[Ted S]

Originally Posted by legionofangels

I agree, except on the hourly rate. I won't work with someone hourly. If you cannot estimate the project properly that states you most likely don't know how to do what needs to be done and need to charge an hourly rate because the coder is unsure of how long something will take.

As a designer that's a fairly shocking response to me... I've always worked with people who accept a ballpark on a project but one has to understand that more features will mean more work. It's very rare for someone working outside of a large project to define things well enough that there aren't some changes and with changes comes more work. Fixed pricing is good if you don't trust the coder's skills but unless the developer grossly underestimates, it tends to cost you far more in the long run (I estimate 50 hours, it takes 25 because things "click", I win, you lose).

Even designers typically make $25/hour in companies, so I find it hard to imagine 50/hour. What makes you worth that much would be my question. What have you done that justifies the high cost.

I guess I should stop hiring firms where designers run for for $125-$150 an hour and coders $150 - $200.

Anyways, in response to some of the earlier posts... There's definitely always room for more credentials and feedback to verify developers & designers but on the same argument, people hiring have to be honest about budgets and expectations. vBulletin costs under $200 because it's sold to thousands and thousands of people. A custom addon to add a red alert when someone clicks on the secret code word of the day for your forum isn't going to any other site and chances are, you're going to ask for exclusivity even if it would. Sometimes people get lucky and get cheap talent -- I've certainly had my share of bargain work, especially in the design world. However, when you're fighting against other paid projects at good rates, offering something below market is either going to get you a novice or ignored, with those rare exceptions.

I’ve also seen a lot of people hiring who post that they were “shocked” when asked for a deposit. Time has a value and frankly small projects often go south due to conflicts, changes and life.

To get the most out of the project both sides need to be on the same page – this means the person hiring is certain of credentials and the person getting hired is being compensated reasonably with some assurance they’ll get paid. The smaller the project, the harder this is – jumping through hoops for a 2 hour project just doesn’t pan out.