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You are right, and I don't disagree, and I've even had a couple of clients tell me that I should be charging more -- the usual number they offer is twice my usu

You are right, and I don't disagree, and I've even had a couple of clients tell me that I should be charging more -- the usual number they offer is twice my usual rate ($35/hr for students; $39/hr for home/home office; $45/hr for businesses). However, I started doing this in part because I was extremely frustrated with the various expensive I.T. support companies and draconian vendor support contracts, and because there's a huge under-served market of people who just need help with stuff they don't understand, and can't afford to pay Geek Squad's silly rates. I wanted to be part of the solution, instead of adding to the problem. For the most part, we have a pretty good relationship with all of our clients. There are occasional frustrations, but most of that is due to our own growing pains. We just "fired" a client recently after a large project went sideways and we ended up getting a bit soaked on it; we won't hesitate to do that in most cases, and I think it helps keep our business relationships healthier.

patio11 17y ago
huge under-served market of people who just need help with stuff they don't understand, and can't afford to pay Geek Squad's silly rates I know that market very well. I sell to them and, prior to moving to Japan at least, I was frequently their on-call tech support as a result of being someone's sister's bridge partner's nephew. I love my customers (and not-quite-customers since they never, you know, actually paid money for my services) as people. I don't think they're less intelligent or less worthwhile as human beings just because they don't understand that the little beige box over there is not a "CPU". They don't need to understand networking, automobile engines, or plumbing, just like I don't need to understand the HR policies of the local streets and sanitation department. What they do need to understand: you can solve some problems cheaply with products that can be produced at scale. You can teach yourself to manage some problems cheaply with educational resources that can be produced at scale. If you want an IT consultant with a range of skill broad enough to encompass almost any problem you could have available to perform arbitrary tasks, it will be affordable in the sense that it will cost you far, far less than the business value generated, but it will not be inexpensive by any stretch of the imagination.
jwilliams 17y ago
I like your ethos -- But be careful not to confuse expensive and value for money. If you're doing a job that is many times better than your competitors, then double the rate is a drop in the ocean. Even stingy clients will understand this. In fact, stingy clients often understand this best of all -- they know how to see value. "Bad" clients are the ones that don't get it at all. My general rule is to set a solid price and then cut deals.

patio11 17y ago

huge under-served market of people who just need help with stuff they don't understand, and can't afford to pay Geek Squad's silly rates I know that market very well. I sell to them and, prior to moving to Japan at least, I was frequently their on-call tech support as a result of being someone's sister's bridge partner's nephew. I love my customers (and not-quite-customers since they never, you know, actually paid money for my services) as people. I don't think they're less intelligent or less worthwhile as human beings just because they don't understand that the little beige box over there is not a "CPU". They don't need to understand networking, automobile engines, or plumbing, just like I don't need to understand the HR policies of the local streets and sanitation department. What they do need to understand: you can solve some problems cheaply with products that can be produced at scale. You can teach yourself to manage some problems cheaply with educational resources that can be produced at scale. If you want an IT consultant with a range of skill broad enough to encompass almost any problem you could have available to perform arbitrary tasks, it will be affordable in the sense that it will cost you far, far less than the business value generated, but it will not be inexpensive by any stretch of the imagination.

jwilliams 17y ago

I like your ethos -- But be careful not to confuse expensive and value for money. If you're doing a job that is many times better than your competitors, then double the rate is a drop in the ocean. Even stingy clients will understand this. In fact, stingy clients often understand this best of all -- they know how to see value. "Bad" clients are the ones that don't get it at all. My general rule is to set a solid price and then cut deals.