Preach! I've recently had a spate of one-off gigs doing home improvement and maintenance for rich people. At first, I undersold myself. I had been doing this work for the last several years in one form or another, but only on a volunteer basis -- in AmeriCorps, or for my family-- so it was very difficult to gauge what I ought to charge for my time. I found that when I charged a minimal amount, the clients were more entitled and demanding (frequent requests to drop everything and come over; getting haggled down; etc.). But because I was consistent and punctual and worked hard, I would always get follow-up work and referrals. It got to be that I was stretching myself thin from all demands on my time. So for the next client, I practically doubled my rate. Half-exasperatedly, I figured she would look elsewhere. She didn't blink, hired me on the spot, and it's been that much more lucrative since. Granted my n is like 6 people. But I intuit that when you charge a higher rate, the client simply respects you more. This stuff has been incredibly fascinating to me. I've recently had thoughts about starting a business doing this sort of thing. I just wish that my marketable skills didn't have such historically low ceilings (property management, basic home improvement).People will respect you more when your prices are twice what you think they ought to be.
I've experienced the exact same thing time and time again. I get busy, I throw some huge number out there, they accept immediately, PayPal me within hours, and are the best client. WTF. I recently had a few clients need rush / weekend work completed too. So I doubled my hourly (they're long-term clients, not one-offs) and guess what. They accepted.
I can also attest to blackbootz and insomniasexx's experiences. I was recently approached to do a piece of work that was very much outside of my comfort zone and a rush weekend job. As such, I just went in with a crazy high price. In the grand scheme of things it wasn't that much, but I don't exactly have a massive portfolio and it was more than two times what I'd charged previously. They accepted. Unfortunately, I think that particular project has gone south despite me delivering something that I think was pretty good for the time and terrible brief they gave me. At least I got paid I guess, but I feel a bit bad about it. It was mostly poor communication from their end, but in hindsight I should have pressed to get the information I needed. The lesson I learned: Always make sure to get a robust brief from the client. Don't let them be vague because you will end up failing to meeting expectations you didn't know they had. It sounds simple now, but I suppose the obvious things are the easiest to slip by in the beginning.