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05/16/2008: "Should You Ask For a Budget in Your Quote Request Form?"

Most copywriters have a quote request form on their Web site. If you're a copywriter, you most likely have one and depend on it to guide you in creating a quote that is a good match for the job the prospective client needs to have done.

Many copywriters, myself among them, asks the prospective clients to provide a budget for the copywriting part of their project. Since the beginning of the advertising industry, asking for a budget has been a standard question and one that's both expected and needed.

I find, however, that those folks who use the Internet to hire copywriters don't answer this important question honestly. It makes them as uncomfortable as a steer headed for Kansas City.

I think they feel you're trying to look under their skirt. Somehow they feel that if they give too large a figure, you'll do everything you can to get every last dime. Of course, we know that's a stupid attitude and not true. But that's the way the majority of them think.

The only people who expect to give a budget and know that it's part of what we truly need to know are the sophisticated businesspeople who are used to dealing with advertising agencies. All marketing people in Fortune 1000 companies, for example, expect the question and usually answer it honestly.

The small guy, the average person who goes to your Web site, doesn't understand this. He thinks it's an intrusive question and he usually will tick the lowest figure you've provided. He hopes by doing so you'll figure that's all you can get out of him and only charge that amount.

We, of course, know that won't happen. Just about everyone who fills out my form, ticks the lowest figure. I usually pay no attention to it and simply quote him my regular fees for the type of work he needs done.

But there are a few times when I'll simply email them and tell them that I can't do what they want for that figure. I'll tell them that perhaps they ticked it by mistake or actually have a more realistic budget. If that's the case, I tell them to email me and let me know.

So back to the original question --- should you ask for a budget or now? My experience tells me that on the Internet it really doesn't matter. Since most people won't tell you the truth anyway, it's sort of a useless query. If they did tell you the truth, it would be extremely helpful and it would help you to give them exactly what they need and can afford. It's a question that's as much for their benefit as for yours. Probably more so.

Unfortunately, people tend to shoot themselves in both of their feet rather than tell the truth. So whether you ask or not really makes no difference. At least not on the Internet where you're dealing mostly with less sophisticated businesspeople who have never dealt with people in the advertising industry and don't understand how we work.