One of the most critical steps involved in planning and growing your freelance business is setting your rates. However, when you are charging for a service, this is easier said than done and getting it wrong (either way) can compromise your worth, your cash-flow and your business.

Here are three tips for setting your freelance rates, structuring your pricing, and negotiating with clients.

Setting Your Freelance Rate
Pricing the service you provide as a freelancer isn’t easy and is influenced by several factors:

What is the going market rate?
What experience do you have, both in your line of work and in working with clients? Both are a significant part of your value – someone with experience can command higher rates and clients want to know that you are also self-directed and able to work well on your own.

What rate do you feel comfortable with and will sustain your business?
If you are coming out of full-employment and starting on your own, a good rule of thumb to follow when determining your hourly rate is to:

Calculate what your annual salary equates to as an hourly rate ($x divide by 52 (work weeks), divide by 40 (week work hours).

Then mark it up 25-30%. This piece covers both your value and experience, but also takes care of our business costs such as networking, proposal writing, and other administration, not forgetting your self-employment tax obligations and healthcare insurance costs.

Project Rates versus Hourly Rates
Many factors determine whether it’s better to price by the hour or by the project. For example, if you have a stable relationship with a client and regular work coming in, quoting work by the hour can work in your favor because there is consistency in work flow and therefore cash flow.

However, if you are good at what you do and work quickly and efficiently, pricing work by the hour can potentially result in under-cutting your own revenue opportunity – simply because you can get done in one hour what others take three to complete. Of course the flip side is that the client simply loves you because you deliver quality work in less time and at a lower cost than other freelancers might.

Pricing a flat project fee, regardless of the hours involved also has its risks and benefits. If you are working with a new client, you probably need more time to come up to speed on the project and the client’s work methods than you would do with an existing client. In this case, pricing your work on a project basis can give you the wiggle room you need to research and produce quality work. It also gives the client the benefit of knowing they are working with a fixed cost. However, this can play against you if “project creep” rears its head and you find yourself putting in more hours than you originally anticipated, essentially cutting your profit margin.

A good rule of thumb is to price your work with some structure built-in that clearly lays out the scope of what you will deliver. For example, if you are a freelance copywriter and a client wants you to price out the cost of researching and writing a product brochure, you might structure your pricing proposal as follows:

Research: 2 Hours
Produce First Draft: 4 Hours
Incorporate Edits and Produce Second Draft: 2 Hours
Incorporate Final Edits and Produce Final Copy: 1 Hour
Total : 7 Hours @ $x hourly rate = $x

Use your normal hourly rate to calculate the flat project fee and only state how many hours each stage of work will take if the client asks for it. By putting some parameters around the project, the client can agree to a clear scope of work at a fixed price.

If you are presenting this type of project-based pricing, be sure to add a caveat that any work done over and above this scope of work will be charged at an hourly rate.

Negotiating Your Rate
Negotiation your rate with a new client is always tricky. There often comes a perception that freelance services come at a low rate, and economic factors invariably mean that clients will try to negotiate you down – whatever number you put on the table.

If you value the new relationship and the opportunity that the work brings, always be open to negotiation. If your client counter-offers your rate but you still feel that it is too low for you to compromise your time and your perceived value, try to stand your ground (if you just accept the lower rate you will always feel that you had to compromise yourself, not to mention how hard it will be to re-negotiate a rate-hike down the line). If the client won’t budge, consider potential compromises – if you are a writer, could you write a shorter, less well researched piece at a rate slightly above what the client proposes. That way you maintain your cost-efficiency with the potential for more work down the line.

Alternatively try to agree to a “ramp-up fee” that gives you a chance to come up-to-speed on the project and the client’s product or service. This can sweeten the deal for you, especially if this is a client who you have no pre-existing relationship with, and who you otherwise might turn away.

Once you have built a foundation of work and decide that this is a client you want to continue to do business with, you may want to negotiate a long-term rate that is a little less than your advertised rate. BUT – only go this route if you think your new client is able to provide you with a solid pipeline of future work.

