· 2 minute read
How Much Should a Small Nonprofit Spend on a Website?
The short answer
I'm rethinking my pricing after noticing free work rarely gets followed up on, even at the same quality as paid work. I'm moving toward a week of free work, then a $500 a month plan or a la carte, with the $3,000 a month tier reserved for people who want weekly one on one time with me.
From The Friday Letter, my weekly email for nonprofit founders.
This week has been about figuring out my pricing model. The business is doing well, and my clients are happy, but originally I set the price where it was because I only wanted to take in serious candidates for my service.
The thing about providing a service is that not everyone is able to show up in order to receive it. And there is something interesting about paying for a service, and following up with the service to make sure you’re getting your money’s worth.
I know my Friday delivery model is very enjoyable for a client. They get updates, they move on with more ideas, and then they get updates.
However, I’m unsure if the barrier of entry is too high, or that the free work I do for everyone makes it so they don’t follow up. My mentor kept saying, “You need to give out paid work, not free work.” So I don’t know... maybe she’s right at this point, because I do a lot of free work, at the same quality level, but someone is still gonna go off and get charged the premium price for the same result. So... I think I need to let this go.
I will probably only provide a week’s worth of work for free, and allow people to subscribe to maybe the $500 a month plan, or do a la carte. I don’t know yet. I know the $3,000 a month tier is for those who really want that one on one time with me every week. But both the $3,000 and $500 plans get the weekly delivery. I was already able to structure three YouTube accounts, excluding mine, this week, and then I know I’ll likely go back to working on the websites next.
Either way, I’m curious what everyone else thinks.
Have you run into an issue with giving free work out before? Reply to The Friday Letter, or join it here if you aren’t on the list yet.
Hi, I’m Christopher. I run The Web3 Family, a creative studio for nonprofits in Inglewood, California. Every Friday I share what I learn building for founders like you.
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