On Copywriting

Are You Pricing Like a Part-Timer?

It's easy to be a part-timer. It's also easy to recognize them.

These are the folks who decide to keep their day jobs and do a few copy projects on the side.

It happens all the time, and not only in the field of copywriting. You'll see the same thing with programmers, graphic designers, etc. It's so common, perhaps we should call them...

Part-Time Professionals!
(Tongue in Cheek, Of Course.)

Although it would seem there's nothing inherently wrong with working part-time, there is at least one unpleasant side effect, mainly in the area of pricing. It's caused by the "safety net"--the job the part-timer holds on to for so-called security.

Here's how it works:

The part-timer thinks, "Well, I have a full-time job that pays me well. And it'd be really nice to have an extra two-hundred bucks this month so I can eat out a few more times and pay a little extra on my credit cards... so I'll bid this job for $200."

Do you see the problem? The part-timer is quoting a price based on his desire for discretionary income instead of what the job is actually worth!

The part-timer can "afford" to quote low because he's already making a full-time income from his day job. You, on the other hand, know what you have to make to survive--and what the job is actually worth--so you quote higher.

Of course, if you know what you're doing (i.e., you're positioned well in the market), you should be able to command higher fees and never lack for clients.

Still, getting low-balled can be irritating. So, what do you do about it?

• Recognize the problem and position yourself accordingly. Offer a compelling and believable reason why you charge more than all the other copywriters out there.

• Provide proof of results. In most cases, ample proof of results will be far more persuasive than a low quote.

• Educate other service providers like I'm doing here. Explain why it doesn't make sense to write copy for less than minimum wage.

Ideas for Pricing Jobs
When You're Starting Out

If you are a service provider who is just getting started, it can be hard to know how you should quote a job. Here are a few ideas:

1. Price by the hour. Calculate what you're currently making in your full-time job, or what you used to make if you've gone full-time. Then provide a quote that at least mirrors your current income.

For instance, if you're currently making $20 an hour, you would not quote a job at $10 an hour. That's stupid. You would quote at least $20 an hour.

If you're providing a quote based on the amount of time you expect to invest, then you might consider multiplying whatever number you come up with by 2x. Why that number?

For one, most projects go longer than expected. And two, providing time-based quotes usually assumes you'll be paid the same rate for 40 hours a week.

But if you've been in business for more than a month, then you already know that not every hour in a work day is an income-producing hour. You must calculate fees with the idea that there are only 2-4 hours a day when you'll actually be writing.

2. Price by the page. This can be effective with direct mail pieces where you're working with a certain number of pages. You might charge $200 a page, $400 a page, or even $800 a page.

In my opinion, writing for $100 a page is a bit low. I'd suggest you not go below this level. Starting at $150 or $200 a page would be better.

3. Price by the project. This is my favorite way to quote new copy jobs. I only write a few different types of copy. The long-form sales letter is the centerpiece of most of my projects. Since I limit what I write, it's easy to price by the project.

You'll have to come up with your own fees here, but you can always cross-check your number by comparing what the fee would be if you were to quote by the hour or by the page. If your per project fee is lower, then you've done something wrong. Go back and rework the quote.

No matter how you decide to price projects, you must always remember not to under-price yourself. Never quote a project for less than you would ordinarily be paid in a full-time salaried job.

Remember this: It's better to err on the side of quoting too high rather than quoting too low.

For part-timers: You cannot under-price copy jobs and then make up for it in volume. It doesn't work when selling products, and it doesn't work when selling your time either. Quote high, burn your ships, and go full-time.

For full-timers: Marketing skills can overcome almost any business problem, including the ability to attract clients in a sea of slave labor. Become a marketing expert.

For clients: If you hire a copywriter for a "steal of a deal," set your expectations low. Real low. This way you'll avoid disappointment, and still be pleasantly surprised if it works out in your favor.

What You're Doing, I Could Never Do

Today, I was working with a client over the phone. He was having me review a page, and I was editing on the fly. In fact, I was dictating copy to my client and he was writing it down!

That's when he said, "What you're doing, I could never do."

It occurred to me then that I sometimes take for granted my ability to write. It's quite easy for me, and I naturally assume it's easy for other people too.

That seems to be how human nature works. Whatever you're naturally good at, you're likely to take for granted.

And when you take your skill for granted, it's easy to undervalue it.

I think this is a key takeaway. If you recognize a skill that you're taking for granted, realize that you may be undervaluing it. Then reprice accordingly.

P.S. Today, 5/1/07, I was speaking with another client. The first thing he said was, "Ryan, how do you do what you do?" I confessed I did not know. Anyway, I thought it odd that two different clients said basically the same thing within a 24-hour period.

It's Just Money (or, Why Money Doesn't Matter)

Here's one thing I've learned during the last 21 months of freelance copywriting: money is just money.

Let me explain.

For the past decade, I have been extremely money focused. In fact, I still am money focused, although far less than I used to be.

My zeal for money caused me to do stupid things. For instance, I would spend money in haste for "get rich quick" opportunities. I would strive for money. I would get emotionally involved in the outcome of fee negotiations (which would often lead to noticeable desperation).

