Words on the Page

Rates (and Why I May Have Changed My Mind)

Posted on by lwidmer

What I’m reading: The Pearl by John SteinbeckWhat’s on the iPod: Good Arms vs. Bad Arms by Frightened Rabbit Amen for convalescing! I’m back this week in force, though the work is relatively scant. I can’t sign up for much due to an upcoming vacation, but I can get stuff lined up and maybe start…

Redneck Guide to a Better Career

Posted on by lwidmer

What I’m reading: The Skull Beneath the Skin by PD James (finished it!)What’s on the iPod: All You Ever Do is Bring Me Down by The Mavericks Where I come from, people are familiar with the term “redneck” and yes, even in places where the people live simply, it’s not considered a compliment. In my…

My Me Day

Posted on by lwidmer

For Kathy: What I’m reading: The Skull Beneath the Skin by PD James (downstairs) and Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier (upstairs)What’s on the iPod: She’s Mine by Brett Dennen How strange is it that I’m calling today my “me” day, the day I do just for myself? This coming off a week of recuperating and…

The Minimal Life

Posted on by lwidmer

I’ve figured out that until this body recovers, my life is a series of minimums. Minimum amounts of work, minimum movement, minimum excitement, minimum activity in general is the new order. Yesterday I managed one small project and two blog posts. Today, another small project and one more blog post. Then the stitches come out…

Slow Going

Posted on by lwidmer

Who’d have thought a minor surgery would have me reeling days later? Seriously, yesterday I had what I thought was a setback. I was absolutely drained of all energy. I was weak. I was aching in a way that you’d ache if you had a cold or flu. No fever (very slightly above normal). I…

Excuses for a Large Scar

Posted on by lwidmer

It’s funny how when one is convalescing, one can quickly adapt to the “sick” feeling as one tries to follow doctor’s orders. Yesterday was lightheadedness, a little fatigue, and lots of “Maybe I should sit down and rest” feelings. But since that bloody phone rings every 20-30 minutes, it wasn’t happening. I turned off most…

Upright

Posted on by lwidmer

A big thank you and love to everyone who wished me well both publicly and privately on surgery. The power of positive thinking works – I had probably the smoothest recovery times imaginable. The day of surgery wasn’t pleasant, but I needed just one round of painkillers and anti-naseau meds. By that evening, I was…

Friday Vapor Trails

Posted on by lwidmer

By the time you read this, I may be under sedation, which given the number of hassles I’ve had this month could be a blessing. Nothing like forced nap time for the busy freelancer, eh? Since I’m not going to be around, I’m leaving you some dribs and drabs of fun, trivial things. Hey, it’s…

Kicking Bad Habits

Posted on by lwidmer

If I had back all the time I spent on Facebook, I’d probably get an extra week or two of my life back. It’s my diversion. It’s also my time sink. When I’m on deadline, it’s my nemesis. And curses to the person who decided to tie Bejeweled Blitz to Facebook! There goes another good…

The Consulting Fee

Posted on by lwidmer

Don’t hold your breath, but I think I finished the massive project du jour yesterday. I’ll go over it once more today, but I’ve reviewed it four times now, applied Styles, created my TOC, and otherwise prepared it for PDF and delivery. Amen. But now…. nothing today. That’s fine because after that, I need a…

Cathy

Great minds, Lori. I've been saying I was going to do this (talking to myself again-ha!), but have seldom done it.The only time I quoted a consulting fee, the client dropped the request. It was the "can you look at this & give me your opinion" request. As soon as I said, "Sure, and here is my consulting fee," – end of discussion.

Steve Slaunwhite has recommended it and every time I see the suggestion again in a newsletter, I say, "Yeah, I know. I should."

It's on my plan to revise and update my fees and my plan is to add consulting fees. I work on a project fee basis and write what's included in the scope. It would be no big deal to add a fee for consultation.

What I like about the idea is it gives a value to your time. Even if you choose to waive it, like your idea of "free if you buy," it still establishes a value.

I look forward to hearing how others handle consulting fees.

Lori

Cathy, the only reason I offered freebies was to get the foot in the door. But in retrospect, I think those who would jump at a freebie aren't necessarily looking to pay a fair price. It's like a light bulb went on over my head yesterday.

I talked with an interior designer once who said she started charging for consultations when it was apparent her clients were taking her presentation ideas and doing the work themselves. She said the clear remedy for her was the fee. That way she's not wasted time no matter what the outcome. I'd bet she got more serious inquiries after that, too.

Wendy

Currently, I only do consulting with one client. I drive to their site for these meetings. I get paid hourly for the consultation, which is generally 2-3 hours. Also, I get paid mileage and the drive time to get there and back. They supply coffee and snacks and will have pizza delivered if it's around lunch time, so essentially they pay for my food. I don't ask them to, they just do it. It wouldn't be worth it if I gave them any of that consulting time for free.

In the past, I've given some free consulting if you count a small question or two that doesn't take much to answer. Beyond that, I don't really have much of a practice for consulting. I guess it would vary with most clients.

Paula

Every now and then someone will track me down, call or e-mail saying they want to discuss a project. (Most want me to call them, long distance. They might have free long distance, but I don't.) It doesn't take long to realize when they're picking your brain. I usually find a reason to cut the calls short and rue the time I wasted talking to them. Next time, I'll reply by stating a consultation fee – and include the bit about it being waived if I get the job. More incentive for them to hire me.

Slightly OT, last night I needed something to watch while knitting, and tuned into the season premiere of Parenthood. I don't watch it regularly, since I have trouble empathizing with the overly dramatic family's typically self-manufactured problems. (That said, the kid who plays the autistic son, Max, is really good.)

Anyway….the ne'er do well daughter off-handedly made a suggestion to her brother for something that could give the shoe company he works for a competitive edge. In a pinch, the brother pitched the idea to his boss, who loved it and told him to develop it. The sister mentioned the idea to someone else, who said he'd buy a dozen if they hit the market. When their overbearing father heard that she wasn't getting credit for the idea and wouldn't be involved with the project, he lectured her and closed with something along the lines of, "If you undervalue your own ideas, everyone else will, too."

The dad is a jerk, so hearing him say something that made sense really stuck. For a second there I thought Lori was consulting on that script, LOL.

Ashley

Oh I like that… waive the fee entirely if they hire me. Otherwise, here's the bill. Seems clean and fair. I'll keep that in mind.

Enjoy your break, Lori.

Carole

I like the idea of charging for the initial consultation unless they hire you–then it's free.

Jenn Mattern

I try to avoid consultations as much as possible. After all, that's why I quit the PR consulting work to write full-time. I'll give a free consultation up front, but I don't advertise that fact. It's all a part of selling my services anyway. But if the questions start piling up or they're constantly emailing me, it's a $150 per hour fee for telephone conversations (or for 3 detailed email responses). I find that rather than making a lot of extra consulting, suddenly those clients become much more self-reliant, and we all get back to the work we're supposed to be doing. For simple questions here and there, I don't bother billing however. It's more for those needy client types.