I would agree and to have done the same as
@thedreampolice.
These are my reasons and suggestions:
+ You'd want to
find a common valued price that you and the customer can both agree upon.
Note: Estimated by what customers currently value you at along with your time and efforts needed to get the job done.
+
Balance between a portion of your obligated bills and their budget
Note: Assuming we're all in this game for the love first, it's best to fix the total costs based on a reasonable budget that won't cost an arm or a leg within either party. Ensure your customer that the investment will be well worth it, embracing that what they're paying for is a skill trade.
+
Let the music speak for itself.
Note: If your client has paid you full upfront to do a job, get it done quickly as possible, with their fullest satisfaction. Asking for retainer fees or extra entitlements towards the end will make you look bad as I've learned it the hard way first hand. LOL x_x
Conclusion:
Settle upon a reasonable hourly or fixed rate and get the job done as quick and efficient as possible.
No matter what. If you feel that you deserve more, raise the price next time around.
Everyone works differently and so is the projects behind them, so determining how to exactly charge clients is always going to be a fluctuating topic. How I see it is, if their efforts make it easier on you to do your part, then cut them a discount and even freebies if you'd like to. If they make it hard for you, slap them with extra fees LOL.
Either way, make sure that the music gets done as best as possible, and that it gets heard with your credits (if possible) onto it. It's been said somewhere that "you're only as good as your last song," and I'd like to believe that it's true.
Anyways, I hope this helps. Good luck! I'd like to hear how it goes for you.
I am a hiphop artist out of North Carolina. I've been writing and recording music for over 10 years now. Over the past year I have taken my talents into production. I have been approached to create beats for local NC artists.
My question is this: How rare or common is it to require a retainer fee for the time spent in creating a beat, this being separate from the final total of the price of the beat?
Anyone interested in connecting, please follow me on Twitter @tonidevon_music or email me at
tone.fn@gmail.com
Best,
Tone
