I had a new writer contact me about an article she had written for a photo-editorial fashion spread. Here’s what she wanted to know:

“A photographer friend and I recently did a fashion shoot as a part of a fashion and environment awareness idea that we came up with. The images are beautiful and the story is relevant to the ‘going green’ movement showing how. Because it is not your typical fashion magazine spread that’s trying to sell a specific product, but is more of an informative approach, I am trying to figure out which publication it is best suited for. Possibly a magazine that’s in need of content? Should I expect to pay to have this first item published? and if so, how much should I expect to pay?”

Here’s my response:

Sounds like a great concept and very timely, too. You should not pay to have your work used; you should be paid. I’m guessing that the photographer has either given you the rights to the images or you will be submitting the work as a photo editorial. You both should be paid for your contributions. What you can get depends on the quality of the work and the publication’s budget. Small, regional magazines don’t have big budgets, but typically would be interested because they lack the staff to do it on their own. Many fashion spreads are shot and written by freelance contributors. What about the fashions featured? The designer or the store that supplied the clothes should be credited.

Paying to have your work published in a magazine or other print publication is advertising. Do not confuse it with self-publishing a book, where the author assumes the production costs but receives all the profits from book sales.

If you are a consultant, coach or freelance writer, your fee is probably based on your time. Most likely you have an hourly rate or you base a project fee on the amount of time you estimate it will take you to do the work. I’ve been working as a freelance writer, editor and consultant since the late 80s, and I can say I’ve yet to find a great formula. So this blog post will not be about how to set your fees. Something came up this week that opened my eyes to the value of my time.

I had an unhappy client. That was distressing to me, but it got even worse. The client complained to someone else who is well known in the community and whose opinion is highly valued. I cannot deny that my client had a valid complaint. However, to my knowledge all that was mentioned was the mistake without acknowledgment of the months of good service.

While I lived in Florida, I went to the same hairdresser for over 20 years. We often talked about business and he had a great attitude about customer service. “You’re only as good as your last haircut,” he told me many times. I’m just now realizing how well that applies to any service.

In my mind, I had served my client well, giving far more hours worth of service than I billed. Yet from her perspective, the one bad “haircut” was what she remembered. It was a good wake-up call for me. Now I understand that it’s not about what my time is worth or how I set my fees; it’s about how my time is spent delivering what I promise–because good customer service is all any of us have to offer. It’s really never about the money.