Don't mind the questions at all. So, to be clear we don't offer general IT services, we only do individual projects for clients (usually websites and custom ap

Don't mind the questions at all. So, to be clear we don't offer general IT services, we only do individual projects for clients (usually websites and custom applications). Most clients don't need too much support, just an occasional training. We offer a standard support package as part of the host fee ($50/month, free 1/2 hour of support via the help desk). Usually the support contract is separate from the initial project. For projects, we used to do a flat rate bid, but that sucked because it was hard to define "done" or account for changing requirements once the project was under way. So we now give an estimate with a number of line items, and bill by the hour. This works out well because you let the client decide when to stop. We are cheaper because we don't pay ourselves industry standard wages (shitty, but that's the main cost), and we don't bilk the client for non-productive hours. In contracting, that's where the real money is: you charge by the week or month, not by the hour. We charge by the hour and are transparent about costs. Small nonprofits have very tight budgets so this is attractive to them. RD got started really as an extension of the activism people were doing at the time. David Taylor, who started it, was working on a number of campaigns and eventually needed help, so he brought some friends in. Projects got big enough that they needed real support, so money got involved. David didn't charge much at first, and the projects were small, but as we were around longer things started to gel up and eventually we started working with larger clients. It took us a while to sort out our business model, there were a lot of bumps along the way. Also, we never did any advertising, it's all been referrals so far. I don't recommend that! If you want to jump start the process, the best thing to do is talk at nonprofit tech conferences and get out in front of potential clients. You can also find potential clients who look like they may need your services, and email them. If you get in enough rolodexes, have a reassuring web presence, and do good work, you will start getting a steady stream of calls.