Freelance medical writers provide valuable expertise and experience and therefore need to be compensated appropriately. One of the perennial questions for freelancers is how much to charge clients for services.
Luckily, we don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Many resources and experts are available to help freelancers determine value-based pricing for their services.
Cyndy Kryder, a freelance medical communicator with more than 30 years of experience, advises freelancers to develop a system to track their time while using benchmarks such as AMWA’s Medical Communication Compensation Report to understand market rates. Setting a price for a project is never as simple as plugging in a number, but tools like the Compensation Report can help you determine how closely your rates approach the average. Perhaps you’ll decide it’s time to raise your project rate.
Keep in mind that clients are purchasing your time, but they are also purchasing your experience and the knowledge you bring to the table. The value of freelancers’ work stems from expertise and experience, and those factors, as well as the types of projects, should drive pricing. That is why experts like Kryder prefer project-based pricing over hourly rates to avoid undercharging clients. Resources and tools are available to help freelancers determine what they can and should charge for this essential work.
Experience-Based Pricing
When determining how much to charge a client, beginning freelancers can access resources such as AMWA’s Medical Communication Compensation Report, which compiles information on income, benefits, and rates for medical writing, editing, and communication professionals. The report is available as an AMWA membership benefit or for purchase by nonmembers.
One of the best tools freelance medical writers have is their own experience on previous projects. As freelancers build a body of work and knowledge, they can learn from those experiences. It is important to track the time you spend on projects to build this historical knowledge. How much did you charge for the project, and what was your estimated hourly pay? Did you feel you were fairly compensated? How accurate was your estimate of how long the project would take?
As you gain experience and your reputation grows, so does your knowledge of what to charge based on your skills and past work.
Hourly vs Project Rates
There are exceptions, but many veteran freelancers prefer to charge per project rather than by the hour because hourly rates can reward inefficiency and punish efficiency. For example, if someone charges $100/hour for a project that takes 50 hours, they earn $5000. A seasoned, faster freelancer who completes the same work in 30 hours for the same hourly rate only earns $3000.
That is why many experienced freelancers choose to charge per project rather than at an hourly rate.
Defining Scope
When communicating with clients and providing an estimate, it is important to define the scope of the project clearly. When freelancers and clients have a shared understanding of what is needed to complete the project, it will go more smoothly. For example, the estimate can include
-
What aspects of the project are the freelancer’s responsibility?
-
Which materials and resources will be provided by the client?
-
How many revisions are expected before the project is complete?
-
What are the deliverables?
-
When is each component of the project due?
The more details that are provided up front, the fewer hassles for both client and freelancer. And if the client is expecting more than you can provide for the estimate, consider scaling back on the scope of your offerings.
Beware of Revision Creep
In Kryder’s experience, one of the mistakes she sees freelancers making most often is failing to agree on the number of revisions with a client. There is a big difference between the work that goes into 3 revisions and the work that goes into 15. When everyone must get their hands on a project, it makes more work for the freelancer to respond to comments and requests for revisions.
However, if you know ahead of time that a particular client tends to seek multiple revisions, you can plan for that by negotiating additional fees for additional revisions beyond a set number.
Resources for Pricing
One of the best resources for freelancers seeking advice on estimating and charging clients is other medical communicators. It can be helpful to show an estimate to a trusted colleague to see if it seems reasonable and clear.
AMWA members can use the Engage virtual discussion board to ask questions of experienced medical communicators about compensation, communicating with clients, and other topics related to the profession.
AMWA members also have access to the AMWA Medical Communication Compensation Report, which is an excellent resource for understanding market trends.
Subscribers to Pencil Points, the online newsletter of the Accidental Medical Writer series published by Kryder and her business partner, Brian Bass, get access to a Freelance Estimating Checklist.
Communication Is Key
Freelance medical communicators have access to many relevant resources and tools to help them set rates and create accurate estimates for client projects.
As is the case in any business, it is important to communicate clearly about expectations, scope, deadlines, and timelines.
When we do our homework and manage the expectations of clients, our experience and knowledge are rewarded by fair compensation.
AMWA acknowledges the contributions of Cyndy Kryder, MS, MWC, in the development of this AMWA resource and Sunali Wadehra, MD for peer review.
