HOW TO INCREASE YOUR FREELANCING RATES WITHOUT FEELING BAD ABOUT IT

Deciding Freelancing rates can be one of the dicey things to do as Freelancers in Africa. A lot of times, African Freelancers have found it quite challenging to price their works adequately talk more of deciding when and how to increase their rates without having to be apologetic about it. 

In both past and recent times, employers of Freelance Creatives have found it unbelievably difficult to rightly value creative services financially. More so, there is this degrading notion that since Freelance Creatives tend to enjoy what they do most of the time, passion shouldn’t be expensive or valued but what a lot of people don’t know is that it takes a lot of hard work to sustain passion and hard work requires energy to materialize and energy requires incentives to be replenished. In other words, a Freelancer’s creative vision and passion may burn out if he/she keeps producing works and rendering services that are wanted for free or undervalued when offered. 

Nonetheless, Freelancers in Africa have been found to engage in the act of leaving their pricing to clients or underpricing their works in order to at least make something (the at all at all na im bad pass syndrome). So, in as much as Freelancers want their services to be valued, they still don’t want to offer their services without having anyone requesting for it. So, they try to create and find a balance by leaving their freelancing rates open and negotiating from the client’s offer. By so doing, such a Freelancer who engages in this kind of pricing would surely be unable to decide when the time is right to level up and demand more from his/her employers as a service provider. 

So, how do you increase your freelance rates without feeling bad about it? 

1. Have an existing, functioning and consistent pricing/rate system – Yes, this is very important. If you must ever think of increasing anything, it means there has to be something on ground that you’re improving on. In other words, a Freelancer who intends to increase his/her freelancing rates must have an existing rate system that’s not only functioning but consistent because it will be quite a challenge to know how to demand more if your freelance rate system is an open and inconsistent one that is determined only by what your clients offer or when jobs come your way. It is important to have a laid down pricing system for the different services you offer which can then be negotiated by your clients and you. It doesn’t speak well of your professionalism that you only come up with pricing when you have a job knocking. 

2. Be aware of the pricing system in your freelance niche – This is another important one that helps Freelancers in Africa level up in their financial demands as service providers. Sometimes, it is not enough to come up with a rate system of your own without doing enough research and findings about how other Freelancers like you within the same niche (say, content creation, freelance photography, graphics, etc.) price their services. In other words, what you make your freelancing rates may be an improvement on what others made theirs and this would help in knowing what the rating system feels like within your freelance industry without shortchanging yourself.  No one’s going to query you for charging the way your colleagues do or more.

3. Develop a good work-esteem – This is the peak of how you can increase your freelancing rate without feeling bad about it. Develop a good work-esteem. Don’t just settle for what you’re offered as a means of universe compensating you for days people wanted your services for no pay. Demand what you’re worth. A lot of times, African Freelancers exert themselves mightily for their clients and they often don’t see how hard you work to present the quality services you offer them. Some employers would even say this is a small thing to you na. It shouldn’t take you more than just few minutes and in the real sense of it, it’d probably take you 5 hours, the whole day, sleepless nights and more to produce that service. The truth is, if Freelancers don’t develop a good work-esteem, they’ll settle for every offer which is bound to look golden to them. It’s okay to realize that a lot of time, sacrifice and self-development goes into you producing quality and all of these doesn’t come cheap and you need to project that through what you demand, receive and settle for. Sometimes, if you don’t demand, people won’t just hand it over to you! They would gladly assume you’re comfortable and satisfied since you’re not hesitating or complaining. Your clients always demand more. It’s also your right to demand more! 

4. Be serious about Freelancing – This can also be interpreted to mean be career-oriented and goal-assertive; it goes a long way in determining your attitude to freelancing and the kind of remunerations you get. If you don’t consider being a Freelancer a career enough, your attitude towards it will continue to affect how you handle certain issues that could affect what you make and get out of it. Be determined not to use your gift and passion just for the fun of it but to make money out of it. A man’s gift will make way for him if only he/she allows it to. Decide your new rate. Consider how much time goes into your service production. Think about how much you’d like to save, the bills you have to pay, the sleepless nights, the studying and readings you have to do and ask yourself why you wouldn’t like to make money off this again. 

Finally, when you level up your freelancing rates, publish and stick to them and let the quality of production match what you demand from your clients as payment. You deserve to level up! If you don’t produce mediocre services, you sure don’t deserve a mediocre pay. Above all, people who appreciate value will pay value its true worth. Find your clients where value is both demanded and reciprocated. 

Cheers to quality payment this year!