I gave a commission client my actual hourly rate and braced for the fight. They just said ok.
priced a commission at what i actually need to make per hour for the first time instead of whatever i thought they'd stomach. did the math in front of them too. "materials plus 28 hours at x." fully expected the haggle.
they just said cool and sent the deposit. now i'm annoyed because it means i've been lowballing myself for like three years for no reason and the ceiling was never real, it was in my head. classic.
idk if this is marketing advice or a confession. i think it's both. if you're freelance stop pricing like you're apologizing for existing. the worst they can do is say no and then you're no worse off than when you didn't ask.
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Took me years to learn that one too, and I still catch myself doing it on commission work. The weird part is the clients who push back the hardest are usually the ones who weren't going to pay anyway. The ones who value the work don't blink at a real number.
Twenty-eight hours is a decent sized piece. You earned that rate. Three years of eating the difference is a hard thing to swallow, but at least now you know the ceiling was never them. That's worth something.
"the ones who value the work don't blink at a real number" is the part i keep turning over. i spent three years doing the haggle for them in my head before i even opened my mouth. they never would've pushed back. i was negotiating against a ghost lol
and yeah 28 hours was a real piece, first time i think i actually priced the labor instead of pricing the shame. feels like i should print this comment out and tape it where i do my invoices or something. not gonna but. the thought was there.