A freelance business can easily get swamped with requests for quotes. The easy way is to shoot a number back to your prospect, but easy isn’t always best. Just putting a price on your services tells your prospect nothing about the value you can bring to their project. Moreover, without detail, simple project quotes often lead to misunderstandings in project scope, timelines, and most importantly…

PAYMENT.

Laying the Ground Work

In eight years, I have only had one client that I ‘fired’ for non-payment. If you do the groundwork right and develop a rapport with a client, there isn’t a whole lot of concern that your client will turn out to be a dead-beat, fly-by-night, “poof and he’s gone” sort of person. A lot of that groundwork is in writing a detailed proposal. Even though it takes time to write the proposal that doesn’t convert to business, I’d much rather waste an hour writing a proposal than days or even weeks working for nothing. More than money, my proposal clearly defines the scope of the project, puts me and my client on the same page, and if I do it right…. keeps us there.

Your proposal should repeat the project back to your client as you understand the requirements, define what you are responsible to deliver, what the client is responsible to furnish for the project, discuss pricing issues such as when payment is due, declare the amount of deposit needed to begin work, and give the client an estimate of milestone dates/times as well as when you expect to complete the project.

The Proposal Template

My proposal template contains six sections with a special focus on formatting for easy reading. This is one document that you surely want your client to read through to the end!

1. Project Overview:

I repeat the project specifications back to the prospect as I understand them. This helps ensure that my client and I start the project ‘on the same page’. In this section, I also tell the prospect how my services will meet their requirements.

2. Determination of Responsibility:

What I will ‘bring’ to the project and what I need from them to complete the project as outlined.

3. Copyright licensing:

My warrants of originality. How the copyright will be licensed.

4. Pricing:

The money

5. Costs & Caps:

Deposit information, Billing procedures, When payments are due.
Because I work almost exclusively through e-mail, my proposal also contains a paragraph that defines the proposal as the contract once the client has accepted it via making their deposit and a reminder to not make the deposit unless they are in complete agreement with the proposal:

“If you need an amendment or an addendum to this quote, please request it prior to making your deposit.”

6. Timeline:

Project scheduling, project milestones (when applicable),

It’s well worth my time to fill in the blanks even for small projects because it keeps both the sharks and the tire kickers away. I’ve never had a prospect or client complain about the length of the proposal. It is in both our best interest to see what my policies are, if I understand their specs, how I intend to meet their requirements, and to make adjustments (if necessary) before the project gets underway.

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