Should You Offer VIP Days? Maybe—Here’s Why (And How)

Wondering whether you should offer VIP Days for your creative service-based business?

You should! At least, you should wonder about it.

Day rates or intensives can be a fantastic opportunity to sell your services in a quick, quantifiable way.

They can also be exhausting. 😅

After running dozens of copywriting VIP Days that have raked in more than six figures in revenue and a ton of repeat clients, I’ve been called “the VIP Day queen.” Today, I’d love to share my insights with you.

Keep reading to discover…

• What is a VIP Day?
• Why you should offer VIP Days
• Why you should NOT offer VIP Days
• 12 tips to run a successful VIP Day
• My episode about VIP Days on The BFF Club podcast

What Is a VIP Day?

Let’s start by defining what a VIP Day is.

Sometimes called an intensive or day rate, a VIP Day is a service where a client pays you for a specific block of your time.

The actual work varies depending on your business and the client. Essentially, someone is hiring you for the day.

Why Do Clients Love VIP Days?

VIP Days are fabulous for clients for several reasons:

• They get a fast, quality, personalized deliverable.
• They get your undivided attention and strategic mind for one full day.
• They get to apply the work (and see the results) almost immediately.

VIP Days are fabulous for you as a creative business owner for even more reasons, which I’ll outline below.

How Long Is a VIP Day?

While most VIP Days are just that — a full day — some creative service providers offer more or less than a standard eight-hour workday.

For example, Quotable Copy offers the following timelines to choose from:

• Petite Day: 4 hours of execution*
• VIP Day: 8 hours of execution*
• VIP Double Day: 16 hours of execution*

*Plus a whole bunch of prep work and revisions outside of these working hours!

You get to choose how long you want to work. Just be transparent about the timeframe you’ll be working, so clients know exactly what they’re getting from you.

Who Should Offer VIP Days?

VIP Days can be great for a variety of creative service providers, including:

• Copywriters 😘
• Coaches and consultants
• Brand and website designers
• Interior designers
• Photographers and videographers
• Marketing strategists
• Other creative entrepreneurs

As long as you offer a service that can be confined to a set number of hours, you can offer a day rate or intensive.

What Can Be Created on a VIP Day?

What you can accomplish on a VIP Day is up to you. Don’t over- or under-promise what you can deliver, but do be explicit about what your clients could walk away with.

For example, we say we can typically create one of these copy deliverables on a VIP Day:

• 3 pages of standard-length website copy
• 1–2 long-form sales pages
• 1 full brand messaging guide
• 5–10 marketing emails
• 1 lead-generation campaign

Your day rate could promise other deliverables, such as:

• Brand strategy
• Graphic design
• Website customization
• Systems cleanup
• Workflow setup
• Event planning
• Social media scheduling

You can offer whatever you want. Just make sure it’s truly whatever you want. Your VIP Days will be more enjoyable and successful if you’re actually passionate about what you’re creating!

The Bottom Line on VIP Days

The key thing to keep in mind about a VIP Day is that the client isn’t just buying your time. They’re buying the transformation your time provides.

Day-rate clients benefit from your talents, skills, and years of experience in your field. Yes, it’s technically a day (give or take), but as we like to say, it’s so much more than that.

“It was a really enjoyable and easy process — friendly and approachable, yet highly professional. Sarah was able to quickly understand what I needed, translate my ideas into polished copy, and deliver work that felt aligned and on-brand. The whole experience was both efficient and creatively satisfying — I felt like I was in very capable hands from start to finish.” –Whitney H., travel advisor

Why Your Creative Business Should Offer VIP Days

Now that we’ve covered what a VIP Day looks like, let’s discuss some of the advantages it can bring to your business (and some of the disadvantages). Then, you can decide whether the model might work for you.

Here are some of the reasons you may want to start selling day rates.

Earn a Higher Profit Margin

Because VIP Days come at a premium price — but not a premium time commitment — they’re a great way to boost your bottom line.

Streamline Your Offerings

Say goodbye to custom quotes and complex proposals. Day rates clarify your services and simplify your operations.

Provide a Ton of Value

Since clients get your strategic focus on their business all day long, the end result is incredibly productive.

