Latest / Freelance Careers with Fexingo: Independent Work, Consulting, and Self-Employment / How a Freelance Copywriter Raised Rates by Publishing a Pricing Philosophy
Transcript
- Lucas: So there's a freelance copywriter I've been following — Jenna. She writes B2B case studies and white papers for SaaS companies. Last spring she was charging around $2,500 per project and feeling stuck. By summer she'd doubled that to $5,000. Same clients, same type of work. Luna: Same output, just different packaging? Or did she actually change what she delivered? Lucas: That's the interesting part — she barely changed the deliverables. What she changed was how she talked about pricing. She wrote a 300-word 'pricing philosophy' page and put it on her website. Front and center, not buried in an FAQ. Luna: And that alone doubled her rates? No portfolio overhaul, no new niche? Lucas: Right, no new niche, no new samples. She'd already been specializing in SaaS for two years. The pricing philosophy page just made explicit what she was already doing — she explained that she charges based on the value the client receives, not the hours she spends. And she listed a rate range: $4,000 to $8,000 for a typical case study, depending on complexity. Luna: Okay, that range is key. If she'd said 'my rate is $5,000' flat, she might have scared off clients who need a simpler project. But the range signals flexibility. Lucas: Exactly. She wrote something like — 'For a standard case study with two interviews and one revision cycle, expect to invest $4,000 to $6,000. For projects requiring three-plus interviews or multiple rounds of revisions, the investment is $6,000 to $8,000.' She used the word 'investment' consistently, not 'price' or 'cost'. Luna: Did she get pushback from existing clients who were used to the old rate? Lucas: She did. One repeat client said, 'That's double what I paid last time.' Jenna's response was — she pointed them to the page and said, 'The scope of work hasn't changed, but I've gotten faster and more effective. The value you get is higher because I know your industry better now. The new rate reflects that.' She lost one client out of about fifteen. The rest stayed and paid the new rate. Luna: So a 93 percent retention rate after doubling prices. That's pretty strong. What about new leads? Did the page change who reached out? Lucas: That's where it gets really interesting. Before the page, about half her inbound leads asked about discounts or tried to negotiate. After, almost none did. The page acted as a filter — clients who couldn't afford her or didn't value the structured approach self-selected out before they even emailed. Her close rate actually went up because the leads were better qualified. Luna: It's like the pricing page did the sales call for her. The client comes in already having accepted the premise. Lucas: Yeah, exactly. And she told me the biggest mistake freelancers make when they try this is hiding the page. They put it in a dropdown menu labeled 'Pricing' with a generic table. Jenna linked to it from her homepage hero section — 'How I price my work' — and from every proposal she sent. Luna: So visibility was a deliberate choice. She wasn't shy about it. Lucas: Not at all. And that confidence communicated something to clients. If you're transparent about pricing, it signals that you know what you're worth and you're not going to haggle. Luna: It's interesting you mention confidence, because a lot of freelancers worry that putting a number out there will scare people away. But Jenna's case shows the opposite — the right clients are actually relieved to see a number. They don't want to play the guessing game either. Lucas: Right. And honestly, if today was worth a coffee to you, that's the link — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: If we've helped you think through a career move or a pricing decision like Jenna's, that's the smallest way to keep the show ad-free and independent. Lucas: No pressure — just an option for people who find value here. Back to the pricing philosophy. One thing Jenna emphasized: she didn't write the page overnight. She spent a week drafting and another week getting feedback from three trusted peers. Luna: What kind of feedback did she get? Lucas: Mostly to add more specificity. Her first draft was vague — 'I charge based on project scope' — which doesn't tell the client anything. Her peers pushed her to give concrete examples. So she added that range, and she also listed what's included: two interviews, a first draft, one round of revisions, a final deliverable. That way the client knows exactly what they're getting. Luna: So the page served a dual purpose — it justified the price and set expectations upfront. That probably reduced scope creep too. Lucas: It did. She said that after the page went live, the number of revision cycles per project actually dropped. Because clients understood what 'one round of revisions' meant from the start. Fewer angry emails. Luna: That's a hidden benefit. Less friction after the project starts. Lucas: Yeah. And she told me the page also helped her say no to clients who wanted a discount. She'd just point to the page and say, 'This is how I price. It's consistent for everyone.' That took the emotion out of it. Luna: It's almost like a pricing manifesto. She's not just stating numbers, she's explaining her philosophy. That builds trust. Lucas: Exactly. And it's replicable for any freelancer. You don't have to be a copywriter. A designer could write about why they charge per project, not per hour. A consultant could explain why they use a retainer model. The key is to tie the pricing logic to the value you deliver. Luna: What about someone who's just starting out and doesn't have a track record yet? Could they still use a pricing philosophy page? Lucas: Jenna actually addressed that in our conversation. She said if you're new, you can still write a philosophy page — but you might not include a dollar range yet. You can talk about how you think about pricing, what factors you consider, and that you provide a custom quote after a discovery call. It still signals professionalism. Luna: So the page evolves as your career does. Start with principles, add numbers when you have enough data. Lucas: Right. And Jenna's next step is to add a 'project calculator' — a simple interactive tool where clients answer three questions and get an estimated range. She's testing it with a few clients now. Luna: That's clever. It makes the pricing feel even more objective and less arbitrary. Lucas: I think that's the through-line here — pricing feels arbitrary to clients when it's hidden. When you bring it into the open and explain your reasoning, it starts to feel fair. And that's when you can raise rates without losing the people you actually want to work with. Luna: It's a good reminder that raising rates isn't just about saying a bigger number. It's about building a case that the bigger number makes sense. Lucas: Exactly. Jenna didn't just decide to charge more. She built the infrastructure to support that decision. The pricing page was the visible part, but the work of defining her process and her value came first. Luna: So if someone listening wants to try this, what's the first step? Should they draft a page immediately? Lucas: Jenna's advice: start by writing down the three most common questions clients ask about your pricing. Then answer them in plain language. That's your first draft. Then share it with two or three peers who will tell you if it's clear. Then put it live, link to it from your homepage, and see what happens. You can always tweak it. Luna: Simple, low-risk, and it worked for Jenna. I like it. Lucas: Yeah. And if you try it, let us know how it goes. We'd love to feature your story in a future episode.