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silmatria
Community Member

Negotiating higher rates with an existing client after lower offer

Hello everyone,

 

I have had a dilemma about a certain contract that I am very dedicated to. To understand the issue better, here is the backstory: when we started working together in September (2020), I bid for $20/h, 15h/week. This was, and still is, my base hourly rate. However, after a very satisfying interview, the client sent an offer for $14/h, 20h/week, and mentioned they would be open to discussing the cost after 4 weeks. This seemed fair to me (and still does), as this is a very long-term project and they wanted to be sure they were spending their money right.


However, after the said period passed (and then some), I couldn't muster up the nerve to discuss this, even though he was extremely satisfied with the quality of work (and vocal about it!). Then, after about 6-7 weeks from the start, our workflow and communication has slowly started to die out due to some other reasons (theirs, allegedly personal and not connected to me/work in any way). After consistent "ghosting", I wanted to know what was up and confronted them about it (professionally of course), asking about the silence, whether there has been an error on my part and how we should proceed etc., as I need to plan my time (and look for other clients if need be).


Long story short, they were understanding and stated reasons for unresponsiveness, which were understandable (and had nothing to do with our relationship), and after a couple of weeks our collaboration went back on track.

 

Everything has been going pretty well for the past month or so, and I intend to keep working with this client for a long time to come - as does he. However, the 2-month pause disrupted the dynamics, and though we are on great terms now, the wind has slightly changed due to this and I now feel I missed the window for rate negotiation. I would like to discuss it with him in about a month (once our flow stabilizes further, and we reach a 6-month milestone, which could be a good additional argument), but I am not sure how to go about it and what to focus on, as there needs to be something in it for him as well. I am confident he would be at least open to discussion, and I am positive my work holds more value, especially since I have had several $20/h contracts, but I am afraid this might bring tension and additional responsibility that I may not be able to take on.


I should also note that we changed the weekly limit from 20h to 30h recently, which meant an additional strain on their budget. All things considered, I am not sure how to approach the situation, as it is slightly complicated (at least from my point of view).

 

Does anyone have any advice on how to negotiate, argue my stance and, finally, what to propose? Please feel free to ask anything that would help understand the issue better - I would be more than happy to assist in resolving this the best way possible.


Any help would be much appreciated, so thank you in advance!

Sara

2 REPLIES 2
lysis10
Community Member

Kinda weird for him to just throw you something and offer to go up later. When I'm able to D a provider down, I certainly don't offer to give them more money later. lol That would be weird. "oh hey you're charging me this rate but hey I want to give you more now!" lol I gave my cleaning lady $100 for xmas. Does that count? 

It sounds like he's already well aware that he's underpaying you, so I would just give him a month's notice that your rate will be going up to $X. As a freelancer, you don't need to ask permission for a raise, especially if you've already got clients who are willing to pay you higher rates. But are you prepared to walk away if he says no, and lose the steady work? That's something that only you can decide.

 

As for what's in it for him, well, he gets to keep working with you. If he doesn't pay, then he doesn't get to keep working with you. 

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