Post by svart on Sept 29, 2014 12:14:33 GMT -6
So I'm thinking about revamping how I charge clients for my services. I've historically charged per song, at some flat rate in order to get bands in the door.
Unfortunately, I've started to have bands/artists that are starting to string out the sessions and are abusing my previously lenient time allowance. Mostly they are unprepared and choose to figure out parts and arrangements in the studio rather than beforehand. Usually I get the excuse that they want to be "in the moment" for inspiration, but honestly they are mostly just not driven enough to do it before they get to the studio.
So anyway, I'm closing up shop for a month or so to switch over to my new computer and do some rewiring of the gear racks and other things I've been putting off.
Once I come back online, I want to have a new structure that will keep some generous allowance for time, because I've found that artists are very appreciative of not feeling too rushed, but I no longer want to allow those stragglers to drag things out simply because they don't feel like showing up when scheduled. I also understand that shit happens and what some folks think might work, doesn't sound good in the studio and things will change and I'll account for that when it happens.
Another thing.. Charging late fees or fees for rescheduling doesn't seem to help at all. They either just pay them or they just stop coming altogether. I'd much rather just stick to a schedule and keep things flowing than make money through punitive fees.
Above all, I want the studio to be a place of creation and fun, while the work keeps moving. I don't want to become the pushy engineer/producer type that makes the artist feel rushed and crowded. Vibe is important to me, and I have at least 3 of my previous customers asking to come back in the near future, simply because of the atmosphere and the slightly lower rates. I want to keep it that way!
So I'm thinking of a sliding/logarithmic scale where I give each song a generous amount of time and then charge per day for a day or two, and then charge per hour afterwards, like this:
1 song:
16 hours of time included (tracking and mixing)
8 hours (1 day of time), charged per day after the 16 hours is up.
Charged per hour after the 8 hours is up.
How do people feel about this proposal?
Do you/would you do it differently?
Unfortunately, I've started to have bands/artists that are starting to string out the sessions and are abusing my previously lenient time allowance. Mostly they are unprepared and choose to figure out parts and arrangements in the studio rather than beforehand. Usually I get the excuse that they want to be "in the moment" for inspiration, but honestly they are mostly just not driven enough to do it before they get to the studio.
So anyway, I'm closing up shop for a month or so to switch over to my new computer and do some rewiring of the gear racks and other things I've been putting off.
Once I come back online, I want to have a new structure that will keep some generous allowance for time, because I've found that artists are very appreciative of not feeling too rushed, but I no longer want to allow those stragglers to drag things out simply because they don't feel like showing up when scheduled. I also understand that shit happens and what some folks think might work, doesn't sound good in the studio and things will change and I'll account for that when it happens.
Another thing.. Charging late fees or fees for rescheduling doesn't seem to help at all. They either just pay them or they just stop coming altogether. I'd much rather just stick to a schedule and keep things flowing than make money through punitive fees.
Above all, I want the studio to be a place of creation and fun, while the work keeps moving. I don't want to become the pushy engineer/producer type that makes the artist feel rushed and crowded. Vibe is important to me, and I have at least 3 of my previous customers asking to come back in the near future, simply because of the atmosphere and the slightly lower rates. I want to keep it that way!
So I'm thinking of a sliding/logarithmic scale where I give each song a generous amount of time and then charge per day for a day or two, and then charge per hour afterwards, like this:
1 song:
16 hours of time included (tracking and mixing)
8 hours (1 day of time), charged per day after the 16 hours is up.
Charged per hour after the 8 hours is up.
How do people feel about this proposal?
Do you/would you do it differently?
