Why Do Web Designers Under-Charge for Their Services?
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Why are so many web designers under-charging?
Trust me; it’s not just you!
It’s not a simple black-and-white answer, but here are a few reasons you (and all your designer friends) are under-charging.
You think you’ve got to compete with other designers
Can we stop already with the competition? There is enough work to go around! But constantly web designers are competing to undercut each other’s prices, add in extra features, or steal the sale. Not only are you making web design a commodity, you’re hurting the whole industry AND yourself by constantly cutting your prices.
Instead, show the value of what you offer, and bring yourself AND the entire industry up by delivering results and networking with others so that you help each other.
You don’t think anyone will pay for a website made with a page builder
Uhm, wrong. High-paying clients don’t care WHAT you use to make the website, they care about WHAT the website does for them. If the website you make helps them make more sales, or saves them time, they won’t care whether you used WordPress, Squarespace, Showit, or anything else.
Stop worrying about the tools, and start delivering results.
You’re not confident in your abilities
A lot of designers are either self-taught entirely, or went to design school only to miss out on the business part of running a web design business. So then you under-charge. You think, “No one would pay ME those kinds of prices!”
Why the heck not? High-paying clients are going to pay someone, so why not you?
You’re smart. You’re a web designer for crying out loud. You can learn anything you don’t already know, especially the business stuff.
Did you know I am completely self-taught? And I charge $10,000+ for websites. It took me some time to get there, and a big part of that time was gaining the confidence to charge those rates.
And now I do.
You are so much better than you think you are. And anything you don’t know? You can learn.
If you want to learn more quickly, I’m here for you. Over the past 8 years I’ve honed all the business parts of running a web design business. So you don’t have to.
TL;DR
Instead of competing with others, collaborate with them in a private community.
Instead of stressing over tools, learn how to deliver results to your clients.
Instead of thinking, “Oh, I could never charge that,” raise your rates with confidence knowing that your systems are smooth from attracting clients to handing over the finished website.
Originally published 2019 on ErinFlynn.com. Updated 7/18/23.
