Yeah, great post, great reminder, great....all of that.
About two years in - I'm a slow learner - I completely revamped my pricing model. I started doing correction work solely on an hourly basis. By then I had a general idea of how long it took me to do what, and I could offer an estimate that usually aligned with the under-promise-over-deliver model, but something more potent actually took place. I was better able to "qualify" clients, and they could more easily do the same with me. In other words, the squirrels went back to the local Ducky's franchise, and the folks who saw the value told their friends.
Pricing is indeed relative, but not based solely on geography. As an entrepreneur buddy tells it, if you're too busy, you're not charging enough.
Factor in everything, but remember...you're offering an expert professional service. Not only is the client paying for you to push a buffer around for X hours, but s/he is also paying for your years of experience, and your ability to diagnose and resolve issues efficiently. The other side of that coin, of course, is that you're charging not only for your time in pushing around that buffer, but also for your supplies, overhead, rainy day subsidies, etc.
