Price the idea, not the hours

Ask what the client needs to communicate, to whom, and in which setting. A campaign identity, a presentation and a single social asset involve different decisions even when they share a visual style. Define the outputs and the acceptance criteria before estimating the work.

Write down the responsibilities around those outputs. Research, copy, production, licensing and implementation can sit with different people. Unassigned tasks are a source of uncertainty; name them as questions rather than assuming they will be absorbed into the same fee.

Practice: Create a one-page scope with three required outputs, the review owner and the dependencies for each.

Build a core option that fully addresses the agreed problem. Add optional work only when it serves a distinct need, such as another format, an additional research stage or implementation support. A smaller option should still be useful rather than deliberately incomplete.

Describe the tradeoff beside each option. More routes may require more review time, while a shorter schedule may constrain exploration. Keep the comparison about actual work and decisions, and avoid suggesting a commercial return that you cannot establish.

Practice: Draft two scope options and explain the difference in deliverables, review rounds and schedule.

Record what the current price assumes: supplied materials, feedback timing, included revisions and excluded work. Ask the commissioning team to confirm those assumptions before production begins. A written summary gives both sides a useful reference when the brief changes.

When a new request arrives, compare it to the agreed scope. Explain the additional work, any effect on timing and the decision needed before proceeding. Keep an updated change log so a long message thread does not become the only record of the agreement.

Practice: Write a change note for adding a new language version after the first design review.