Key points
- AI work has no one correct price model: each splits risk with the buyer differently. No reliable UK rates are published, so price from your costs, experience and the work's value.
- A day rate bills by day or hour, for open-ended advice or unknown-scope discovery; the buyer carries the risk. Fixed budgets make day rates hard to approve, so offer an estimate and cap to plan by.
- A fixed price buys a defined outcome. Most small-business buyers prefer it, but you absorb overruns, so keep the scope tight and the exclusions clear, add a contingency, and charge changes separately.
- Phased pricing prices a project in steps, usually discovery, pilot, rollout. Most first AI projects suit it: buyers can stop after any step with something useful. Define each step's output and go-ahead test, such as a measure improving by an agreed amount.
- A retainer is a regular fee for set availability or support, suiting post-launch help and small, irregular jobs. Under-use costs the buyer; over-use costs you. Spell out the cover, unused time and exit terms.
- Pricing on value delivered can be fair when that value is clear and measurable, but it rests on a believable baseline and an honest gain estimate: never exaggerate savings to justify a fee.
- AI tools are often billed per use, and costs can climb with usage. Tell buyers the likely monthly cost at their volumes, what raises it and which account pays; buyers surprised after launch rarely return.
- Buyers compare proposals, so show the total, each part's cost and the exclusions. Avoid prices that need a sales call to make sense; where you can, publish typical starting prices or a minimum project size.
Transcript
AI work has no one correct price model: each splits risk with the buyer differently. No reliable UK rates are published, so price from your costs, experience and the work's value. A day rate bills by day or hour, for open-ended advice or unknown-scope discovery; the buyer carries the risk.
Fixed budgets make day rates hard to approve, so offer an estimate and cap to plan by. A fixed price buys a defined outcome. Most small-business buyers prefer it, but you absorb overruns, so keep the scope tight and the exclusions clear, add a contingency, and charge changes separately.
Phased pricing prices a project in steps, usually discovery, pilot, rollout. Most first AI projects suit it: buyers can stop after any step with something useful. Define each step's output and go-ahead test, such as a measure improving by an agreed amount.
A retainer is a regular fee for set availability or support, suiting post-launch help and small, irregular jobs. Under-use costs the buyer; over-use costs you. Spell out the cover, unused time and exit terms. Pricing on value delivered can be fair when that value is clear and measurable, but it rests on a believable baseline and an honest gain estimate: never exaggerate savings to justify a fee.
AI tools are often billed per use, and costs can climb with usage. Tell buyers the likely monthly cost at their volumes, what raises it and which account pays; buyers surprised after launch rarely return. Buyers compare proposals, so show the total, each part's cost and the exclusions.
Avoid prices that need a sales call to make sense; where you can, publish typical starting prices or a minimum project size.