I need some advice on running this shit.

[mrhotapples]

Alright...Things are picking up and I'm really busy. I haven't had a day off in two weeks. I've got a lot of people asking me to do flat rates for them, add on a few extra hours if they can pay me up front and book a few days...and when I know they'll be easy to work with, I generally do it. I guess my question is, should I do this at all since it potentially means that I'm going to probably end up having these bands tell their friends I'll do "x songs for x amount of money"? Is it a good business practice to give some close friends a break and to keep a clock for the other guys or is that going to get me in trouble?

I'm only charging 15 dollars an hour, and my day rate/8hr is 100 bucks...I'll go for 10 for 100 bucks though if things aren't murder to deal with...So I'm not expensive or anything, and the flats I give are usually like 18 hours for 13 hours of standard rate, so it's not so disproportionate, but...Advice?

 

[Sinistah]

wow this is a personal choice, it's your labor and time your putting in

if your comfortable with discount rates then do it

if you want to make $$$$ do it (discount) in moderation or possibly to attract clientel....

but at ya rate and workload, i'd definitely probably let them know due to popular demand and time discrepancies that the price would be "upped" in a decent amount of time for those who are gonna stick with ya services to adjust to the new prices......

i can garuntee you that ya workload increased because word got out about your very generous pricing to begin with.... and thats not bad at all, except your eventually gonna wanna be paid more for working harder...........

 

[NYMorningstar]

I guess my question is, should I do this at all since it potentially means that I'm going to probably end up having these bands tell their friends I'll do "x songs for x amount of money"?

You should remain flexible and charge what is reasonable for your time. Only you can determine what that is.

Supply and demand considerations may be appropriate also, e.g. if you have too much work charge more or if you don't have enough work charge less. Try to find your point of diminishing returns (the highest price you can charge before your overall revenue begins to drop).

Is it a good business practice to give some close friends a break and to keep a clock for the other guys or is that going to get me in trouble?

The problem you're describing is an age old problem and is even more apparent when you do work for "family".

I think you should exclude relationship considerations until your business is well established. Let them know that this is a new business and needs to be run like a business. Later on, if you feel charitable you can always give back some but if you think about it there are better charities you can be supporting than your own clientele.

 

[Reggie]

I don't think you should feel guilty at all at those rates. I started off doing a flat rate thing, but told them it was an introductory deal. I only had one band later on that got a little miffed that I wouldn't do the flat rate deal anymore and they kind of had the attitude that I owed them something anyway, so it is probably best that I didn't end up working with them.

Eventually what I moved to was a flat rate per song for the mixdowns, but $20/hour for tracking sessions. The per hour thing really helps keep people more focussed and it ends up wasting less of my time. But the flat rate on the mixdowns allows me to really give it my all without having to worry about the bands' running out of money at the end and having to skimp at mix time resulting in a final product that doesn't represent my best.
I would recommend this method for you because with home recording studios, the acquaintances you are recording don't feel like they are wasting your time since you live there anyway. Truth is, you probably have better things to do than wait for their "rehearsals" to turn into something worth recording.

 

[xstatic]

There is no problem with giving discounts to clients if you feel inclined to do so. Make sure they know that the price you gave was for them and not every client that walks through the door. Let them know that if they start telling everyone that they can go back to regular rate.

 

[mrhotapples]

Thanks for the advice guys. I guess I'm going to drop this flat rate stuff, 'cause I do a lot of things that a lot of folks wouldn't.

My day rate being 100 bucks meant that I worked 12 hours for 100 bucks yesterday. If there is daylight to burn, it counts as a day for me. I also mix for free, but that's going to change next year as I get busier.

I'm going to be moving into a new house in April and reconstructing the garage, put in a stone wall and hardwood floors, completely absorbant ceiling, soundproofing...My rates are going to go up 5 bucks and I'm going to do a flat 50 dollars per song for mixes just to start out, but at that point I'm going to start getting active bands that may need tracking for indy label stuff too so it will be justified.

I'm glad I never put the money into nice equipment back six-seven months ago when I wanted to buy a nice pre so I looked better; the money will allow me to build a tracking room and that'll attract more customers I think. Plus my band can practice later!

 

[Ironklad Audio]

flat rates are fine when you're getting started out...i'm still doing the same myself, but you have to put a cap on the amount of time that's available. the 1st gig i did, i charged $50/track, and did way more than $50 worth of work on each track. tell them that after a certain period of time, the clock will start ticking.

same thing with the mixes - tell them that the mix is included with the time, but that if they're going to want to do a lot of revisions and nit-picking, it'll be by the hour

i would also tell anyone who you give a discount rate to be confidential about it; explain to them that they're getting the "bro rate", and that you don't want every little shit in town thinking they can get you to work for the same amount, especially if you're planning on increasing your prices later