football program add help needed

[Lane123]

I have been asked to design a football program add for a high school JV cheer team. Can anyone offer any suggestions as to what they would charge for this? I have designed senior tributes in yearbooks, but that was covered in my higher end senior pkgs. Several of these girls are repeat customers every year so I am not looking to make a bundle off of it, but would like to be compensated for my time in front of the computer :) I will be doing individual and team photos and am in the DFW area if that helps. Any suggestions for going rates for this would be greatly appreciated.

[texkam]

This info from Answers.com is spot on IMHO.

Graphic designers usually either work for a studio or firm or operate independently from their home or office. In a studio, an entry-level designer can expect to be paid $15-$18/hr, however a graduate with competence and a worthy portfolio can expect to start off with a salary of $45k-$65k per year, which would seem like $25/hr to $36/hr, but in reality designers making decent money usually work more than 40 hrs/week.

Working independently is a totally different story. Freelance or registered business-owning designers need to charge more because they need to pay income taxes on that income. They also need to cover business costs like electricity/equipment costs, paper, ink, insurance, etc. Freelance designers usually charge between $40 and $140 per hour, depending on experience, and quality of work. It also depends on location, type of work, type of client, and convenience of the project.

A typical calculation for a freelancer with 3-4 years of experience,
working from home might include:

$50,000 expected annual design salary, single employee
+$40,000 annual operating costs (rent/equipment/utils/travel/insurance)
=$90,000 business costs

/1,750 (BILLABLE annual hours {36hrs/week x 49 weeks/yr})
=$51.43/hr break-even rate

+30% taxes *DONT FORGET TAXES
=$66.86/hr
+50% profit for growth
=$92.57/hr

TOTALS:
$92.57/hr charge for clients
$25.51/hr goes to designer's pockets

[Lane123]

Thank you so much Mark! This really helps to get me going in the right direction.