Hi Reader,

Happy Friday!

This week has been call-heavy. Two calls with potential new clients (and some tough decisions to make - one seems like a great opportunity, but I'll need to weigh up the time commitments and whether it's worth it for me).

I also held 3 mentoring calls with fellow freelancers which is one of my favourite things to do. I've been thoroughly enjoying getting to know your businesses and help you get to the next step.

All mentoring slots have been taken for 2026, but I'll be opening up more in Jan. If you want first dibs (and honestly, they go QUICKLY - last week they sold out in less than an hour), get yourself on the list here.

P.S. This week on Instagram, I shared how you can send that DM without completely overthinking it. Check it out here. And don't forget to give me a follow for regular tips and tricks!

Here's what I've been up to this week work-wise:

👉 I wrote 3 pieces for clients (Spoke, an influencer marketing tool, and a SMS tool)

👉 I had 2 calls with new potential clients

👉 I held 3 freelance mentoring calls

⏱ Approx hours spent on client work this week: ~15

⏱ Approx hours spent on non-client work: ~5

💰 Total revenue this week: £2,600

Want to advertise your business, course, product, program, or software to 7,000+ freelancers and creative business owners? Check out the affordable sponsorship options here.

​
Check out my three practical courses that have helped 500+ people get more clients, earn more money, and create better content.

Friday Freelance Tip​​ ✨ ​

There’s a moment in every freelancer’s journey when you realise that charging for your time feels like trying to build a business on wet sand, because no matter how hard you work, you can’t seem to escape the ceiling that hourly or per-word pricing places over your head, and you end up exhausted, overthinking every project, and questioning why your bank account never reflects the amount of effort you pour into your clients.

How's that for a run-on sentence, but hopefully you can feel the stress in it 😅

I hit that moment early in my career. I was charging £20 per piece, working absurd hours, and trying to convince myself that “hustle” meant success... and I vividly remember the day I realised I had accidentally created a job with worse hours, lower pay, and more stress than the one I had quit.

I was sat at the 70s-style dining table in my duplex in Barcelona at 9.30pm at night having been sat at my laptop since 8am that morning.

That realisation pushed me into value-based pricing long before I had the language for it, and since then, I’ve spent years refining a process that allows me to consistently charge £850+ per post, work under 20 hours a week, and build client relationships that last for years instead of months.

Step 1: I always start by redefining what I actually sell

Most freelancers sell tasks, and tasks make clients compare you to other people doing the same task, which makes clients default to comparing prices, timelines, and deliverables.

I shifted my mindset the day I realised I don’t sell blog posts, I actually sell the outcome those posts create.

That's usually something like:

• Increased search visibility
• Better conversion paths
• Higher-quality inbound leads
• A consistent brand voice
• A content engine that compounds over time

​
When you define your worth based on impact instead of hours, you immediately create a foundation for value-based pricing, because you show clients that they’re paying for what your work does, not how long it takes you to do it.

Step 2: I diagnose before I price

I never jump straight to quoting a rate, because I can’t price something until I understand the severity of the client’s problem and the scale of the opportunity my work can unlock.

So I run every client through a simple, strategic discovery process that makes my value visible to them before I ever mention numbers.

I ask:

• What business goal are you trying to hit in the next 6–12 months?
• What’s stopping you from hitting it?
• How urgent is this priority internally?
• What’s the cost of not solving this problem?
• What resources do you currently have and where are the gaps?

​
These questions do three things brilliantly:

1. They position me as a consultant rather than a task-taker.
2. They uncover the true value of solving the problem.
3. They give me pricing leverage without me having to “sell” anything.

​
​Step 3: I price the transformation

Once I understand the business outcome, I map out what I call the transformation arc, which outlines what will change for the client when the project does what it's supposed to.

For a content piece, that might look like:

• Increased search rankings
• Higher-quality leads
• Clearer brand authority
• Faster sales cycles
• Better-informed prospects

​
Then I ask myself:
​How much is this transformation worth to the client?

I look at their business model, average order value, paid acquisition costs, sales funnel friction points, and existing content gaps (anything I can get my hands on, basically).

If my work can reduce acquisition costs by 20%, or increase qualified leads, or improve conversion by a few percentage points, that’s worth far more than the time it takes me to write 2,000 words.

So I price based on the strategic value, not the output.

This is how I can charge £850+ per post and how clients happily pay it.

Step 4: I create retention because my process is more of a partnership

Long-term clients don’t stay because you deliver what they asked for. They stay because you help them think, decide, plan, and prioritise.

I retain clients by weaving myself into their world in strategic, proactive ways:

• I send insights without being asked.
• I suggest new angles or content expansions.
• I flag issues before they become problems.
• I make their lives easier by running projects without hand-holding.
• I communicate like I’m part of their internal team.

​
This creates what I call strategic dependency (hello, other fancy term), where the client trusts me deeply, sees the results clearly, and feels the difference when I’m not involved.

Step 5: I'm always reinforcing my value

A big mistake freelancers make is assuming clients always see the value.

Spoiler: they.. do not.

They’re busy, overwhelmed, and juggling too many things to remember the impact you’re having.

So I make my value unmissable by:

• Sending small performance summaries if I can (thanks Ahrefs)
• Highlighting wins tied directly to our work
• Capturing before/after snapshots
• Bringing data into every conversation
• Showing how each asset fits into the bigger strategy

Step 6: I continually raise my minimum baseline

Every 6–12 months, I review:

• My rates
• My process
• My offer
• My boundaries
• My ideal client profile

​
And I adjust everything upward, because the more skilled, confident, and experienced I become, the more value I can create (and because all businesses should increase their rates every year).

This habit keeps me from stagnating, keeps my income aligned with my expertise, and makes sure the clients I keep long-term are a great fit for who I am right now, not who I was when I started working with them years ago.

We need more Freelance Money Diaries entries! I'm forever grateful to anyone who shares their finances with us (you can do it totally anonymously!).

Click the button below to do yours!

As always, happy freelancing :)

Lizzie ✨

Interested in sponsoring Friday Freelance Tips? Get your brand, product, or service in front of 7,000+ freelancers, entrepreneurs, and founders. See sponsorship options here.

Follow me on Instagram and on Linkedin, where you can see the behind-the-scenes of my business.