I know this probably seems like a silly question but I was just wondering how or if you charge a client for communication such as phone calls, chats, emails about their projects. For example, a team call, a Skype chat, am I correct in assumming this should be billed the same as other work?

I would think it would vary depending on the type and length of call. And whether it cost you money.

I bill for all call, emails and communication as it pertains to the client's work. I bill this the same as my other work. I also state in my contract that communications is billable.

However, I do make a point to combine emails to try to save some time for the client.

Janine

One of my clients calls a lot and emails me and I charge as I normally would for this type of thing.

Thank you all, I so happy to know what I am on the right track. I have mostly have weekly calls that can last from a half hour to an hour. At this point, I have not included email communications to and from the client, I haven't really kept track of this but I guess I need to get a system in place.

I use myhours.com when I track calls and emails. It can generate a report if the client asks but no one has ever asked.

I made an effort to answer emails at one time a few times a day so I can bill in chunks.

janine

Now this is very interesting. It has never even crossed my mind to charge for Communications. I learn something new at least 2 times a day from the forum. LOL. Janine I'm going to take a look at myhours.com thanks for mentioning it!

@ Go2Jennifer, this was hardly a silly question. I'm happy you decided ask about your concerns. For newbies like me, it's things of this nature we may overlook just starting out, so thank you!

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Sharon

If it wasn't because I used to work in law for 11 years I probably wouldn't bill for it, but knowing that lawyers bill for EVERYTHING, this is one of those things that gets added to the bill. Even if the phone call was literally one minute long, they bill minimum .10 for the phone call. I'm not saying you should inflate your billing but yet, all communication should be billed for, especially phone calls that pertain to that client.

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Paulette R.
Romero Communications

Just a little bit different perspective........I think this depends on the client and your pricing. For my ongoing clients, I do not charge for email communication about projects. I find this communication helpful to me and can help me be more efficient.

The only time I charge regular clients for any form of communication is when a regular client asks me to be on a team phone call. Then, I charge my hourly rate for all my team members on the call. Since I have at least 2 members on each client, this can be expensive for a client so it discourages them from abusing phone call time.

I expect to have email/phone communication from my clients and my per project rate allows for some time to be allocated to communication.

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Cathryn Jones
Assistants For Agents, LLC