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One of my bosses asked me to make fifty covered notebooks for the participants in a conference she is hosting. I never know how much to charge. And it is my boss... This is the one she has seen, so she is expecting something very simple like this. Gallery at Splitcoaststampers
Is $3 each too much to charge? Thank you!
Is she supplying all the materials (notebook, pen, paper, tags, etc?). How long will it take you to put these out? If it takes you 10 minutes, then you are charging $.30 a minute for your time at $3 per item assuming she is paying for all other costs.
$3 is NOT too much! Even "simple" projects like that take lots of time.
How long will it take you to make 1?
Is she buying all the supplies, or are you?
I charge my boss $25/hour for any personal projects that I do for her. Examples are scanning photos, creating digital books, etc. I even scanned her DH's grandma's cookbook and made a digital book. (Heck, that's what I still charge the few customers that I have for web page design too -- way underpriced but it's sort of a hobby.)
If she supplied everything, then I'd charge $3 per notebook.
Kimberly
__________________ "There is a very fine line between hobby and mental illness." -- Dave Barry
I would be charging her $3 for the completed notebook. I am providing the notebooks, papers, tags, etc.. They probably cost me between $1.50-$2.00 each to make when making that many. Maybe more, I always underestimate. It probably takes me 20 minutes to make one. It is going to be a big project, and they need to be completed by March 20th. I am so happy Joann's is having a paper sale Friday and Saturday. That will cut down on the cost a little. Thanks for your help!
I definately think that $3 is too low if you have to buy all the materials... I am thinking more like $4.50-$5... Remember your time is worth something - do not discount your efforts!
I agree, $3.00 is way too low. If materials cost nearly $2.00, she is practically stealing from you at that price. I would charge at least $5.00. Would the company be paying for this and not her personally?
Ok, thank you! You guys are right. $3 is not too much and probably not enough. I will talk to my boss about it in the morning. I teach at a state community college. It is so hard for me to ask my chair to spend money on something like this instead of other things we could use in our programs, but I am going to. They asked me; I didn't suggest it to them. I want the presenters to have something nice to take away from the conference and know what a wonderful program we really have. I don't know why I am having such a hard time with this. DH keeps telling me to look at it from the business view and not a personal view. I am rambling...sorry about that. Thank you all for validating what I was thinking. You guys are the best!
It is so hard for me to ask my chair to spend money on something like this instead of other things we could use in our programs, but I am going to. They asked me; I didn't suggest it to them.
Technically you aren't ASKING for anything, you are telling her what you are charging. Like you said, they asked you to provide this service. I used to work at a university and was appalled to see how much money was spent on things that could have been purchased 'elsewhere' for pennies on the dollar.
If you make three an hour, this would take you almost 17 hours to make 50. If you charge $3 per notebook, this figures out to only $8.82 an hour. Although I suppose if you work on it in the assembly line style, you might be able to crank them out faster. Regardless, just make sure that you are compensated for your time (and time away from your family).
Kimberly
__________________ "There is a very fine line between hobby and mental illness." -- Dave Barry
And... (I'm never done)... If you are expected to purchase all of the materials and still only charge $3.... You will only be making $1 profit per book. That figures out to just under $3 an hour! (50 notebooks x $1 / 17 hours)
Kimberly
__________________ "There is a very fine line between hobby and mental illness." -- Dave Barry
It would be cool, however, if you could make these while you are at work. Even if you only were able to make three or four a day, you'd have them done on time. But I suppose that if you teach, there isn't any available time. But since you are making them for work, you'd think your boss would be able to accommodate you. LOL
Okay, I'm done.
Kimberly
__________________ "There is a very fine line between hobby and mental illness." -- Dave Barry
twyant, another detail to consider. Are you making the notebooks on company time or your own time? $3.00 is not enough if you're doing it on your time. Think about how much you make at your job and charge per hour - for shopping for supplies too. Off hours should be considered as overtime. If your boss saw how much TIME and effort it takes to make 50 notebooks, she'd appreciate them more. Better still, ask for a paid day off to make them.
If they buy all the supplies, $3 would be fair per book to make. I understand about wanting to spend the money for something else for your programs. I taught for 25 years in a public school. I know the people will love these and will appreciate your efforts, but you still need fair compensation. And if you could make them during work time, that would even be better,...seems fair since it is for work.
If they bought stuff from some "vendor" they would spend that and more. Have they done something similar for other conferences...what sort of budget did they have?
Thank you all for your help on this. I talked with my boss today and explained all of the expenses and time. She understands why I would like to charge more and agreed to 4.50 a notebook. She also wants to the college logo to go on the front, so really it will even be easier. Thanks for helping me feel more confident as I discussed this with her today. Everyone have a wonderful evening!
How much is too much?
