
Here’s another excerpt from The Best of Pencil Points, Volume 1, coming July 1, 2015!
Next to actually doing the job, estimating is probably the most challenging task for a freelance. It can also be the most frightening. Estimate too high, and you might not get the job you would have been glad to do for less. Estimate too low and, well…the only thing worse than not getting the job you overbid is getting the job you underbid.
Following are a few tips we use to prepare estimates for our clients that we believe can help you bulletproof your estimates, that is, help you develop estimates that are realistic and defensible. We’re not promising that you’ll get every assignment, because there are still freelances out there who will underbid and clients out there with unrealistic expectations, not to mention myriad other variables including experience and availability. And sometimes we’re asked to provide estimates that turn out to be simply to keep other writers honest (yes, we hate that, too!). Bulletproofing your estimates will make you more confident of the estimates you send out, more likely to make money on the assignments you get, and better prepared to defend your estimates in negotiation. (more…)