Comments on: How to Know if You Should Charge Copywriting Clients Upfront

By: Nicki Krawczyk

Nicki Krawczyk — Wed, 29 Jul 2020 14:14:38 +0000

In reply to Ketsia.

Hi Ketsia,

I’m so glad you found this helpful!

Thanks for commenting!
Nicki

By: Ketsia

Ketsia — Tue, 28 Jul 2020 17:05:27 +0000

Thank you for this article! I’ve just started a copywriting course and I’m helping my friends who are business owners with their launches. Payment upon delivery is a much better low-risk way, and low risk/convenience is always one of the triggers that get prospects to make the decision to say yes.

I was wondering how to help my friends who don’t necessarily have a budget set aside for these services, and I stumbled on this article.

Great advice!

By: Nicki Krawczyk

Nicki Krawczyk — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 13:18:23 +0000

In reply to Sasha Kildare.

Hi Sasha,

I so sorry you experienced that, but I think it’s also in line with the very wrong but very real low value/pay-level of writers other than copywriters. It’s most definitely not okay, but it’s become the lay of the land. It’ll be interesting to see how the journalism industry continues to develop and evolve.

Thanks for commenting!
Nicki

By: Sasha Kildare

Sasha Kildare — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 03:04:56 +0000

I have done journalism on the side for years, and you are generally paid upon publication and after requested edits, sometimes more than one round. If the story doesn’t publish, you get a kill fee that is specified in the contract. Each article has a contract. I have had articles delayed, but never not published at all. That being said, I did get stiffed twice during the Great Recession from smaller publications that were not suffering financially. My articles were published, I was never paid. I stopped writing for them. I made an attempt to get paid and then gave up as life is too short.

By: Nicki Krawczyk

Nicki Krawczyk — Mon, 18 Nov 2019 13:12:29 +0000

In reply to Katie Love.

Hi Katie,

Thanks for your thoughts – deposits are definitely an option. Since many readers of this site are new and aspiring copywriters, though, I don’t advise them to ask for them. As they have less experience and fewer portfolio samples to prove their skills, asking for a deposit can make the risk factor too high for some clients. I also don’t recommend offering discounts on quotes, since it can give the impression that quotes are arbitrary. For example, if a service owner can give me 10% off just for making a payment upfront, I’m going to assume that there’s much more room for negotiation—or I’m going to wonder if the regular rate is inflated by 10%! Either way, it’s important to be careful since those aren’t really the impressions one wants to give a client.

Thanks for commenting!
Nicki

By: Katie Love

Katie Love — Sat, 09 Nov 2019 01:29:44 +0000

I’ve been doing this a while and I have to say that charging upfront is fine, depending on the business and your experience level. With most start-ups, 50 % upfront and 50% at the end is the norm. With established businesses, they often appreciate an upfront discount of 10%. Also, Square has their own finance plan which many of my customers enjoy. I get paid upfront, the customer enjoys the convenience of installments for a small fee or in some cases, no fee at all. So there are some options, but my advice is to be confident, kind, and realistic about what’s best for the customer. I have a personal policy not to start work without a deposit.

By: Nicki Krawczyk

Nicki Krawczyk — Tue, 22 Oct 2019 13:17:25 +0000

In reply to Susan Burton.

Hi Susan,

Yep! It’s really not usually a problem. I understand people being concerned about it but, by and large, clients are nice people who do want to pay you. 🙂

Thanks for commenting!
Nicki

By: Susan Burton

Susan Burton — Tue, 22 Oct 2019 01:46:18 +0000

I did not even think about the fact that it would be far more convenient for the client to pay all at one time rather than paying in two separate installments. It is reassuring to read that clients have always paid you.

By: Nicki Krawczyk

Nicki Krawczyk — Wed, 17 Apr 2019 13:57:18 +0000

In reply to Mike.

Hi Mike,

Agreed! Plus, it feels great to get that nice, big check from a thoroughly delighted client. 🙂

Thanks for commenting!
Nicki

By: Mike

Mike — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 18:58:35 +0000

I’ve been in an industry where payment on the 20th of the following month is the norm. So being paid upon completion feels like heaven to me. I’m happy with that!