I do this when I consult. I call it a roadmapping session. It's massively successful. The customer pays a little bit of $$ relative to the total spend to get w

I do this when I consult. I call it a roadmapping session. It's massively successful. The customer pays a little bit of $$ relative to the total spend to get what they want built. In exchange they get: 1. A doc outlining what they want built and how it'll be built. This is the key deliverable. 2. To work with me and see if it's a good fit 3. To pay a fraction of the price to de-risk a larger engagement 4. To see if I can deliver on what I said I'd build for them And I get: 1. To get paid to discover the bounds of their project (vs. writing a proposal for free) 2. To see if they're a good client (pays on time, works well together, etc) It's a huge win for everybody.