A few words about pricing your graphic designs in a freelance market. I know this is really long, it is from an article on NAPP, from a question about pricing. I thought it would be good to share it with my friends here.

Hi Carlos,
Thank you for your kind remarks.
I'll jump right in and try to answer so it makes sense.
First of all, to get a real idea on what and how you should charge, I would need to see a sample of what you are selling. Another factor is what industry you want to target. Some industries pay on completely different scales than others, but still require the same amount of actual work. The advantage of working in a lower scale industry is it tends to be easier to land quick jobs. They are also local in nature, so there is a bit of one-on-one sales work that needs to be done. This can help teach you how to be confident selling your art to the higher bracket jobs. You can also get some free press (and discounted, or even free print services) by offering your work for discounted, or even free, to a few local print vendors. Its easy to design a few business cards in exchange for your own promotional materials. They will also pimp your work through their own network of salespeople, and hang your work in their showrooms. Just an idea.
That being said, a Graphic Artist working freelance should get between $25-$50 hr. This all depends on your experience level, and of course, talent. If a client likes your style, they will pay for it, so you could make more.
This is where it gets confusing......
A Graphic Designer in the same situation will charge $75-$200 hr, and sometimes even higher, depending on the client, experience level, and who the designer is.
Both the Graphic Artist, and Designer are required to do different types of work, with the most complex, harder jobs being done by Designers, and logo, typography, set ups, and a number of other things being done by the Graphic Artist.
I am basing these numbers generally on being able to complete a business card in 4-8 hrs., including logo (Designer in 2-4 hrs). You should be able to find a comfortable spot in there to make a little money, based on your work.
Once you get a feel for how long something will take, you can start charging on the fly.
I have contracts with my larger clients that charge a flat fee for a certain type of design. In this case, try to negotiate a large number, based on roughly 40-60 hrs of work.
Some jobs will take longer, but some will take a lot less time than that too, so it evens out.
It is important to say too, that you must communicate terms for changes (1 or 2 minor changes before the clock starts again), before you start the job. More importantly, you may want to charge 50% down to start the job. Both parties take a risk that way. Writing a simple contract can be helpful.
Remember too, that freelance is a tough gig. A lot of your time will be working the phones for sales, and chasing down your checks. You will also have overhead issues (business license, computer, software, promotional materials, etc.). And don't forget the taxman either. I'm not trying to scare you, just some stuff to keep in mind. If you get a good accountant, most can be claimed on your return.
You must have a web page portfolio at some point too, even if you lead people to your NAPP portfolio, DeviantArt page (www.DeviantArt.com), or personal page, it is important to have a web presence.
Stand on an Artist principle, you are not charging money for the few hours you spend, you are charging for your expertise and talent.....and the time it took to develop that is why you are charging money. Keep that in mind when negotiating with a client.

It is hard work, but in the end it is worth all the effort to see your work being published or printed. Keep at it, and have fun!

If you still would like to speak with me, email me back, and I'll give you my contact info.

Randy