How do freelance marketers price their services?
There has always been a framework for pricing that considers:
→ Costs
→ Competitor pricing
→ Typical price ranges in the country
→ What the client or company can afford to pay (meaning their business size)
→ Your personal brand and authority
The more people ask for my services and want to “claim” my time, the higher I need to set my price (not surprisingly, I then often get ghosted). 😀
I look at it this way:
“I approach pricing as if I were already planning to delegate work or hire more people in the future. I am thinking about growth, and that’s not possible without higher pricing.”
Doing a small research survey:What indicators do you consider when pricing marketing services?
And what amounts are you willing to pay? We’re talking about a monthly fee: an estimated number is enough.
Are you comfortable when a freelancer starts delegating work under their own name and gradually takes on the characteristics of an agency?
Replies
Sonofa
Not exactly marketing freelancing, but made me think of your question. Peak Ji (Manus co-founder, Manus was acquired by Meta) was asked in an interview how they set their price. He said they basically looked at ChatGPT’s pricing and went with $20/month. Very much a gut call. So at least one “how do you price?” answer is: pick a reference that feels right and commit.
minimalist phone: creating folders
@stevekwok in their case, they chose competition led pricing model, but that's a product for subscription. Human services are something different.
minimalist phone: creating folders
@tereza_hurtova the thing is... what is the model then? Creating a fixed-priced package + % from revenueor?
@busmark_w_nika Exactly! I’ve seen it work as a hybrid model: a monthly base fee + a small percentage of revenue uplift when results improve. I personally know a few marketers (my friends) who run on this structure. It’s actually closer to a classic sales model = base + commission, which makes sense if marketing is directly tied to revenue. It doesn’t work everywhere, though. You need decent tracking and enough margin to share upside.
The real problem with fixed pricing is finding that balance where the client doesn’t feel overcharged and the freelancer doesn’t feel underpaid. And hourly pricing is tricky too -> people work at very different speeds. If I can solve something in 10 minutes that takes someone else an hour, should the client pay less just because I’m faster? I think this tension is something almost every freelancer wrestles with at some point. 🙈
minimalist phone: creating folders
@tereza_hurtova Your second paragraph is so spot on. It would be cool to know what the rates of agencies are :D you know, I could better set prices and not to undervalue myself :D
@busmark_w_nika Agency rates are a wild range! 😄 I've worked in some, so... I know a bit of that. Most of us don’t undervalue ourselves because we don’t know the market rate… we undervalue ourselves because we’re scared to test a higher one. Worst case? You get ghosted. Best case? You realize you’ve been undercharging this whole time. 😅
I’ve found pricing tied to outcomes works best — when freelancers clearly connect their work to traffic, leads, or revenue, higher monthly retainers feel justified and trust stays strong even as they scale.
minimalist phone: creating folders
@allinonetools_net This is usually the best option for someone who hires them, but if the results are not the best, the freelancer doesn't have as many advantages (in other words, they have to put a lot of effort into the project, which only people who know how to do things right can afford).