I’m a highly efficient professional and have developed a workflow that saves my clients time, energy, and money, all while increasing the quality of the final deliverable. This is made possible with the policies below. In the interest of expedience, I expect all prospective clients to read my policies. I’ve made them clear and concise for your convenience.
Contents
Communication Policy
Business Contact Hours
Contact hours are Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM US Eastern Standard Time, excluding US bank holidays. I’m usually very responsive, but please allow 1-2 business days for a response—I may be traveling. The best way to communicate with me is email.
Meeting Policy (Phone/Skype/In-Person)
While I insist on excellent customer service, I hope you can respect my need to manage my time carefully, as I work on as many as a dozen projects at once.
As such, email is the best way to communicate with me. Additionally, I don’t want to bill you for meetings that are unproductive. The majority of meetings are unnecessary because questions and concerns can be handled through email. To encourage the efficient use of both my time and your time, please ask yourself the following questions.
- Can I put my thoughts down in writing? Have I thought through this situation?
- If no, do I need outside input to make progress?
- Does moving forward require a real-time conversation?
- Why do I need a real-time conversation?
- Can I speak my thoughts in a voice recording instead?
If you really must request a meeting, then I respectfully ask you to use this simple Meeting Preparation Checklist (adapted from Harvard Business Review).
- Identify the purpose of the meeting.
- Develop a preliminary agenda of discussion points.
- Define a desired outcome for the meeting.
- Send the agenda to all parties involved.
The first step for prospective clients is to answer a thorough questionnaire by email, which you can access here.
Requests for Sample Work
My portfolio speaks for itself. If you think that you require sample work to make your hiring decision, I politely suggest that you instead ask me for an explanation of the work I’ve done before. This will provide you with insight into the level of quality and precision that you’ll get from me. If you prefer a direct sample, a minimum of 2 hours must be paid before work begins.
Billing Policies
The following policies apply unless otherwise specified. These policies are in place to encourage efficiency. My rates allow you peace of mind that you’re getting top-quality work. In sum, I have a $250 minimum fee regardless of the size of the project. Currency is listed in US Dollars. Upwork clients needn’t be concerned with below.
- For hourly contracts, the minimum engagement is $250 or 6 billable hours, whichever is greater.
- For Upwork: Upon starting the contract, Freelancer will add this amount as manual time in the Upwork work diary. Freelancer will work an equivalent amount of time from this retainer before billing any additional time.
- Example: If the contract is agreed at $40 an hour, then Freelancer will bill for $250 (6 hours x $40 = $240, which is less than the minimum). Once this retainer has been depleted, Freelancer will bill as needed.
- After this minimum retainer is used up, Freelancer will begin billing as needed.
- Time will be billed in 20 minute increments.
- Any unused portion of the retainer will be refunded within 5 business days of the termination or completion of the contract, minus a $35 processing fee.
- For contracts with a fixed rate, the minimum retainer is $250.
- The estimated cost of work performed may be less than the minimum fee. Freelancer may refund, at his discretion, any unused portion within 5 business days of the termination or completion of the contract.
- Example: Your project is estimated to cost $200. The actual work comes out to $150. You may be refunded $50.
- In the event of the termination of a project on which work has already begun, any unused portion of the fees will be refunded within 5 business days of the termination the contract, minus a $35 processing fee.
- At Freelancer’s discretion, Freelancer may bill for activities performed in service to the project.
- Examples of billable time include but are not limited to time spent on activities such as phone calls, emails, messages, research, strategizing, organization, and management.
- Each activity will be billed at a minimum of a 20 minute increment.
It's in your best interest to be thorough before incurring any costs on account of communication and revisions.