Remember, freelancers can go for long periods without work and quite often, swapping less work at a higher rate for consistent hours at a lower rate can make good business sense.

The ebook is a result of a contest sponsored by Hewlett-Packard, along with Bloggertone and Biz Sugar, and features articles on how to have an “amazing business.” This ebook is jam-packed with tips and information, and is absolutely free. A Kindle version is also available.

Traci’s article, “So, You Want an Amazing Business?” is featured on page 18 of the ebook. Thanks to all of our readers who voted for Traci’s submission!

To download your free copy of the ebook, visit this link.

Getting reliable internet marketing assistance and advice just got a whole lot easier, thanks to two new portals launched by Senziant.

Senziant is pleased to announce the launch of CheckMate – The Online Marketing Strategies Blog, and CounterPlay – The Online Marketing Forum.

CheckMate aims to provide insight into online marketing strategies that are actually working online today for small and mid-size businesses. The blog will added to each day with fresh posts from veteran internet marketers on Senziant’s team. CounterPlay is a community based forum where marketers, sales professionals and webmasters are invited to come together, ask questions and grow and learn together.

According to Jason Weir, Director of Marketing at Senziant, “the search engine results pages are being dominated by big brands and big budgets; CounterPlay and CheckMate aim to be free tools that small and mid-size businesses can leverage as an equalizer.”

Senziant provides several core services, including: search engine optimization, search engine marketing, competitive research and analysis. Additionally, Senziant offers advanced services like marketing analytics consulting and deployment, conversion testing, indexation analysis and custom training for their client’s sales, marketing and content creation teams.

For more information, please visit http://www.senziant.com.

Browse Laser vs. Inkjet products and descriptions

Faced with a tough and competitive job market, many job seekers are looking to transfer their skills to industries outside their chosen profession.

Recent CareerBuilder research found that 38 percent of workers who were laid off in the last 12 months and landed new jobs said they found work in a different field than where they were previously employed.

It can be challenging to know where to start when repackaging your skills. Now, two new tools help make an out-of-the-box job search easier:

Jobs By Salary
Found at CareerBuilder’s salary site CBsalary.com, the new Jobs by Salary tool identifies jobs based on a candidate’s desired salary range, while supplying the required skills and long-term outlook for thousands of positions. It also provides links to area colleges and universities if the job seeker is interested in further education.

For example, a job seeker who enters in a salary range of $65,000 to $69,999 in New York City can select marketing communications manager from the hundreds of different positions that are generated. The tool then offers the full job description, that a bachelor’s degree is required and that the profession is forecasted to grow 14 percent by 2016.

Job Discovery Wizard
CareerPath.com offers a Job Discovery Wizard to help job seekers better match their existing skill set to different positions. Job seekers use the tool by selecting their most relevant skills and rating their proficiency in each. They receive a wide-ranging list of positions that fit those criteria. In addition, skills that are still needed are detailed, along with required training and employment growth outlook.

Here are some additional tips for transferring your skills in a tough economy:

• Keep an open mind: Explore opportunities in fields you may have never considered. You never know where your next great job will lie.

• Reach out to your network: Talk to friends, neighbors, past colleagues and anyone else you can think of about positions and jobs you are interested in. Get their advice and utilize the connections to help you get your foot in the door when you’re ready to apply.

• Create a skills-focused résumé: List experience by skill categories rather than chronologically on your résumé to show how you can translate your experience into different industries.

Learn More
For more information on transferring your skills, visit CBsalary.com and CareerPath.com.

Some call it Murphy’s Law. Some refer to it as everyday challenges.

Whatever YOU call those unexpected problems that seem to arise at the most inopportune times, one thing is certain — you need to be able to address them and move on.

One minute you are rolling merrily along, and then BAM! The ground beneath you crumbles.

