Breaking the Pricing Norm: What If You Billed After the Work Was Done 😳 | Pt 1
As designers, we often impose limitations on ourselves that feel normal but may not actually be true.
As designers, we often impose limitations on ourselves that feel normal but may not actually be true. One of the most common beliefs in our industry is:
"I could never land a project without first giving the client the price."
It feels like an undeniable fact. After all, clients want to know what they’re paying before they commit, right?
But let’s challenge that assumption. Are there industries where people willingly receive a service without knowing the price upfront—and are then obligated to pay afterward?
Absolutely.
Think about a trip to the emergency room. You receive care first, and only later do you find out the cost. In some cases, you may not even know the full amount until weeks (or months) later. And yet, the medical industry continues to operate this way because the value of the service is understood to be critical, urgent, and worth whatever it costs.
Now, interior design is obviously not an emergency service—but what if we applied the same logic? What if our clients trusted us enough to engage us before locking in a fixed fee? What if we structured our pricing to be determined after the work was completed, based on the true scope and value delivered?
The Case for Value-Based, Post-Project Pricing
Instead of estimating project costs upfront, what if you charged based on:
Shift the focus
from cost to results
The actual complexity of the project
The number of decisions made and revisions requested
The ultimate transformation and value created for the client
This shifts the focus from cost to results. Instead of negotiating a fee upfront and trying to fit your work into that constraint, you allow the value you provide to dictate the final price.
Would Clients Agree to This?
At first, it may seem unlikely—but consider this:
High-trust clients already work this way with professionals like lawyers and consultants who bill after work is completed.
Some luxury service providers (think: fine art restorers, high-end craftsmen) charge based on the final effort and expertise required.
Many clients already accept scope increases and change orders throughout a project—meaning they’re already accustomed to some degree of open-ended pricing.
How Would This Work in Practice?
If you were to experiment with post-project pricing, you might:
Sell the Vision First. Instead of leading with a fixed quote, focus on building trust and conveying the transformation your work provides.
Charge an Engagement Fee. Clients could pay a non-refundable initial fee to begin the project, ensuring commitment on both sides.
Set Transparent Expectations. You could outline a pricing structure where the final cost is based on complexity, decisions made, and the scope of work completed.
Provide a Cost Range or Benchmark. While you may not give an exact price upfront, you can offer past case studies or typical investment ranges.
The Real Question: What’s Stopping You?
The biggest barrier
to this model isn’t necessarily the client—it’s you.
The biggest barrier to this model isn’t necessarily the client—it’s you. As designers, we’ve been conditioned to believe that pricing must be firm and disclosed upfront. But does it have to be? Or is this just another artificial limitation we’ve placed on ourselves?
Imagine structuring your fees in a way that truly reflected the value you create—without forcing yourself to predict every project variable before work even begins.
It might not work for every designer or every client. But if even a small percentage of your projects could operate this way, how would that change the way you price, work, and profit?
Something to think about.