Today let’s think about what to charge for a long-form recording, like a CD-ROM, an interactive DVD or a large Internet training site.
Some of my friends charge by the “finished minute” for a long project. (e.g.: 60 minutes times $20 per minute = $1200) I’ve never done things that way, but you might find the approach useful as a way to start thinking about the rate you would be comfortable charging. I don’t think there’s a standard rate for this per minute kind of thing.
Here are the AFTRA rates for “non-broadcast” recordings of this sort. The rate is $720 to $904 per day for just the recording, depending on the specific kind of project.
For myself, I look at a project like this and try to calculate how much time and effort it will take and then quote a rate that represents what I consider a fair price for that time and effort. A good rule of thumb is that it takes 1.5 to 4 times the finished length of a project to record and 2 to 3 times the length of the project to edit. (updated)
Some kinds of projects, medical for example, tend to run to the longer end of that margin. If the script is filled with a LOT of very technical jargon (e.g.: polysyllabic chemical and medical terms) In such cases, I add a bit extra for the time it will take to find and verify pronunciations.