• Your biggest customer files for bankruptcy and leaves you out in the cold. Your business is already cash-strapped, now what do you do?

• The economy is kicking you below the belt. You just lost your job. It’s not fair! You’ve worked hard yet things just seem to happen when you least expect it.

Unexpected personal and financial problems can hit you or your business at any time. Suddenly you find yourself up against the wall. You feel like you went from 100 to 0 miles per hour in sixty seconds.

Now you’re in a crunch. We’ve all been there.

What you do next is vital if you want to survive your challenge. You can freak out. Cop out — or face it head-on in a cool, relaxed and stress-free way. The choice is yours.

After years of putting out fires and coping with unexpected crises, motivational speaker and business consultant Brian Tracy developed a system for dealing with the inevitable life and business emergencies we all face.

Brian has created Crunch Point as a way to help us cope with these annoying situations. It allows you to benefit from his experience, instead of trying to go it alone.

Remember it’s not the situation; it’s how you perceive it and more importantly how you deal with it.

If you let it get to you emotionally it can eat you alive. Your personal power comes from controlling your response.

I know — it sounds easy, but putting it into practice is a whole different ball game.

Today’s economic landscape has changed the rules for all of us — give yourself the competitive edge to navigate the obstacles of your daily life — and emerge stronger and more confident than ever before.

Crunch Point provides you with 21 proven methods to overcome any crazy situation you may be facing. Whether it is personal or financial, it makes no difference.

You will be in control of things now.

Here’s a taste of what you’ll discover in Crunch Point:

• How to take control of the situation
• How to keep your cool—stay calm and rational while every one around you is losing their minds.
• How to communicate clearly and authoritatively—let yourself be heard
• How to identify and remove the obstacles that may be blocking the solution to your problem.
• How to deal with your problems more effectively—go for the jugular
• Forget your emotions—handle your problem systematically and easily
• How to have unshakeable courage in the face of your worst crisis
• How to handle your crunch point with the confidence of a Navy Seal
• How to generate cash-flow when it seems impossible
• How to keep your focus—keep your eye on the solution without wavering

These are just a few of the topics covered!

As you read Crunch Point you will notice yourself acting and behaving differently during a crisis. You will see things with a new clarity and understanding.

Just imagine how good it’s going to feel when you handle your next big problem as easily as swatting a fly off your arm.

You’ll be poised and confident no matter what life throws at you.

Brian has made a very limited number of copies of the Crunch Point book available, and, to encourage you to grab up a copy, he’s including (5) complimentary bonuses:

Exclusive Crunch Time CD
This CD is part of a special teleseminar program Brian conducted for a group of clients.
It’s guaranteed to deliver the one-two knock out punch you need to accelerate your success.

Hire and Keep the Best People Book
21 Practical and Proven Techniques You Can Use Immediately to Get and Keep the Best People for Your Company.

A beautiful hard cover edition that will be your personal guide to attracting the best people for your company. Whether you are hiring or looking to get hired this valuable reference guide will steer you straight.

21 Great Ways to Hire and Keep the Best People Audio
This is part of a special teleseminar Brian conducted for over 500 people (they EACH paid $197!). You’re getting it for nothing, nada, zilch.

Whether you work for someone or own your company, the sage advice in this 75 minute volume will put you on the fast-track to success.

Turbo Strategy CD
21 Proven techniques to get you through turbulent times.
In business, fads and buzzwords come and go, but the proven strategies Brian shares in this audio CD have worked for decades — and they will work for you today.

With all the economic horror stories you hear each day on the news, there has never been a better time to put the explosive powers of these turbo strategies to work for you. You’ll enjoy 67-minutes of solid content, and no BS tactics to beef up your business and survive the shaky business climate.

In this 67 minute CD, I give you 21 no BS tactics for beefing up your business and surviving in a shaky business climate.

The 5th bonus is a surprise, but you can be sure that Brian will select one of his information-packed success tools that he has become famous for.

