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Graphic design is an underappreciated, underacknowledged part of the modern world. Everything designed, from fonts, to layout, to the pretty illustrations were all done by a graphic designer. It’s also one of few fields that can easily be done from home, as a freelance position, or a solo business. The problem is that deciding how to charge for things can be a bit of a pain when starting out.
Charging for a calendar design should be done at least via an average hourly rate plus any material costs that goes into the design. A flat rate can also be charged but should still take these into consideration when deciding in order to ensure a fair cost to effort ratio.
Keeping up to date on the current average pay rates for graphic designers as well as what similar places are charging for similar services is crucial to ensuring a fair price is being charged. So, to learn about this in relation to a calendar design, keep reading.
Average Pay Rate for Graphic Design
Anything with graphics, whether that be photos, illustration, or simply text, is by default something that needs to be designed. Therefore, even calendar design falls under the graphic design umbrella. Therefore, in order to decide how much money to charge for a calendar, it’s good practice to know what the average rate of the job is.
These are the average annual salaries for graphic designers:
- Entry Level: $32,000 USD
- Junior Level: $53,000 USD
- Senior Level: $77,000 USD
The hourly rate for a graphic designer falls between $15-150 USD, with the average coming in at $31.25 USD per hour. Using this helps to ensure that the calendar design is being fairly charged for the time and effort put in, while also being competitive.
How to Decide How Much to Charge for a Calendar Design
There are a handful of factors to consider when deciding how much to charge for a calendar design. There are lots of different ways a calendar can be produced, and a few ways to charge for them. Taking these factors into consideration can help to decide how much exactly to charge for the overall design.
Decide on the Type of Calendar
Is the calendar going to be something tangible? Is it going to be color or black and white? Will there be graphics, or will it just be text? What size will it be? There are lots of things to consider about the final product which will shape how much should be charged for it.
Here are some calendar details to help decide on a price:
- Wall
- Desk
- Text-only
- Photo
- Tear-off
- Spiralbound
- Digital
- Black and white
- Color
Every detail that goes into a calendar design needs to have a price sticker on it. Color is more expensive to manufacture than black and white, and photo quality needs to have even more resources poured into. Something digital can take out all of the manufacturing and printing costs. Specialty types and large format will cost more to produce. Keep all of the details in mind.
Decide on an Hourly Rate
An hourly rate should be decided based on the average design rate to ensure a fair price. Once the number for a base hour has been determined, there are two ways to proceed with pricing.
These are:
- Set a blanket fee for how much time it usually takes to design a calendar or something similar
- Charge at the end, taking into consideration the amount of time it legitimately took to complete
Blanket fees tend to be more accepted by clients as they don’t have to wonder if the designer was dilly-dallying in order to squeeze out more funds. It also allows the designer to be paid first, reducing the chance of a scam from the other side.
Decide on a Flat Rate
Alternatively, instead of charging based on an hourly rate, charging as one flat rate fee is an option. The average hourly rate can be used to help determine this number, or simply looking around at what similar places are offering their services for. This is an attractive option, especially if the designer has already some templates to go off of like those offered by PlaceIt.
Include Material Costs
If the calendar is going to be made into a tangible format rather than a digital one, always be sure to include the material costs within the pricing for the calendar. This is an often overlooked aspect of pricing for new designers, and can quickly eat up any profits from the design itself.
Here are some things that might be included in material costs:
- Shipping costs
- Paper
- Ink
- Printing services
- Binding
- Embellishments
The work a designer does is valuable. It takes time to make, took time to learn the skills, and will take various resources in order to produce. Therefore, all of this should have a price attached to it.
Conclusion
People often assume that because it looks easy, that no level of skill goes into making something like a calendar. However, it really does take at least some effort to put together, even if that effort comes easily. Letting someone bully work out for less than it should be is a problem many artistic fields have. So, in order to ensure a fair price for a calendar design, always check similar sources and stay up to date on the average pricing for the field.
