Re: Sticking to rates when you're poor and desperagte

Normally, when I'm having a meeting with someone and they ask me what they can get for $200, my immediate reply is to look at my watch for two seconds (while I think) and then I look them in the eye and say "I think we're almost there right now".

The conversation usually ends right there and I can do something more profitable, like driving back to my office or buying a Lotto ticket.

My quote of the day: "Go ahead, do it once for a low price and establish your rate forever." Why would you ever be worth more to do the same thing for anyone else?

My advice would be to jump in the phone book (the thick book full of phone numbers that you probably threw away) and start looking up non-profit agencies. Call and ask for marketing or for community relations. Ask them if they have any small video jobs that they need done. They always need something and they've usually got a couple hundred bucks in a drawer.

If you only need to make small dollars, give your precious time to someone who really needs it, not someone who wants to steal from you.

In 1997, my wife and I were buying our house and we were in desperate need for money for our down payment. A non-profit asked us in to do a video for them. They had $8500. It was a school that helped mentally disabled young adults. The CEO made $32k a year. We did the project and got everyone on our team to donate their time and gear. When it came time to collect, we donated the check back to the school. Word spread quickly that we were idiots and within two weeks, we were awarded a $250k contract with a community college district.

Coincidence? It turns out that someone on the CCD board had a child at that school. The bid came down to two companies, us and the biggest production company in town. We were able to fund our down payment. See our latest non-profit venture at www.vimeo.com/sntvideo St. Mary's Food Bank.



Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It's a dry heat!

Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut (not quite PRO) systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck
2-Sony EX-1 HD .