Brian is not one to “over-hype” scarcity, so you can be sure that when he says there are limited quantities, they won’t last long. To insure you are able to take advantage of this offer, visit his site today.

After all, you do want to survive your next Crunch Point…don’t you?

by: Palo Alto Software

Often you may hear about what a business plan consists of. While including the necessary items is very important, you also want to make sure you don’t commit any of the following common business plan mistakes:

Putting it off.
Don’t wait to write a plan until you absolutely have to. Too many businesses make business plans only when they have no choice in the matter. Unless the bank or the investors want a plan, there is no plan.

Don’t wait to write your plan until you think you’ll have enough time. “There’s not enough time for a plan,” business people say. “I can’t plan. I’m too busy getting things done.” The busier you are, the more you need to plan. If you are always putting out fires, you should build firebreaks or a sprinkler system. You can lose the whole forest for paying too much attention to the individual burning trees.

Cash flow casualness.
Cash flow is more important than sales, profits, or anything else in the business plan, but most people think in terms of profits instead of cash. When you and your friends imagine a new business, you think of what it would cost to make the product, what you could sell it for, and what the profits per unit might be. We are trained to think of business as sales minus costs and expenses, which equal profits. Unfortunately, we don’t spend the profits in a business. We spend cash. So understanding cash flow is critical. If you have only one table in your business plan, make it the cash flow table.

Idea inflation.
Plans don’t sell new business ideas to investors. People do. The plan, though necessary, is only a way to present information. Investors invest in people, not ideas.

Don’t overestimate the importance of the idea, particularly the importance of the uniqueness of the idea. You don’t need a great idea to start a business; you need time, money, perseverance, common sense, and so forth. Very few successful businesses are based entirely on new ideas. A new idea is much harder to sell than an existing one, because people don’t understand a new idea and they are often unsure if it will work.

Fear and dread.
Doing a business plan isn’t as hard as you think. You don’t have to write a doctoral thesis or a novel. There are good books to help, many advisors among the Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), business schools, and there is software available to help you (such as Business Plan Pro, and others).

Spongey, vague goals.
Leave out the vague and the meaningless babble of business phrases (such as “being the best”) because they are simply hype.  Remember that the objective of a plan is its results, and for results, you need tracking and follow up. You need specific dates, management responsibilities, budgets, and milestones. Then you can follow up. No matter how well thought out or brilliantly presented, it means nothing unless it produces results.

One size fits all
Tailor your business plan to its real business purpose. Business plans can be different things: they are often just sales documents to sell an idea for a new business. They can be detailed action plans, financial plans, marketing plans, and even personnel plans. They can be used to start a business, or just run a business better.

Diluted priorities.
Remember, strategy is focus. A priority list with 3-4 items is focus. A priority list with 20 items is something else, certainly not strategic, and rarely if ever effective. The more items on the list, the less the importance of each.

Hockey-stick shaped growth projections.
Have projections that are conservative so you can defend them. When in doubt, be less optimistic.

Source: bplans

These days, Americans are spending an increasing amount of time online and on their computers in general searching for deals on last-minute weekend getaways, keeping in touch with friends and even working from home.

Now is the time to safeguard against any technical issues and have your computer tuned up to avoid potential problems.

A computer is a significant investment, which is why it’s important to keep it running smoothly. Much like a car going in for routine tune-ups, your computer needs ongoing maintenance as well. Following a few simple steps can save a great deal of money in the long run.

Staples’ EasyTech service, the second-largest national technology service, has a few simple tips on keeping your PC running smoothly:

Have an Internet Security/Anti-Virus Solution: You can’t protect your computer from viruses simply by avoiding e-mail attachments and exchanging files. Avoid unknowingly getting viruses from an infected Web site by making sure your security and anti-virus software is up to date.

Tidy Up and Tune Up: For a quick fix, Windows Disk Cleanup is a handy utility that will safely remove any temporary files from your hard drive, helping you increase your hard disk space and improve your computer’s performance. For a more thorough computer screening, take advantage of Staples’ EasyTech services.

