How much does it cost to have a document written?

Having lured you to this page, I am not actually going to tell you any hard and fast costs. I work on the principle of finding out what the job will entail before quoting a price or estimating a time to finish. I believe that my rates are competitive, but as with most things, you get what you pay for (remember, peanuts and monkeys). To put it in perspective, you almost certainly pay your vet or main dealer motor mechanic a lot more per hour than I would charge you.

I operate a sliding scale of charges, so if you are a one-man/woman business or a non-profit organisation, I will not charge you as much as if you work for a multinational corporation. I think this is fair, though the multinationals may disagree.

Sample costs

I can give you some sample costs based on real jobs that I have done recently, but remember that each job is different. They were all provided as electronic copy except for the last three:

50 page procedures manual (A4) for the project office of a large telecomms company, based on interviews, using systems, and very limited source documents: £5,000
25 page user guide for Voice Over IP system from a small internet company, converted into online support pages: £2750. Source information by interview with developer and using the system.
Several 75–100 page training guides for modules of a complex industrial database application, for a mutinational. Based on editing and improving draft documents written by multiple authors, for an audience not all of whom speak English as a first language: about £1,800 each
100 page detailed process description for use with Documentum application, for a mutinational. Rewriting draft documents by non-native English speakers to British English, but easy to understand by all (this job required three substantially-revised drafts as the process became better-defined): £3,200
Double-sided A4 company newsletter designed and typeset to corporate standard. Edited from electronic copy, 400 copies printed on semi-glossy paper with one spot colour £400 (plus delivery; larger numbers work out much cheaper per unit)
Double-sided A5 promotional leaflet for small local business; copywriting, design and typesetting; 5000 printed glossy full-colour copies: £500
16 page A5 booklet (programme for charitable organisation’s event); original design and typesetting from electronic copy, printed master copy for reproduction and assembly: £100

Costs plus UK VAT where applicable.

Cost reduction: benefits of professional documentation

Using a good author to write your technical documents will cost you money to start with, but has intangible benefits in promoting a professional image to your clients. After all, if you buy a new video recorder, would you rather have an illustrated instruction booklet that you can follow, or a piece of typewritten A4 paper with incomprehensible instructions written in pidgin English?

Which brings me neatly on to the next point. Excellent documentation will reduce your support costs. Every answer that someone finds in the user guide or the help system means one less call or email to your support line. The support team can concentrate on finding answers to real problems, rather than explaining to a customer how to switch an appliance on, or how to install a computer program.