I now have a healthier perspective on money. For one, I don't worry about it so much anymore. I recognize that God is in control. He provides as He sees fit.

On more than one occasion, I've been out of money. I prayed and asked God to provide because He's in charge. Miraculously, He came through... and fast. Clients were calling me the very next morning! Talk about a speedy answer to prayer.

Next time money is getting you tied up in knots, consider this "hypothetical" scenario:

What if the dollar became as worthless as the Deutsche Mark in post-World War II Germany? How would you cope with that?

This is not far-fetched in the least. Every major fiat currency eventually collapses. It's only a matter of time for the dollar.

When it happens, lifetimes of wealth accumulation will go up in smoke. All our "security" will vanish. We'll discover how worthless money really is.

Psalm 20:7 is worth considering: "Some boast in chariots and some in horses, but we will boast in the name of the Lord, our God." To trust in money is to trust in the strength of the flesh, which is really no strength at all.

Money is merely man's representation of value. It has no intrinsic value of its own.

Better to focus on creating value for people than to focus on money. Don't become attached to outcomes, which you cannot control. Stay focused on what you can control: the value you provide to others. Leave the provision (money or otherwise) up to God.

Until You Value Yourself...

"Until you value yourself, you won't value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it."
--M. Scott Peck

I couldn't have said it better myself.

The Starbucks Factor

One of the most important sections of a sales letter is the part where you deal with price.

When you introduce the price, all of a sudden your reader's buying resistance shoots through the roof. You must do something to shatter this resistance.

One technique is to calculate the real value of the product (based on, say a person's hourly rate or normal cost to attend a seminar), then slash the price so it appears ridiculously low.

Then there's "The Starbucks Factor"...

This is where you take the price of your product and amortize it over time until the price is "less than the cost of a cup of Starbucks."

I've used this technique myself. I've seen other people use it too.

But my inspiration for this blog post comes from Nora Ephron's newest book I Feel Bad About My Neck. On page 66, she talks about the ridiculous amount of money she paid for her apartment at the famous Apthorp building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in 1980.

Watch as she takes an emotional decision and justifies it using "The Starbucks Factor":

The rent was fifteen hundred dollars a month--which was, by Manhattan standards, practically a bargain. Trust me, it was. In addition, I had to pay the previous tenant twenty-four thousand dollars in key money (as it's known in New York City) for the right to move in. I didn't have twenty-four thousand dollars. I went to a bank and borrowed the money. No one in the building could believe that I would pay so much in key money for a rental apartment; it was an astronomical amount. [...] It seemed to me that if I lived in the building for twenty-four years, the fee would amortize out to only a thousand dollars a year, a very small surcharge--only $2.74 a day, which is less than a cup of cappuccino at Starbucks.

This, by itself, is fascinating. You mean people not in marketing know about this principle?

A few sentences later, Ephron goes on to explain her thinking. This is even more helpful:

(I should point out that I don't normally use the word "amortize" unless I'm trying to prove that something I can't really afford is not just a bargain but practically free. This usually involves dividing the cost of the item I can't afford by the number of years I'm planning to use it, and if that doesn't work, by the number of days or hours or minutes, until I get to a number that is less than the cost of a cup of cappuccino.)

I guess David Bach is partly to blame for popularizing this whole approach to price justification. Although I'm not sure that's what he intended. He calls it "The Latte Factor" and points out that saving three bucks a day can automatically make you a millionaire.

Well, as it turns out, three bucks a day can also automatically help you sell more products and get people to spend more money.

Next time you justify price in a sales letter, think of creative ways you can make the price look insignificant. You don't have to use "The Starbucks Factor." It may quickly wear out its appeal and become ordinary, if it hasn't already.

Just think creatively and I'm sure you'll come up with a clever way to make the price of your product seem so low and appealing that your prospects will open their wallets and buy.

Don't Be Cheap

A lot of beginning copywriters want to know, "What do I charge?"

They hear about big fees, but lack faith. They want to ask for fees that are more "realistic."

I've got news for you. Nobody wants to hire a cheap copywriter.

In fact, nobody wants to hire a cheap anything.

Don't be cheap.

Price Perils

Two pieces of advice: don't compete on price AND don't support companies who compete on price.

Both are losing strategies.

Here's a real-life example from the July 4, 2006, issue of The Rocky Mountain News, in which a recycling and trash removal company called ABC Recycling Service, closed its doors without warning.

Thousand of customers who had prepaid for service were abandoned.

ABC Recycling Service charged roughly one third of what most of its competitors charged: about $100 for an entire year of service. Apparently, the company ran into cash flow issues and was forced to close.

Here's an excerpt from the article:

Officials at the Denver/Boulder Better Business Bureau said people need to be careful when using companies such as ABC Recycling, which charged much less than the competition.

"I think this is a case where people thought wow, we can get trash and recycling for a third of the going rate," said BBB spokeswoman Susan Liehe. "People switched to this company based solely on price, and this unfortunately is what can happen."

The article went on to say that ABC contacted other waste removal companies in an effort to continue service for their 6,000 customers, but none of the companies responded.

I'm not surprised. Who wants 6,000 price shoppers who will switch providers at a moment's notice just to save a dollar or two?