Ilise touched on the barrier-to-entry thing above, so I won’t belabor it except to say that while a form may not be your thing, it’s always a good idea to pre-qualify somehow. You can do it in the way you have the first conversation if it’s your preference, but to let everyone in the door is a fool’s game.

I grappled with the set fee vs. hourly thing initially, too, but I can tell you from experience, it works. Doing it successfully is predicated on a couple of things: knowing how long it takes you to execute various parts of a job (experience should address this); and establishing boundaries (contracts, however simple, that outline deliverables and rounds of revisions). Otherwise, you’re right: you stand a good chance of getting screwed.

There are also a few exceptions to this rule: ongoing maintenance of a website, for example, is usually handled hourly, and you can also work out retainer agreements for longtime clients. Just be sure to outline the terms of the retainer clearly, too.

In general and in an ideal world, I agree that it’s not a good idea to create barriers to entry for your prospects. Big companies usually have the resources to deal with every prospect who expresses interest, whether at a trade show or through a web site.

However, as freelancers, your time and resources are limited. You can’t afford to waste it with people who are not in a position to hire you. That’s why I suggest not only a form on a web site; I also recommend getting into the habit, in an initial phone call, of bringing up the issue of money as soon as possible. Find out if you are in the same ballpark price-wise if you want to avoid spending time writing proposals for prospects who can’t afford you.

We’ll be addressing all of these issues in depth at the Creative Freelancer Conference in Chicago at the end of this month. Hope to see you there.

Its so important to be aware of your market for a million reasons, and even more so when it comes to making a recipe for success. Otherwise you are just chasing around a bunch of scattered people, and you end up working twice as hard for your money.

Number 8. Just live it, know for a fact that every single client is going to be a culprit of “scope creep,” and be prepared to handle it. I use milestones now, I break up all the millions of things the client wants to do, into measurable and observable steps. If they want to add another want to the list, that’s fine it goes into the next group of milestones and gets a price attached to it.

… great article.

“Have you ever had to fill out a form before entering a booth at a trade show?”

Nice analogy!

agreed.