Prices - Flat or Per Thousand

gnizitigid · April 14th, 2016, 09:54 AM

Hi

I am Digitizer, currently i charge flat $10 per design, but sometimes designs are too complex and takes hours, so should i charge per 1000 stitches as it takes too much time to do these

AlisonB · April 15th, 2016, 12:54 AM

I don't like the concept of charging for stitches as it is too easy for the unscrupulous to pad the design with unnecessary stitches.
I also digitize and take pride in a design that runs efficiently with the lowest stitch count I can manage. Personally I charge on complexity. I have a minimum charge which covers the majority of work that comes in. I get a picture from the client, give them a quote, wait for the money to be deposited in my account, then do their work.
I also don't do free designs. (I think you are way too generous.

) They can look at my portfolio or ask other clients about my work.
Just my take on things. I am in another country - so what works here may not work so well for you.

Robert Young · April 18th, 2016, 10:12 AM

we have had the same flat rate for 15 years now for designs up to 10,000 stitches. ($35) What HAS changed is what we charge for those designs over 10,000... those have gone down. so what we would have charged 75.00 for would today be 55.00 or less. But those are totally based on complexity. We still do designs every day that are 85-110.00. So even though years ago we, as an industry, got decimated by the "low cost" offshore digitizers we have kept busy with clients who think digitizing is NOT an area to look for cost cutting if the quality is there. nor do they penny pinch with thread, backing, needles, etc... THOSE are what enable them to beat their competition who IS trying to squeeze every nickle out of all of those because they lose focus that QUALITY is the top thing that matters in the grand scheme.

Robert Young · April 18th, 2016, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlisonB

I get a picture from the client, give them a quote, wait for the money to be deposited in my account, then do their work..

I find it interesting (different part of the World I guess) that you receive payment BEFORE the work is done. Pretty cool... it avoids the nearly daily declined credit cards we get AFTER the work is done! (but they always pay so we really are not losing anything, just time)

We do not do direct deposit... only cc or check for the terms clients.... On a cc we can easily refund if necessary, no reason ever for a chargeback. and on the checks they have had at least 30 days so the design should be acceptable.

What do you do if a client just , for whatever reason, wants their money back?

gnizitigid · April 19th, 2016, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robert Young

What do you do if a client just , for whatever reason, wants their money back?

I simply refund but that has not happened until client is fake. I do net 30 with the ones i know from few years......Do you keep credit card information of clients or simply send them invoices to pay ?

AlisonB · April 20th, 2016, 05:37 AM

Robert I am just "small potatoes" here. A lot of the digitizing I get asked to do is for the mommy at home with a single needle machine and no software. I'm sure some of them think it is as easy as pressing one or two keys and "voila" the design is done. When they hear that they are going to be charged for the digitizing, then it is suddenly not so urgent.

If it interests me I may still do the design - which is then kept in a "Potential Customer" file in the computer.
Company work usually comes to me through a third party, when I do both the digitizing and the embroidery - and payment is then made when the order is collected.
The only time I have had to send money back was when a client double paid by mistake.
I send a picture of my stitchout of their design, and they can let me know if something looks wrong. I have had to educate some about the use of stabilizers though!

lrsbranding · April 20th, 2016, 10:21 AM

I think digitizing should be charged by complexity and not just by stitch count. I have yet to understand how someone can live off the $10.00 and $15.00 flat rates. They must have a really kick a$$ auto digitize program. I have Wilcom e3 and the auto digitize sucks. I have yet to figure out how to use it without taking longer to fix the design than freehanding my own. Copy and pasting segments off other designs helps to speed things up in some cases. My biggest hurdle is the artistic element in the complex designs. Do you want a flat boring patch of thread on your shirt or something that says "Hey, look at me"?

gnizitigid · April 21st, 2016, 01:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lrsbranding

I think digitizing should be charged by complexity and not just by stitch count. I have yet to understand how someone can live off the $10.00 and $15.00 flat rates. They must have a really kick a$$ auto digitize program. I have Wilcom e3 and the auto digitize sucks. I have yet to figure out how to use it without taking longer to fix the design than freehanding my own. Copy and pasting segments off other designs helps to speed things up in some cases. My biggest hurdle is the artistic element in the complex designs. Do you want a flat boring patch of thread on your shirt or something that says "Hey, look at me"?

With experience you learn.....i can do lc design in 20 minutes and 99% my designs are approved....that's why i charge $10

Ahh...yes and no auto digitize

digidana · April 25th, 2016, 10:39 AM

i've never charged by stitch count and i've been digitizing for 20 years in june. i guess it used to make sense before digitizing programs when designs were punched on tape, but doesn't make sense to me anymore. i end up having to redo designs all the time, where its obvious that the original digitizer charged by stitch count. way too much underlay, a shorter stitch length than necessary, tighter density than it needs, etc. lots of different tricks to jack up the stitch count if they try. my minimum has always been $35. people figure out that its cheaper to pay $35-$65-ish once, than it is to pay once for a cheap design then have to repay to have it done right. i have some that balk at the price, and i hear, well, so-in-so was half that price. but that's ok. some come back to have it done right, and some others just don't care that much about quality and its all about the cost.

as far as payment, customers who set up an account with a back-up credit card get net 30. if it goes over 60 days, i charge the balance to the back-up card. if its joe, from, say, joe's car wash that wants his design done and won't ever need another design, its prepaid by paypal or credit card.

i haven't had to refund a design in years and years. i think its because when i quote a design to begin with, i pull it in at actual size and can tell if there will be any problems and i let them know ahead of time if tag line lettering will need to be increased, or if the design will need to lose any detail so they aren't surprised when they get the design. i always try to give them alternatives that will work better if there are options.

gnizitigid · April 25th, 2016, 02:44 PM

If i will charge more, the client will go to other person doing in less price....