Give Your Computer Room to Breathe: Heat is a computer’s worst enemy. Be sure to use a compressed air canister to clean out any dust or dirt that has accumulated inside your computer. Store your PC in a well-ventilated place to prolong its life span and reduce the risk of hardware failures.

Defragment Your Hard Drive: Using the Windows Disk Defragmenter utility on a regular basis keeps files on your hard drive organized and accessible to help improve performance and speed.

Don’t Ignore Windows Update: Make sure that you periodically visit Windows Update to download security patches and drivers. Most Microsoft-released security updates for Windows will automatically be downloaded and installed on the second Tuesday of every month.

Always Have a Backup Plan: Keep digital files, music and photos safe and always on hand with an external hard drive. This can save you time, money and frustration should your computer’s internal drive develop an issue.

For more information on EasyTech services, drop by any Staples location or visit http://www.staples.com/techservices.

Sometimes, the most important business cards aren’t the ones you carry in your wallet.

Corporate etiquette experts say a greeting, holiday or thank-you card-or even a simple mailed invitation-can go a long way toward reinforcing a company’s image and strengthening its relationship with clients and contacts.

Plus, with Web-based stationery solutions offering unique designs year-round, the process of printing affordable customized cards is easier than ever before.

Online retailers such as Tiny Prints allow businesses to upload photos and logos to a variety of cards and stationery styles. Users can customize the fonts and colors of their designs with a click of the mouse while working with the company’s in-house experts on design issues, including photo touch-ups.

If your company plans to mail cards this year, experts offer this final tip: Order them as early as possible. Tiny Prints knows that it’s always a good idea to beat a holiday rush, so the company accommodates early-bird shoppers by offering a selection of holiday cards all year long.

For more information, visit their website.

By: Brian Tracy, Creator of Million Dollar Habits

What do wealthy people do or have that enables them to accomplish so much more than the average?

I believe that these people are successful as a result of what I call leverage. Leverage is the key to maximizing and multiplying your potential for success and financial achievement.

Here are three examples of leverage that you can develop to achieve financial independence:

Become an Expert
First, become an expert in your chosen field. Read all the books, take all the courses, listen to all the audio programs. Second, specialize in those areas that are of greatest importance and greatest value to your company or to your customers. And the third key is know your product or service inside out. Aim to be recognized as the industry expert in your field. Remember the person who has the expertise has a far greater contribution to make than the person whose knowledge is just average.

Develop Your Skills
The second type of leverage is skill. The better you are at your job, the more you will be paid. The top 20 percent of salespeople earn as much as ten and fifteen times the average earnings of the bottom 80 percent. There are three keys to developing the leverage of skill. First, make a decision to be the best. Pay any price. Make any sacrifice. Go any distance to become excellent at what you do. Second, engage in continuous improvement. Never allow yourself to become satisfied or complacent at your current level of skill. And third, always strive to exceed the expectations of your customers, your boss, of the people you serve. Always do more and better than you’re paid for.

Save Your Money
The third type of leverage is money. Money is a powerful source of leverage and usually follows the development of knowledge and skill in your field. One of the reasons that it takes money to make money is that the accumulation of funds is an essential step in the development of the personal qualities and character that must precede the achievement of financial independence. In other words, you become the person capable of becoming financially independent by accumulating the funds that are necessary for you to achieve it.

Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas on personal leverage into action:

First, resolve today to become an expert in your chosen field. Set it as a goal, make a plan and work every day to become a little bit better in the most important things you do.

Second, develop the habit of saving money out of every single paycheck. It was once said that, “If you cannot save money, the seeds of greatness are not in you.” The very act of regular saving changes your character and gets you ready to achieve financial independence.

For more helpful tips to put you on the road to financial independence, check out Brian Tracy’s Million Dollar Habits audio set.