. Then See If They Smile When U Say How Much.
I Bet They Say ''yes'' Thats How I Gave Quotes For My Business
Give It A Try, They Can Only Say No. But I Wage They Will Say Yes.:d :d :d :d

I'd love to do that.

The thing that worries me is losing the job. It's an opportunity I would love to have, not just a job I have to do.

Shay Stephens · October 17, 2006

Brett Mickelson wrote:

The thing that worries me is losing the job.

Fear is the mind killer. Don't base your decisions on it.

dragon300zx · October 17, 2006

Shay Stephens wrote:

Fear is the mind killer. Don't base your decisions on it.

There may be something to charging more than you think you should.

Whenever my dad (he owns an elecitrical contracting company) wants a job to go away so he doesn't have to do it he doubles his quote. Problem is whenever he does that about 90% of the time they still give him the job anyways.

rdlugosz · October 18, 2006

I can't offer advice based on the experience of a job like this one, but I can suggest that the "basic arithmetic" post above is on target. I'd recommend reading Pricing Photography which is an easy read that will help you to take into account all of the various costs that you must, er, account for.

Extended Contract Work Pricing Question

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