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Post by Jordan Rudolph on Mar 2, 2018 18:48:14 GMT -8
So I'm currently in talks with a potential client regarding a possibly long-term project that is starting as a demo with a flat rate. I told him what my rates are per line if the project ends up taking off, but I'm worried that he'll choose someone else because I might be charging too high a rate for my work.
What are your experiences with telling directors/producers your rates? Do you find that you haggle, or get denied, or everything ends up being fine? I don't mind adjusting myself to the project's budget, but I also don't want to undersell my work, especially with a project I'll be spending a lot of time and energy on. I also want to be respected as a voice actor, but not denied because I'm asking too much. I'm fairly new in the paid work circuit, so I'm just really trying to figure out what's best.
*Not exactly asking for advice, I moreso want to hear people's stories and experiences.
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Post by Lady Stardust ★ on Mar 4, 2018 2:15:07 GMT -8
It really depends. I've had projects where I took the rate they offered and later regretted it because it turned out to be way more work then it was worth, and if they came back to me for future work I have told them that to accept any more projects for them it would have to be at a higher rate.
When informing potential clients what my rates are or that it may be more than what the initial offer is they're putting out, I've gotten a mix of responses. Sometimes they say "Okay, that's fine." Other times they say "that's too high, can we lower it?" Other times they say, "That's not within our budget, so we'll find someone else". Or in some cases, they just stop emailing me all together when I give them a quote for a project.
Sometimes, if you are asked to quote for a specific job, it may help to ask for just slightly higher than the rate you think would be reasonable, so that if they come back and try to negotiate you don't have as much to lose. (For example, let's say you think a quote of $150 would be fair for a certain job. You could always ask for $200 but mention you're willing to negotiate so when they counter with $150, you're getting the rate you wanted anyway but the client still walks away feeling like they're getting a deal. However if you start with the $150 and they counter with $100, you may feel like you have to accept it because you need the work but walk away feeling like you undersold yourself.)
I find that I'm generally much more willing to negotiate on rates when it's a small project that's not going to take a lot of time to complete. However, if it's something that will take hours, something that I actually have to rearrange my schedule for (as opposed to hopping in the booth for 15 minutes) I have learned that I need the higher rate because otherwise I will end up hating myself later.
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