Break Room / Sell it
What should I charge?
Frank’s two cents
Charge a real price from the start. Check what others charge, make sure the number covers your costs and your time, and say it out loud without apologizing. You can always offer a founding discount, but raising a price you started too low is a much harder conversation.
Most first-time sellers pick a number that feels polite, which usually means too low. This takes about an hour and gets you a number you can say with a straight face.
If you've ever padded a project estimate for your boss, you already understand margin.
1. Find the going rate
Look at the list you made in Who's already doing it? and write down what each one charges and how: per job, per hour or per month. Search “[your service] rates [your town]” and ask two or three people who already do this work what's normal. You're looking for a range, from the cheap end to the expensive end.
2. Work out your floor
Your floor is the lowest price that's worth your time. Add up what each job costs you (supplies, software, mileage, marketplace and payment fees), then add your hours times the hourly rate you'd actually accept for giving up an evening. Remember that part of what you earn goes to taxes; an accountant can tell you how much to set aside. Don't go below the floor, even for a first customer.
3. Think about what it's worth to them
Then look at it from the customer's side: what does the work get them? A restaurant with the wrong hours on its website loses dinner orders every night it stays wrong, so fixing it is worth more to the owner than the three hours it takes you. Price somewhere between your floor and the value you deliver, leaning toward value once you have proof it works.
4. Pick a structure people can understand
One clear price beats a menu of options when you're starting. Per job works for one-off work like a website fix or an estate sale. Monthly works for anything ongoing like bookkeeping or dog walking, and it's steadier for you. Hourly is easy to explain but caps what you can earn and makes customers watch the clock, so use it only when the work really can't be predicted.
How you describe the offer changes what people compare it to. Call it “your menu, hours and photos kept right all year” and the $175 gets weighed against the dinner orders they lose when those are wrong, instead of against someone else's price.
5. Say the price plainly
State the number, what it includes and the next step, then stop. “It's $175 a month for menu, hours and photo updates. I can start Monday.” No “if that's okay” and no discount before anyone asks. A common rule of thumb: if every single person says yes immediately, you're probably too cheap. If nobody does, check whether you're talking to the right customers before you drop the price.
6. Be honest about founding prices
A lower price for your first few customers in exchange for feedback is fair, as long as you tell them up front what the regular price will be and when it starts. Raise prices for new customers first. For existing ones, give real notice and say why.
An example, with made-up numbers
Here's how the math might look for website tune-ups for local restaurants. Your numbers will be different; the point is the order you work them out in.
| Step | Example |
|---|---|
| Hours per restaurant per month | 3 |
| The hourly rate you'd accept | $40, so $120 |
| Software and costs per restaurant | $10 |
| Your floor | $130 a month |
| Going rate you found locally | $150 to $300 a month |
| Your regular price | $175 a month |
| Founding price for the first five | $140 a month, going to $175 after three months |
Got an idea? SideFrog gives you a straight verdict, who'd pay, a first test to run and names with an open .com, in about ten seconds.
Check your ideaWant help building it? Mark helps people vibe code their first site with AI. Pick a time with Mark or message him on LinkedIn.
Questions people ask
Should I charge by the hour?
Only when the work is truly unpredictable. A set price per job or per month is easier for customers to say yes to, and it rewards you for getting faster.
What if someone says it's too expensive?
Ask what they were expecting and what they'd compare it to. Sometimes they're the wrong customer. Sometimes you need a smaller version of the offer at a lower price, rather than the same offer for less.
Should I put my prices on my website?
For simple services, yes. It saves everyone time and filters out people who were never going to buy. For custom work, a “starting at” price works well.
Should I offer a free trial?
Rarely for a service. People don't tell you the truth about things they didn't pay for. A small paid first job or a founding price teaches you more.
Should I run discounts?
Sparingly, and with clear limits. Discounting all the time teaches people to wait for the next one. A founding price for your first few customers, or a sale with a real start and end date, is fine. Keep your main offer at its regular price.
Should I offer a guarantee?
If you can stand behind one, yes, and make it specific: what's covered, what isn't, and what happens if they're unhappy. Specific terms show you've thought it through and intend to honor it.
How often should I raise prices?
Look at it whenever you're too busy to take new customers, or once or twice a year. Raise for new customers first and give existing ones notice.