Freelancer PC Technical Support - What to charge?

M

mrschutte

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Feb 22, 2016
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Hi,

So I do some freelancer technical support - I find it difficult on what to charge as a fair fee.

I would like to know the opinions of other IT support guys out there on what is a fair charge?

I currently charge:

Call outs
< 5 km - R50
<10 km - R150
<20 km - R250
etc.

Peak Hours - R350 per hour.
Off-Peak Hours (After 5pm) - R525 per hour
(Never needed to charge o/p until now, hence this post)

I don't have - Use more than 10hrs a month and get a 20% discount etc.

I feel somewhat guilty when I charge the full amount when working at a client, for example, +15 hours or so.

What are your thoughts and would you have any tips on how and what to charge?

Thanks!
 
Rickster said:
Post your qualifications as well.
Click to expand...

That's a good point. I have none, self-taught - 27 years old and brought up in an IT related family. Helped out at my father's shop every weekend when I was a child, building and repairing pc's both hardware and software.

Most times I can fix problems quickly that other IT technician's with qualifications miss and don't have the experience to fix.

Anyway, enough of family history ha ha, zero qualifications but tons of hands-on experience is the short answer. :-P
 
Glad you've found a way to monetise your skills...kudos.

Are your customers okay paying the fees you charge? If they're happy to pay for the service you're providing, that means they believe it's money well-spent.

If you're making so much money that you want to introduce a frequent flyer discount, can't hurt your chances of getting more customers by word of mouth.
 
In 2010 i charged R400 per hour flat rate no call out fee, and never outside of office hours. Unless they asked really nicely.

It was mostly home users and small home business in my suburb.

They say they chose me because i was friendly and honest about fees. And i would often provide a maximum or fee limit depending on how well they described the problems they were having.

Clients often feel they are getting ripped off or conned by I.T. guys because of the vagueness of the invoices etc.
fight that problem and you will get a good name in the field of private IT consulting.

FYI i no longer consult privately, because the income was a bit too erratic to "settle down" on. I now just look after one company's systems.
 
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