Since you’ve done so much work consulting, I’m wondering if you can provide me some quick advice. A small college has asked me to consult on an evaluation of their promotion and tenure policies.  I can imagine how this would work substantively, but not financially. Have you ever done something like this? If so, what type of a fee is appropriate?   Thanks in advance for any advice you can provide!

Meggin:

How long do you think this process would take you?

Response:

I don’t know?!  I imagine one full day on campus talking to people, one day of prep (reading their written materials and such), and one day for drafting a report and recommendations. Honestly, I’m just guessing.

 Meggin:

So three days is a conservative estimate for something like this…and with most consulting…it grows beyond what you are imagining…you’ll connect with people and they will want to talk (as they should) and email you and call, etc. Plus, what if you get into a can of worms (which is very possible). How are going to be doing your report? If it’s just written, then that’s one thing, but if you need to discuss it with the Provost or whoever it is that is hiring you….

I’m not sure what your hourly or daily rate is for consulting, but let’s say it’s $175/hour, then I would charge for at least 24 hours (3 full days + the overflow into a fourth “day” – and it could easily go much past that) so that’s $4200 (plus travel, etc.). If you have a daily rate, say $1750/day, then it would be $7000 for ‘four days’. I wouldn’t say anything to them about days or hours…I would talk about the services you will be providing and give them a price, but not break it down.  You are providing value to them that few people could.  They aren’t hiring someone from the yellow pages at an hourly rate, so you need to price your services as a package – and then you work til the job is done.  After you’ve done more things like this, you’ll have a better sense of how long it will take. 

You could also offer options of what you will do at various price points. 

Response:

THANKS!  This helps so much.

Experts are fairly evenly split on this – because there are arguments and experiences on both sides of the issue. In this article, I’ll share reasons to and reasons NOT to include your price in your materials (including on your website).

Reasons to include your price:

1. If you have a very high price and you have more clients than you can handle, then include it, because it will help drive some folks away.             

2. If you have a very high price and you know some people are intrigued and actually more interested because the price is high (this is called prestige pricing), then they will be even more interested if they know you have a high price. They will be attracted by the exclusivity.             

3. If you want people to contact you who are truly interested and won’t be driven away by the price (whatever it is), then they might as well know ahead of time what it is. That way, you don’t have people who are only shopping on price, but are shopping on value, “fit,” etc.             

4. If you are proud of your price, that is, if you want people to know, “By jove, this is my price and I’m proud to have people know that this is what I charge and can command in the marketplace.” For example, for me to do a full-day of office organization in my local area, I charge far more than many other professional organizers charge. I’m proud of my price – and also know that advertising it in my materials will address #1, #2, and #3 above.             

5. Include your price if it is absolute (set in stone) and you would be playing games not to include it. This would be for lower-priced items (books, materials, teleseminars, etc.) There’s no sense to act like it’s a secret. Imagine going to amazon.com and having them not tell you what the price is until you check out. It would be irritating to say the least.

Reasons NOT to include your price:

1. Some people shop on price and if they are thinking about what you charge (and whether that seems high or low to them) then they may reject what you’re doing before any further investigation.             

2. If you know that your product or service needs more discussion than what your marketing materials can offer, then you want people to contact you for more information–and that allows you to learn more about them, too. Then, and only then can you give them the appropriate price. The idea would be that you help “sell” them on what you are doing and also begin to develop a relationship with them – and determining your ‘fit.’             

3. You can’t include your price if there is not an exact price. So, for example, I don’t have an absolute daily fee for speaking because it depends on a variety of factors. I tend to give people a range (both on my website and when they first inquire) until I can gather more information and then give them a firm price.

So, you can see that there are reasons to – and reasons not to – include your price.

And, to make sure you are productive in your personal and professional life, you’ll want to access the resources at

**http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com

(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm)

Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do via seminars, workshops, writing, coaching, & consulting.

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