Pricing
Pricing
General Pricing Guidelines
Pricing for virtual assistant and creative design services can vary widely depending on the complexity of the work, the skill level required for more technical work, and the time involved. This is especially true of graphic design and photo editing; some clients just want a quick photo cropping and lighting adjustments, some are wanting major compositing and retouching work. Sometimes graphics are quick and easy when I'm working with existing branding or images provided to me by the client, other times, a client may want a complex unique design that requires my drawing and painting skills as well as my digital graphics skills.
For this reason, I offer individual estimates or packages depending on your needs and the scope of your project. If I'm doing monthly routine or maintenance work, an hourly rate with a retainer per month generally works great. For larger projects, we can do a flat per-project rate. What helps to save time and money is if you have a good idea of what you'd like before I get to work. Providing me with examples of websites and graphics you like is a big help, or even a little doodle (doesn't have to be a great drawing!) Likewise, before I begin writing for you, it is important to have clarity about what the voice of your "brand" is that you would like me to write with- after all, I am representing you.
Below is a general guide to my rates so that you can get an idea of what you need help with and how we can make it work with your project budget.
Long-Term Creative Virtual Assistant Services
Hourly/Monthly Retainer/Packages
Different than my one-time service packages, I also have long-term clients on retainer for whom I work their choice of hours every month performing as-needed duties. Rates for these long-term services start at $30/hr, although discounts will be considered if you offer a larger amount of monthly hours, since a long-term client relationship on retainer means I can count on reliable income. Although some of the services I may provide for you I would typically charge $45/hr+ for, I find that it evens out if I am working on a variety of areas where some require more of my technical and artistic expertise than others.
An advantage to hiring me long-term is that I develop a relationship with my clients that better allows us to work as a team to brainstorm and implement ideas to launch, market and scale their business. I find that as small business owners and online entrepreneurs, we're all in this together as a community, supporting and affirming each other!
An example of how the retainer billing works:
If a client wishes to hire me for 15 hours per month, they would pay a retainer of $450 at the beginning of each month. If I go over on hours (always approved by client first) I adjust and add the hours to their invoice at the end of the month when I bill for the next month's retainer. If some of the hours remain unused, they would roll over to the next month.
To give you an idea of what my long-term services might entail:
An example would be the services I provide for some of my online coaching clients who are creating online courses. Branding, web design, social media setup, graphics and captions, content creation and repurposing, blogs, SEO, email marketing, some client management/scheduling, photo editing, course creation, sales funnel creation, general copywriting all fall within the scope of my long-term services.
Please be aware that although I do offer some social media post creation, captions, graphics, and scheduling, daily social media posting on 3 platforms, IG stories, strategy, and engagement with your audience all fall within "social media management". Social media manager is actually a full-time job that takes 30-40 hours per week and pays a typical annual salary of $50-$70k. I am including this disclaimer because I sometimes find that clients are unsure of what they want help with and are unaware that that level of social media management cannot be performed on the very part-time basis most clients tend to hire me for every month. Typically, social media posts take me between 45-60 minutes each to find content to repurpose, write compelling captions for 3 platforms, edit, hashtag research, design graphics, and schedule. We can discuss this more in our discovery call when we meet if you are unsure of your needs in this area.
Graphic Design
Photo Editing
Branding
My graphic design price is based on a per-project fee and is based on the complexity and scope of your project. Graphics may be added onto another service such as website design or podcast management and bundled as one package. Another method that works for my photographer clients, for example, is that I charge per image whenever they need some help with editing. Graphic design projects will include a maximum of two revisions with an additional charge for more revisions. Let's talk about your needs and your budget and I can create a custom proposal for you!
Blogging
Copywriting
My base rate for blogging is $70 for 500 words and $140 for 1000 words. If you don't already have images for the blog and need me to provide or create some, no worries—I can do that too as an add-on service.
My copywriting rate, like my design rate, depends on the complexity of the project, the amount of research needed, and time involved.
Podcast Management
Base rates for podcast editing are $75 for one 30 minute episode and $150 for a 60-minute episode. If you would like to also have me handle the publishing of the podcast as well as the graphics and promotion, I will create a flat rate package for you depending on how many episodes you release per month.
Website Design
ECommerce Setup
As with my graphic design services, web design/maintenance services are based on a per-project fee, as projects can vary greatly. I can create a simple business site, an e-commerce shop, or simply do some monthly maintenance for your site. I also create bundles for businesses that include branding/logo design, web graphics, print material as well as set up with Google My Business and implementing SEO to increase your website traffic.
Email Marketing
Newsletters
For email marketing, including promotions and regular newsletters, a per month/per email fee generally works best. The services I provide in this area include setting up your email marketing account with services such as Klaviyo and ConvertKit, helping you create your email lists and segments. For example, we might create a "Welcome" segment that automatically sends emails to people who have just signed up for the email list.
They receive a succession of emails over a predetermined amount of time automatically. Or, emails can go out to people who have abandoned their cart in your shop (or performed another action we set as a "trigger"), as another example. I will implement the strategy provided to me by your marketing department, including writing, design, and scheduling of each email.
**Note- While email marketing, promotional graphics, and copywriting are within the scope of my services, I do not create marketing strategies. The marketing strategist is the person who would hand off their ideas to me to implement. For example, you could send me, “On October 25th, let’s run a promotional email featuring these cozy clothes that will warm you up for fall weather” or “Let’s do a blog around Christmas about our favorite family traditions”. I create content, but I do of course need guidelines from you to work off of.
An exception would be if you hire me on retainer for long-term Creative VA services. As I work with you to grow your brand, I can help brainstorm and contribute to your marketing plan.
**Payment Methods Accepted/Contracts- During our initial discovery call, we will discuss the entire scope of the duties you need me to perform, the rate and hours, and terms of our agreement. I will then create you a proposal, custom contract and invoice from my Honeybook client management system. You can pay via the Honeybook portal using credit card or bank transfer, although Venmo or Zelle are preferred to save on transaction fees.