A new request is easier to discuss when everyone can see what changed. You do not need a complicated process: keep the agreed baseline, the requested addition, your estimate and the current decision together. The example below is fictional, and you can copy its structure into your own notes or spreadsheet.
Start with the baseline
Northstar Studio's website refresh includes five brochure pages: Home, Work, About, Services and Contact. The client supplies the final copy and photography. Two rounds of consolidated design revisions are included, and one has been completed.
Write that baseline before estimating the new request. Otherwise, “another page” might be confused with a revision to a page already included. The baseline also helps you state what your estimate leaves out.
Work the numbers
The client asks for a journal landing page. The freelancer estimates four hours for layout, build and a mobile review, with article writing excluded. At an illustrative rate of $85 per hour, the calculation is 240 minutes / 60 × $85 = $340. Record this as proposed work until you have a decision.
A second request, an additional homepage concept, takes an estimated 90 minutes. Its calculation is 90 / 60 × $85 = $127.50. In this fictional example, the freelancer has recorded it as approved. Keep that $127.50 separate from the $340 still proposed, so a reader does not mistake both for agreed work.
A third request—writing every service page—is estimated at 180 minutes, or $255. It is recorded as declined because the baseline leaves final copy with the client. Exclude that amount from the proposed and approved totals. These are estimates before taxes and fees, not invoice amounts or a suggested rate for your business.
Copy this blank worksheet
- Project and client:
- Agreed deliverables and included revision rounds:
- Request ID and date:
- Requested addition or change:
- Work included in this estimate:
- Work excluded from this estimate:
- Estimated minutes:
- Your hourly rate and currency:
- Estimated amount: minutes / 60 × rate
- Recorded status: proposed, approved or declined
- Decision date and reference to the actual conversation:
- Next action and owner:
Close the loop
Send the scope and estimate through your usual client process, then update your own record when a decision arrives. A status you type is not authenticated client approval. Keep the original message or other decision record separately, and revisit the estimate if the requested work changes.
Round each request to the nearest currency cent before adding line amounts. If you change the rate later, be explicit about whether you are revising earlier estimates. Save a dated copy before replacing an estimate someone has already seen.
An optional tool for this workflow
The blank worksheet is free to copy and use without an email signup. Scope Change Desk adds structured request entry, separate proposed and recorded-as-approved totals, JSON backups and an HTML summary. It costs $19 USD once for the delivered version. It does not obtain approvals, invoice clients or interpret agreements.
View Scope Change Desk — $19 USD once
Ready to deliver the agreed work? Use the free project handoff checklist to record file locations, responsible people and open follow-ups. It is a separate manual worksheet, with no signup required.