What would Picasso do?
How much time it takes for a design, a graphic, or even coding is often irrelevent to how much it is worth. Designers often take years fine tuning their style, methodology, their “craft”. Clients are not just paying for the designer’s time, they are paying for their knowledge and experience.
Ellen Rohr has written a good article on how to charge clients. Good read for those just starting out.
Legend has it that Pablo Picasso was sketching in the park when a bold woman approached him. “It’s you — Picasso, the great artist! Oh, you must sketch my portrait! I insist.”
So Picasso agreed to sketch her. After studying her for a moment, he used a single pencil stroke to create her portrait. He handed the women his work of art.
“It’s perfect!” she gushed. “You managed to capture my essence with one stroke, in one moment. Thank you! How much do I owe you?”
“Five thousand dollars,” the artist replied.
“B-b-but, what?” the woman sputtered. “How could you want so much money for this picture? It only took you a second to draw it!”
To which Picasso responded, “Madame, it took me my entire life.”
Read my other article regarding how some clients react to design charges here.