Avoid Scope Creep

Tired of projects taking for-e-ver? VIP Days keep them on track with the set timeline, clear expectations, and fast turnaround.

Offer a Flexible Service

Let’s say a client wants a service you don’t typically provide. You can easily bake it into a day rate, allowing more flexibility in your services.

Build a Predictable Schedule

As a mom of two littles, I love how day rates let me balance motherhood and entrepreneurship. By choosing the specific days you work in advance, you can easily coordinate childcare or plan time off.

Foster Strong Client Relationships

The personalized, immersive experience of a VIP Day builds connection and trust between you and the client. That makes them more likely to return to you (and refer their friends, too!).

Fill Gaps in Your Calendar

Got an empty week, month, or season on the horizon? Offer day rates as a quick cash injection when business is slow.

Compartmentalize Your Time

With these focused workdays, you can use other days for other purposes: Marketing Mondays, Finance Fridays, Fun Fridays… whatever you like. I find that sorting my time like this reduces burnout and keeps me energized.

See What You’re Capable Of

Intensives help you identify how long parts of your process actually take. That’s incredibly valuable insight when it comes to pricing and promoting your services.

Make Future Work Easier

If you’ve done a day rate right, you’ll have a client for life — they’ll just keep coming back for more. Since you now know their brand well, you’ll be able to work even more efficiently next time.

“I was legit blown.away. at how good our VIP Day was. When we met for our mid-day progress meeting, I waffled between “jaw-on-the-floor-OMG-SLAY” to a huge goofy grin of gratefulness. Literally, 24 hours after our project was completed, my new investment page was live and sent to a new inquiry, who almost immediately booked my Session Collective offering — a HUGE win. I think this is what the kids mean when they say something paid for itself IN TWENTY FOUR HOURS. WHAT.” –Ellen W., photographer

Why Your Creative Business Should *Not* Offer VIP Days

So, VIP Days are the bomb, right? They are (at least, we think so!). But they aren’t for everyone.

You may not want to offer day rates for your creative business if…

Your Work Can’t Be Confined to a Day

Some services, like full wedding planning, simply don’t work for day rates. If you don’t think you can accomplish a client’s needs in a day (give or take), stick to project-based work.

You Can’t Stay Focused for One Long Period

VIP Days are a lot of pressure. Steer clear from them if you aren’t confident you can stay productive and creative all day long, or you’re worried about having to work on a bad day.

You Work with Large Teams

Day rates aren’t designed to have too many cooks in the kitchen. If you manage a big team, and/or your client does, you may find that a longer, more collaborative project timeline makes more sense.

Most of Your Clients Work in a Different Time Zone

While you can do VIP Days with international clients, working around different time zones does pose a challenge.

Your Personal Life Is Unpredictable

Maybe you’re a mom of six, or you travel frequently, or you moonlight as an off-Broadway star. Whatever the case, VIP Days aren’t ideal for people who need to be able to drop work at the drop of a hat.

You’re an Extreme Perfectionist

The nature of a day rate is that it’s confined to a day. The work you deliver probably won’t be 100% perfect. If that pains the people pleaser in you, it might be wise to avoid VIP Days.

“This was my first time doing VIP Days with someone, and wow, total game-changer. It gave me structure, lit a fire under me, and kept me moving forward. I have a lot of sh*t to get done — and DONE. I feel like a weight has been lifted — more clarity, more peace, and my heart feels full!” –Jennifer T., designer

12 Tips to Run a Successful VIP Day

So, you’ve decided the pros outweigh the cons, and you’re ready to start selling VIP Days. You go, girl (or guy!).

After a lot of trial and error, here are my best tips for running a successful day rate as a creative entrepreneur.

1. Try It Out First

Don’t make VIP Days your entire business model if you’ve never even tried them. Start small. Offer to trade with another service provider, or offer a highly discounted rate (or even a free VIP Day) to your first client/s. That way, you can test your limits, tweak your process, and gather testimonials before fully committing to the service.

2. Make Sure You’re Passionate About the Work

You’ll be spending a lot of concentrated time on these projects. Make sure the type of work aligns with your business vision and energy. Otherwise, you’ll run out of steam.

