No you cant really put up work from your old agency, put a statement on your site that you have other work you have done but cant publish it because they are (its theirs) but you can send nice PDF of it instead, many people using you for freelance will like the idea your business has this integrity to it.
Messing about with your name is a sheepish thing to do...use your name or company name.
Wow this ones easy.......your getting very busy to the point you have more work than you can deal with and all your other clients are paying more.....thats what all businesses do, at the same time your informing your client your popular and good and getting better at what you do, travel expenses etc...that wont wash
I have been self employed in design for 12 years now, I stopped using hourly rates a long time ago and I dont know why designers stick with hourly rates. In theory this is the last business that should be governed by hourly rate pay. What you do in an hour can be hugely different to what others come up with in an hour due to who has what creative vision, in what area of design style and how your work process is arranged.
I did a branding design for an exhibition stand a while back for a new beauty cosmetics brand. It took me 3 hours as it was real short turn around from a failed relationship with their previous designer. They liked it and took it on to run with their logo and other merchandise etc. If I had an hourly rate I would have earned very little from that but I told the client I understood their area of style and had researched an recorded references over time which meant I could jump in and hit it right, quickly. I charged them a good fee that they were happy to pay. They were buying my experience and knowledge of style in their area, hourly rate doesn't come into play.
If I was in your position I would charge as follows
1.(If applicable, personally I dont do this part much) First fee for gathering and presenting logos and style to give you some direction and idea of what the client likes.
...or (best if you ask them to send you things they have seen that they like, clients quite like this and always know something they have seen they like or will soon see something the next day on the way to work and send it. Obviously you dont charge for this option.This would work well if its for a mate to cut down time.
2. Fee for supllying ideas x 3 or how many you come up with trying things out.
3. Fee for adapting logos to second stage following feedback from above
4. Fee for finalising some options that client will pick
You can specify this kind of thing as a set process and give it all a fee as the logo job. Anything outside of this like MD returning from holiday and having other ideas etc is all on top as the creative process was broken.
Others may disagree but this works for me and stops clients being too fussy getting you to try all sorts and running up time.
Also dont forget logos shouldn't cost the same all the time if a client wants a complex coat of arms it will be a more costly, if a local small time plumber wants a well chosen font with some little shape with it then it will take less time.
