Ok first off, get into the habit of using Production music you can license here are some GREAT sites with truly awesome quality for different genres
Pop/Electronica: premiumbeat.com
Dramatic/orchestral/ambient emotional: themusicbed.com
trailer/commercial: audiojungle.net
Trailer:shockwavesound
As for what to charge: $50-$150 per hour, find someone in your area who does what you do, find all of them, see what they charge per hour and start out under all of them and work your way up.
NEVER agree to a fixed price: you will regret it someday, I had a client who told me after 30 hours of work they couldn't pay me my $3900 quote, which was already half of my hourly cost for that project, they said they could only pay $2200, asked me if I could come down, then they wanted to me film all kinds of new stuff and do a 1000 changes, after I hit 100 hours on that project I told them 10 more hours and it would cost more, they freaked and wouldn't pay me so I just gave it to them for free to get them off my back forever. NEVER agree to fixed prices, if someone tells you they can only pay so much, tell them you only commit to do that many hours, and that you will not do unlimited hours for a price.
for long distance projects: charge $0.55 per mile and you will write $0.55 per mile on your taxes, that earns you $1 per mile, so if you travel 300 you earn $300 which is equal to $100 per hour of travel.
Absorb minor costs like music licensing, and add a hour or two to the editing time for communication and accounting time it takes to run business.
do free videos for really good prospects and colleges to get good repeating customers.
Get a website and get it ranked #1
Get on linkedin
That should help you get going.
Jknight
syracuse video production
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