Offering hourly rate services gives you and your customers maximum flexibility. Whether you're a developer, designer, virtual assistant, or consultant, charging by the hour lets you take on varied work without being locked into fixed project pricing.
This guide shows you exactly how to set up and sell hourly services on Zinn Hub.
Hourly services are ideal when:
Why Sell by the Hour?
- Scope is unclear— The customer isn't sure exactly what they need yet
- Work is ongoing— Regular support, maintenance, or assistance
- Tasks vary— Different jobs require different amounts of time
- You want flexibility— Take on ad-hoc work without creating new Zinns
- Building relationships— Start small and grow with your customers
Perfect for Services Like:
- Virtual assistant work
- Website maintenance and updates
- Technical support and troubleshooting
- Consulting and strategy sessions
- Development and coding tasks
- Design revisions and tweaks
- Research and data gathering
- Admin and data entry
- Training and mentoring
- Content updates and edits
- Social media management
- Ad-hoc marketing tasks
Important: Pre-Sales Communication First
Before a customer purchases hourly services, they should always contact you first.
This is crucial because:
- You can assess the work— Understand what they need before committing
- Set expectations— Give an estimate of hours required
- Check availability— Make sure you can deliver when they need it
- Discuss requirements— Get details to work efficiently
- Build rapport— Start the relationship on the right foot
How Customers Can Contact YouOption 1: Pre-Sales Chat
Encourage customers to use the pre-sales messaging feature on your Zinn page. They can ask questions and discuss their project before buying.
Option 2: Video Call Links
Add your Calendly, Cal.com, or other scheduling link to your custom fields. Customers can book a quick discovery call to discuss their needs.
Option 3: Contact Information
Include professional contact details in your custom fields for customers who prefer email or other communication methods.
Pro Tip:Mention in your Zinn description that customers should contact you first to discuss their requirements before purchasing hours.
There are two ways to offer hourly services on Zinn Hub:
How to Set Up Hourly Services
Method 1: Create a Dedicated Hourly Zinn
Title Example:"Hire Me: WordPress Developer — $45/Hour"
Description should include:
- Your hourly rate
- What services you offer by the hour
- Minimum booking (e.g., 2-hour minimum)
- How to contact you before purchasing
- Your availability/working hours
- What's included (communication, reporting, etc.)
Set the base priceto your hourly rate (e.g., $45)
Add quantity optionsso customers can purchase multiple hours at checkout (Quantity is automatically implemented for all Zinns by default)
Method 2: Add Hourly Services as an Add-On (Recommended)
This method lets you offer hourly work alongside your existing Zinns. Perfect for upselling additional time or offering flexible support.
Step-by-Step Setup:
Step 1: Go to your Zinn's Add-Ons section
Step 2: Create a new add-on with these details:
- Add-On Name:"Hire Me by the Hour" or "Additional Hours"
- Price:Your hourly rate (e.g., $45)
- Description:"Purchase additional hours of my time for custom work, revisions, support, or any tasks you need. Please contact me first to discuss your requirements."
Step 3: Enable quantity selection (Already set by default)
This allows customers to purchase multiple hours (e.g., 5 hours = 5 × $45 = $225)
Step 4: Add a Custom Field to display your hourly rate
In your Zinn's custom fields, add:
- Field Label:"Hourly Rate Available"
- Field Value:"$45/hour — Contact me to discuss your requirements"
This makes your hourly availability visible to all visitors, even before they reach checkout.
Setting Up for Easy Checkout
Here's a clever trick for customers who want to purchase hours quickly:
The "Quick Purchase" Method
- Add one hour to checkout— Customer adds the hourly add-on
- Adjust quantity— They change quantity to the agreed number of hours
- Complete purchase— Simple, fast checkout
Example conversation:
Customer:"I need about 5 hours of work on my website"You:"No problem! Add my 'Hire Me by the Hour' add-on to your cart and set the quantity to 5. That's $225 for 5 hours."
Make your hourly offering clear and professional:
What to Include in Your Hourly Service Description
🕐 HIRE ME BY THE HOUR
Rate: $45/hour
Minimum booking: 2 hours
✅ What's included:
- Dedicated work time on your tasks
- Communication via your preferred method
- Progress updates
- Quick turnaround
📋 Ideal for:
- Website updates and maintenance
- Bug fixes and troubleshooting
- Custom development work
- Design tweaks and revisions
- Ad-hoc tasks and support
⚠️ IMPORTANT: Please contact me before purchasing to discuss your requirements and ensure I can accommodate your timeline.
💬 How to get started:
- Send me a message describing what you need
- I'll confirm availability and estimated hours
- Purchase the agreed number of hours
- I'll get to work!
Tips for Setting Your Rate:
Pricing Your Hourly Services
- Research the market— Check what others charge for similar services
- Factor in your experience— More experience = higher rates
- Consider your costs— Tools, software, overhead
- Value your expertise— Don't undersell yourself
- Test and adjust— You can always change your rate
Setting a minimum (e.g., 2 hours) by simply making 1 quanity equal 2 hours - This ensures:
Consider a Minimum Booking
- Projects are worthwhile for you
- Customers are serious about the work
- You're not context-switching for tiny tasks
Example:"Minimum booking: 2 hours ($90)"
Tracking and Delivering Hourly Work
Best Practices:
1. Log your time accurately
Use a time tracking tool like Toggl, Clockify, or even a simple spreadsheet.
2. Provide regular updates
Keep customers informed of progress and hours used.
3. Be transparent
If a task takes longer than expected, communicate early.
4. Deliver a summary
At the end, provide a breakdown of how hours were spent.
5. Handle unused hours fairly
Discuss upfront what happens if fewer hours are needed than purchased.
Here's exactly what to enter when creating your add-on:
Example Hourly Add-On Setup
Name:Hire Me by the Hour
Price:$45.00
Description:Purchase my time for custom work, support, or any tasks you need. Each unit = 1 hour. Please message me first to discuss your requirements before purchasing.
Quantity Enabled:Yes (default for all Zinns)
Communicating Your Availability
Be clear about when you're available:
- Working hours:"Available Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm GMT"
- Response time:"I typically respond within 2–4 hours"
- Turnaround:"Hourly work usually completed within 48 hours of purchase"
- Timezone:Always mention your timezone to avoid confusion
When a customer contacts you about hourly work:
Handling Pre-Sales Conversations
1. Understand the task
Ask questions to fully understand what they need.
2. Estimate the time
Give an honest estimate of hours required.
3. Confirm availability
Make sure you can deliver within their timeline.
4. Agree on scope
Be clear about what's included in the hours.
5. Direct them to purchase
Once agreed, guide them to buy the correct number of hours.
Example Response:
"Thanks for reaching out! Based on what you've described, I estimate this will take approximately 4–5 hours. I can start tomorrow and have it completed within 48hours.proceed, please add my 'Hire Me by the Hour' add-on to your cart and set the quantity to 5 hours (£225). Once purchased, I'll get started right away!
To
Any questions, just let me know."
Quick Setup Checklist
- Decide on your hourly rate
- Set a minimum booking amount
- Create an add-on called "Hire Me by the Hour"
- Set the add-on price to your hourly rate
- Enable quantity selection on the add-on
- Add a custom field displaying your hourly rate
- Update your Zinn description to mention hourly availability
- Add your calendar/booking link to custom fields
- Mention that customers should contact you first
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