# The Pricing Worksheet

Price one deliverable in 30 minutes. Formulas give you a floor and a range; real client responses tune the final number.

## Rule one

Price the deliverable, not your hours and not AI's share of the work. The client buys the outcome and your judgment. Your speed is your margin, not their discount.

## Step 1: Compute your floor

**Floor = H × R × 1.3**

- H = your honest hours per deliverable, including AI review, corrections, and one client revision: [___] hours
- R = your target hourly rate (what your time should earn, not what you hope to brag about): $[___]/hour
- 1.3 = overhead multiplier for admin, tools, and the revision you didn't plan

My floor: [___] × [___] × 1.3 = $[_____]

Never sell below the floor except for your first three Path C clients (see Step 4).

## Step 2: Find the market ceiling

Find 3 prices for the same deliverable done the traditional way. Sources: freelancer listings, competitor sites, what your firm or others bill now, one phone call to a peer.

1. $[_____] — [SOURCE]
2. $[_____] — [SOURCE]
3. $[_____] — [SOURCE]

Market range: $[_____] to $[_____]

If your floor is above the market ceiling, the offer does not work yet. Shrink scope or pick a different deliverable.

## Step 3: Pick the number

Price between your floor and the market mid-point. Round to a clean figure.

**Worked example 1 — grant writer (Path C):** proposal draft, 6 hours with workflow, $60/hr target. Floor: 6 × 60 × 1.3 = $468. Market: $800–$1,500. Price: $900.

**Worked example 2 — bookkeeper (Path B add-on):** monthly cash-flow memo, 1.5 hours including review, $70/hr target. Floor: 1.5 × 70 × 1.3 = $137. Comparable advisory add-ons: $150–$400/month. Price: $175/month.

**Worked example 3 — military spouse (Path C):** tailored resume rewrite, 2 hours, $45/hr target. Floor: 2 × 45 × 1.3 = $117. Market for tailored rewrites: $150–$350. Price: $150 to start.

My price: $[_____]

## Step 4: First-client discount (Path C only)

First three clients: [20–30]% off, in writing, in exchange for a written testimonial and permission to show redacted work. After three, full price. Put the end date on the discount.

## Step 5: Revisit triggers

Raise the price when any of these happens:
- [ ] Three buyers in a row accept without hesitating
- [ ] You are booked past your available hours
- [ ] The deliverable improved (faster turnaround, added section)

Lower or rescope when:
- [ ] Ten pitches, zero bites, and feedback points at price rather than offer

No formula here is precise. H is a guess until you have run five paid jobs. Recompute the floor after job five with real hours.

Part of the ADAPT framework — vetslearn.com/framework