Pros, Cons, and Fixed Pricing: Newbie Tech Editor (Part 1)

Are you curious about what it’s like to charge a fixed rate price for your services that help create knitting patterns? Are you just curious about the nitty gritty behind why I used this pricing system as a beginning tech editor? This post should answer both those questions!

Hello everyone!

In the fall of 2022, I was thrilled to begin tech editing patterns for knitwear designers after my completion of The Tech Editor Hub’s course.

Yet, I was so nervous to charge hourly!

I was still figuring out the most efficient way to go over every sentence in a knitting pattern for grammar, spelling, style, and mathematical and technical content. The thought of the pressure of the clock that would decide the final cost on the invoice was extremely stressful for me.

I decided I would not sacrifice a quality tech edit by feeling rushed nor would I let my learning curve bring up the amount the designer would pay me to tech edit.

My solution was to forgo pricing based upon the time tech editing took. The fixed rate pricing system I implemented allowed me blessings that I expected and some I didn’t.

My Fixed Rate Pricing System

After researching other tech editor’s rates and estimated editing times along with my personal expenses, I was able to get logical numbers to guide me in this pricing process.

I created a list of prices to tech edit a pattern based upon the item the pattern would knit up to be.

Socks – $30

Hats – $30

Mittens – $30

Cowls & Scarfs – $30

Shawls – $40

Garments – $50

These prices were the amount charged to tech edit a single-sized knitting pattern. For every additional size included, $5 was added to the fixed price.

For example, if a designer had a sweater pattern with 5 sizes, the price would be $50 plus $20 making the total price $70.

Depending on the pattern, these prices were often lower which I felt eased about since I was a beginner. Since I was shooting for a generally lower tech editing price, I asked for a testimonial of my work that I could post to my website and other platforms.

Pros of Fixed Rates

There was an abundance of benefits that I experienced from using fixed rate pricing.

Knitwear Designer’s Budget

I love budgeting and knowing how much I will be paying for a service or item beforehand. Don’t you?

Fixed rate prices allowed designers to know exactly how much my services would cost.

From a designer’s perspective, the concern of a higher cost than estimated is removed as the final price is set in stone for tech editing.

Low Clock Pressure for Tech Editor

When I was beginning to tech edit for others, the thought of the ticking timer was stressful as it would be telling me the total cost I would be putting on the invoice for the designer.

I wanted to profit off my services but never charge more due to my newbie inefficiencies.

Though it didn’t remove the deadline to finish tech editing a knitting pattern and have it sent back with notes in an email by a certain time, nor do I believe it should, I could take a deep breath knowing the few extra minutes of learning weren’t costing my designer a penny.

Quality Over Quantity

The fact that the price I was charging was independent of time allowed me to take moments to dig deeper.

Are these incorrect stitch counts for sizes 3XL and 5XL really incorrect? Let me go back and check again!

I haven’t seen this particular short row heel much. Let me pull out my books and pull up the internet so I can learn more and verify that I understand what’s happening here.

In the hourly system which I now implement, I continue to do further research. If I’m unfamiliar with a special stitch or technique, I stop the timer and dig to get a clearer understanding.

My fixed rate system allowed me to learn much without the time pressure.

Cons of Fixed Rates

Even though the benefits from using this pricing system were many, there were drawbacks that ultimately lead me to switching to an hourly pricing system.

Low Pay for High Time

If I discovered an abundance of errors, complexity of charts was more than expected, and the designer needed me to go over changes several times, my time spent tech editing the pattern would be high, but I wouldn’t be paid more for it.

I would spend the time needed to go over every section of the pattern and do the quality job I was being paid to do. I just would be paid less for extra work needing t0 be done.

Can Encourage Lack of Efficiency

After I had helped knitwear designers tech edit several patterns, I had figured out how to efficiently work through a pattern, check off my list, and deliver a tech edited knitting pattern in a timely manner.

Now, the timer would be a helpful asset to my job.

Like a good manager in an office whose presence and direction reminds employees of the task at hand, a timer would assist me in focusing and remembering the importance of accomplishing the task.

Friendly to All Patterns: From Dog Blankets to Slippers

On my website, I would occasionally look at my list of fixed rate prices and think, “A knitting designer with a pattern for a dog blanket may wonder if I could even help them tech edit.”

By not having a list of types of knitting patterns like hats, shawls, or socks, I don’t leave any knitted item out.

Conclusion

For the beginning tech editor season of my life, I have no regrets in implementing this system!

One of the perks of tech editing in the freelance style is you can pick your prices and pricing system.

In my online searches, I didn’t see many tech editors of either knitting or crochet patterns providing a fixed rate pricing system. Maybe, they foresaw the cons I mentioned.

I hoped by sharing the pros and cons I experienced from implementing this system, you have my personal experience to weigh into your decisions over how to price your services.

If you were confused why I changed my pricing system, I hope this post also answered your questions.

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Have a blessed day, friends! I will be back with more to share soon.

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