A problem with pricing for writer pool requests

[squonk]

I had a question about a pricing issue I ran into recently. A lot of clients seem to like setting their desired prices at a range - say $20-30 or $50-100 dollars. As a writer trying to sell my work, I'm never really sure how to approach this. I usually just price the article for usage rights at the lowest price quoted, the unique rights in the middle and the full rights at the highest. When I did this with some recent requests, though, I had a little run-in with a client who wanted full rights to my articles right away at the lower price quoted (I guess there was a time issue involved as well; otherwise I would have been happy to negotiate the price with the client myself - but that's not how it happened.) I didn't mind letting them go at that price, but I did wonder why, if the client wanted them for that lower price, he didn't simply set that price to begin with.

So how exactly do you deal with these "ranged prices"? I see them all the time.

[Isabelnewth]

I noticed something like that, but when I asked, the buyer referred me back to the original instructions, which specified an actual price (the lowest in the range). He said that the form that buyers complete doesn't allow one price: it has to be a range. The buyers I have done requests for have both specified the lowest point in their general instructions for the group of articles...a little less per word than I would like, but pretty good, in one case at least, for a guaranteed sale, I think.

[squonk]

Fair enough. I didn't know that clients had to enter a range of prices. If I had, it would have saved me a run-in with the editors - they seemed to think I was trying to push the client's price higher on extremely short notice, when I really didn't know what specific price the client wanted to pay. But that's all cleared up now. Thanks.

[Isabelnewth]

No you're right it's confusing. I remember now that the first lot I was able to claim said $20-30, so I put down $30, but the article was just purchased and I got $13 or whatever it is for $20, as though I had written that amount. I was disappointed and queried it and was referred back to the project instructions which specified $20.....Never mind!

I am sure they won't hold it against you, because it is definitely confusing.

[evaku]

Yes I received an email to let me know the client would only pay $50 for articles that were priced in the $50-$100 range. I wanted to keep it low so I figured I would set it at 8 cents per word so I charged $60 but I had to lower them. I had no problem doing that but I was just confused. I think maybe they only have a certain amount of "set" options that they are able to choose from in terms of a price range, and so if they want to pay $50 they have to select $50-100. But I don't know if this is really the case. Anyways, always look at the request description as the client will probably say "$__ per article." If I know what writer pool request you are talking about, that one in particular said in the description "each article $20." (though of course you could be talking about a different one)

As for pricing, I always assume that the price given is the price they want for full rights. I can't imagine that someone would make a request and only be asking for usage. This is why, because a usage price is always mandatory, I just set both my usage and full rights for the same price, which is the asking price of the article. So if the client says they would pay $50 I set usage and full to $50.

Hey maybe others do it different but this is the way I have always assumed it should go. There aren't very many people talking about this so I kind of had to guess and that method seems to be working for me.

Also,

No you're right it's confusing. I remember now that the first lot I was able to claim said $20-30, so I put down $30, but the article was just purchased and I got $13 or whatever it is for $20, as though I had written that amount. I was disappointed and queried it and was referred back to the project instructions which specified $20.....Never mind!

I wasn't aware that they could change the price! That seems strange. I had to be informed to lower mine so I assumed the client or CC couldn't do it for you. You sure it didn't sell for usage?

*I hadn't read the replies above me before I said all that and I see that this has all been said now, but meh

[Judith]

Whether I am writing on spec or writing for a request with a specified payment amount, I always set my usage price the same as my full use price. That way I am never asked to sell it for less than they originally offered, or in the case of a spec article - no less than I will accept. The only time I offer a use price is when an article has been published on one of my own sites, and I am willing to sell it to others for a small amount.