Question

Topic: Advertising/PR

Freelance Rates

Posted by Anonymous on 8/9/2010 at 1:59 PM ET 250 Points
I am in discussions with a small ad agency near NYC about proving my media planning/buying services on freelance basis. I have never worked in this market before, so am unsure what the going rate for a freelance media planner/buyer is. I have 10 years of experience (7 agency & 3 in-house) with all mediums. A commission structure won't work, as I'll be taking over duties of the Media Director that recently left - it will need to be an hourly rate. Any thoughts or direction would be greatly appreciated!
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RESPONSES

  • Posted on 8/9/2010 at 4:10 PM Accepted
    Hourly rate billing is not going to work. It puts you in a conflict-of-interest situation with your client.

    Why not agree to a monthly retainer, with the option to review the level after 3 months? At that point you will both have some idea of whether you're delivering value that's commensurate with the retainer amount, or whether it should be adjusted.

    When you're working on an hourly basis, the client needs to trust you to bill fairly and work as efficiently as you can. You make more money when you are inefficient and perhaps overly thorough. And the client doesn't want to take the time to brief you on projects because he/she knows the meter is ticking whenever he/she is talking to you. Overall, not a good situation if you want a healthy long-term relationship.
  • Posted on 8/9/2010 at 9:18 PM Member
    I've never heard of a freelance media buyer or planner for an NYC agency before. Most agencies--large or small-use their volume of buying or collective buying to leverage best rates on tv, cable, local, print, digital buys etc. To do that, you have to be in-house.
    Why would they want you to be hourly?
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