Preparing a quote
Quoting for the job
Actually quoting for a job is different from estimating what you need to charge for it. Firstly, if you really want the job you might be willing to put in more hours to get it, or under price for it. Everyone does that sometimes, but do remember you can't do it all the time.
Secondly, the form you have filled in is not a quote. It's a way of estimating your day rate. You might want to show that to the prospective client as a way of justifying your rate, but if you do then it's unlikely you will want to give them as much detail as you need to work it out. As a result you can print out a summary version at the end of this section. It is enough to justify your rate without giving away all your commercial secrets.
Even then, there are issues to consider:
- if the job is for a long period then there's no doubt that winning it will reduce the time you have to spend on quoting for other work, admin, and other issues. It may also reduce your research time. In that case you should either reduce your day rate after you've calculated it, or allow for this when calculating the number of days you have available to work;
- conversely, if you're only quoting for a day or two the admin and other costs will be high, and a higher rate is justified. This might be 25% more than normal. One-off workshops are, for example, time intensive to research and plan and need rates that reflect that fact.
Starting the quote
To start the quotation enter:
- the client's name and address.
- the date
- your reference for the quote (if any)
- the name of the person to whom you are sending the quote
- the name of the job you are quoting for.
Client name: |