3. Price Your VIP Days Appropriately

Remember, the value of a VIP Day lies in the quality of the work provided, not the time invested. If you can channel 15 years of experience into a deliverable that’s guaranteed to grow someone’s business, you can afford to charge $2k, $3k, or even $6k per day. If you’re just starting out, and you can’t confidently convey the ROI of your VIP Day… well, you should probably charge less.

4. Decide Priorities Ahead of Time

Don’t go into a VIP Day blind. Send a questionnaire or (for established clients) a simple yet formal request for what they’d like to accomplish during the day. Trust me, you’ll want those priorities documented.

5. Prepare (Really) Well

Every entrepreneur’s process to prep for an intensive is different. I like to prepare a lot, so I know the brand like the back of my hand by the time I sit down to write copy for it. Aside from doing your own research, you may want to send along an agenda, outline, or pre-day guide to get on the same page as your client even before the day begins.

6. Set Expectations (!)

If I have one tip for running a smooth VIP Day, it’s this. Although — or perhaps because — it’s tough to say exactly what you can accomplish during a day, you should try to set expectations as clearly as possible ahead of time. Communicate before and during the day, so the client feels informed and taken care of from start to finish.

7. Don’t Skip the Kickoff Call

Unless I’ve worked with a client a lot, I start every VIP Day with a kickoff call. Not only is this a good chance to clear up any questions and finalize priorities for the day, it also sets a positive tone that gets both me and the client excited for the day.

8. Keep Communication Lines Open

Your client is hiring you, so make yourself as available to them as they’d like. Whether through email, text, call, or Voxer, let them know they can contact you at any time to discuss their project.

9. Stick to the Process

Hopefully, you’ve spelled out your process in your contract and/or pre-day guide. Your clients will appreciate the clarity, and you’ll appreciate having something to reference if clients inevitably try to toe the line by requesting extra support.

10. Offer Reassurance

VIP Days can be a significant investment, so it’s natural for clients to be nervous about the process or end result. Put them at ease by offering regular updates, an end-of-day summary, and support window if possible.

11. Build Enough Buffer

Don’t fall for the myth that the work involved in a VIP Day is restricted to one day. You’ll likely need to reserve time before and after the day for prep work, revisions, and all the admin work that’s sure to build up in between. Plus, you’ll want a little cushion of time in case emergencies arise (sick kids, sick you, etc.).

12. Know Your Limits

How often you can handle intensives depends on your personal and professional capacity. I’ve done as many as three VIP Days a week (!), which I quickly learned was unsustainable. My max is currently two per week, with occasional weeks off to help me recharge.

Your limit might be one intensive per week, per month, or per season. Figure out the cadence that works for you (and your financial goals), and try to stick to it. You might be tempted to cram in more days for extra income, but in most cases, the added exhaustion isn’t worth the tradeoff — trust me!

Learn More By Listening to My Interview on The BFF Club Podcast

I recently joined my friend Kilee on the The BFF Club Podcast to talk all about building a business around VIP Days.

You’ll learn how I went from freelance chaos to a streamlined day-rate model — and exactly what prep work goes into making our VIP Days so successful.

I also explain why this approach is ideal for busy entrepreneurs who want high-impact results without the drawn-out project timelines.

Timestamps

• 04:46 – 09:26 – How VIP Days solved the scope creep and pricing puzzle
• 09:26 – 14:38 – What you can realistically accomplish in a VIP Day
• 14:38 – 18:13 – Sarah’s VIP Day process from prep to 24-hour support
• 18:13 – 21:05 – The importance of boundaries and recovery time
• 21:05 – 26:41 – Where to start: testing, trading, and finding your limits
• 26:41 – 31:27 – Making VIP Days profitable and communicating true value
• 31:27 – 33:17 – Best advice for success and where to find Sarah

Learn more by listening to the podcast here:

Connect with Kilee

• Instagram: @oliveandemme, @bondi_marketing
• Website: www.oliveandemme.com, www.bondimarketing.com

See How the VIP Day Process Is *Really* Done

The best way to learn about the VIP Day process? Experience it for yourself!

Discover how impactful a day rate can be for your business by booking a copywriting VIP Day with me. You won’t believe how much fun (and productivity) we’ll have!

[ Explore Our VIP Days ]