Course Pricing Guidance

Hi Scott, I hope all went well. It's a thorny subject. I am coming rather late to your question and I do not have an answer. Here are some things I have gleaned along the way, through trial and error, that I think about and take into account when pricing that may be useful.

I have always tracked my time, be it in-house or freelance, and I have even taking to doing it for ELH challenges on this site, it has given me a good idea of how long different types of projects take me. Here are some other things to take into consideration, some interesting items one could negotiate on, and a spread sheet you can download: https://community.articulate.com/articles/3-tips-for-negotiating-your-next-e-learning-contract

I do find the scope-of-work needs to be nailed down pretty tight, expectations agreed upon before the fact and written down, meetings/consultations need to be accounted for in the spreadsheet, they can be a big loss if not. An outside scope here and an outside scope there can really bite into your fee. Plus, your expertise should definitely be a factor. Also as a freelance contractor it's always good to know your basic cost of actually doing business, which should be factored in, there are calculators online for this.  And not to forget additions and changes to content by the client after the fact. While there is always some leeway in these matters it should definitely be accounted for in the contract - for example, 3 rounds of changes (more is extra, the fee for that should worked out before-hand and made clear at the time before any additional (outside scope) work is undertaken)... if not it can go on forever and gobble up your fee in no time. I have found that being as clear and precise as possible, addressing variables, understanding the client's expectations (not assuming them) etc. makes the process smoother and keeps the relationship sweet —and one can actually start to make a living!  Yeah!