By name: client-pricing description: Commercial pricing engine for freelance deliverables. Encodes the pricing hierarchy, tiered anchor-floor tables, negotiation decision tree, and rate collapse prevention. version: 1.0.0 created: 2026-03-06 cluster: 6 (Social Contract & Negotiation) triggers: - quote - price - how much - charge - rate - negotiate price - client budget context_trigger: "pricing, quote, proposal, how much should I charge, rate card, hourly rate, project fee, freelance pricing, scope creep, negotiation"
Client Pricing Skill
Purpose: Prevent rate collapse. Enforce anchor-first pricing. Automate the quoting decision tree. Origin: Empirical calibration from real client engagements — rate collapse incidents and floor-as-opening negotiation failures. Both were preventable.
Core Principle
"AI commoditizes labor. It cannot commoditize judgment."
Pricing Hierarchy (defensibility axis): Time (❌) → Output (❌) → Deliverable (⚠️) → Outcome (✅) → Access (✅✅)
Never price at the Time or Output layer. Price at Deliverable (minimum) or Outcome (preferred).
Tiered Pricing Table
| Deliverable Type | Anchor | Floor | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay (1000–2000 words) | $250 | $150 | Counter at $200 if pushback |
| Problem Set (SPSS, coding, math) | $350 | $250 | Scope-dependent; +$50/additional test family |
| Capstone/Report (5000+ words) | $1,000 | $500 | Multi-round negotiation expected |
| Presentation (slides + script) | $300 | $200 | +$100 if design assets required |
| Speed Premium (< 48hr turnaround) | +30% | — | Non-negotiable surcharge |
| Complexity Premium (cross-domain) | +20% | — | E.g., engineering + writing + coding |
The Negotiation Decision Tree
YOU: State anchor price
↓
CLIENT: "Too high"
↓
YOU: "What's your budget?" (NEVER counter against yourself)
↓
CLIENT names their number
↓
├─ (A) Within 20% of anchor → Counter midpoint, settle ±10%
├─ (B) 40-60% of anchor → Counter at floor + 20%, settle at floor + 10%
├─ (C) Below floor → "Sorry, [floor] is the lowest I can go"
│ ├─ Client accepts → Done
│ └─ Client walks → Let them (Dignity Premium)
└─ (D) Client ghosts → Follow up once at 24hr. No chase after.
Three rounds maximum. After round 3, you're haggling, not negotiating.
Anti-Patterns (Reflexion Archive)
| Anti-Pattern | Case Study | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Opening at floor | Quoted at floor instead of anchor — left $50+ on the table | Always open at anchor. Floor is your walk-away, not your opening |
| Rate collapse via speed | Delivered fast, effective rate dropped to $83/hr vs $310/hr benchmark | Price by deliverable complexity, not hours. Speed is your competitive advantage — don't let it compress price |
| Negotiating against yourself | Generic pattern | After stating anchor, SHUT UP. Let the client name their number |
| Scope creep without re-quote | Client adds "just one more thing" | Any addition > 10% of original scope triggers re-quote |
Activation Rules
- Auto-trigger: When
academic-deliveryStep 2 (SCOPE) identifies commercial work - Manual trigger: "/quote", "how much should I charge", "client is asking about price"
- Exit: Output a formatted quote with anchor + justification + scope boundary
Quote Template
Hi [Client],
Based on the scope ([deliverable type], [word count/test count], [deadline]):
**Quote: $[ANCHOR]**
This covers: [explicit scope list]
Not included: [explicit exclusions]
Turnaround: [timeline]
Payment: [deposit]% upfront via PayNow, balance on delivery.
Let me know if you'd like to proceed.