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nskryxpressionist
Posts: 13
Joined: 2/26/2003
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Responding to request for quote - 3/5/2003 22:29:19
quote:
I would like to have an estimate of cost to layout a web site with several pages with the option of my being able to update on occasion.
In addition to horse sales, starting next year we will be offering stallion services, sign and stall curtain design and painting, and 2 totally disconnected activities ie consulting in environmental science policy development and regulatory sciences and facilitation services (I am
retiring from the federal government and going private).
Hi gang,
The above quote is from an email I rec' d this evening.
In the past I' ve given a flat rate fee to create a multi-page website and quote my hourly rate for updates, etc. This just never works though. I always put way more hours in than I should for too little money. Never enough or way too much.
So, when you get a request like this one, what do you do? Do you immediately respond with $$$ quote or would you send back a response with some of the questions (similar to those being discussed in the other thread) for the client. I' m thinking the questions, along with requesting the prospect show me the site examples (like, dislike, etc).
Er, not sure if this doubles up on the discussion on what to ask a client, it sorta does, but it sorta doesn' t.
Cheers,
Laurie
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abbeyvet
Posts: 5095
From: Kilkenny Ireland
Status: offline
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/6/2003 4:57:59
quote:
In addition to horse sales, starting next year we will be offering stallion services, sign and stall curtain design and painting, and 2 totally disconnected activities
Looks to me like 4 different sites here to be frank, and I would tell him that - they are not exactly services that will sit easily together on the same site.
I would never respond to this sort of enquiry with a quote - definitely A LOT more information required.
_____________________________
Katherine
:: InKK Design :: InKK Domains
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nskryxpressionist
Posts: 13
Joined: 2/26/2003
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/6/2003 8:45:19
quote:
Looks to me like 4 different sites here to be frank, and I would tell him that - they are not exactly services that will sit easily together on the same site.
Which is what I thought. I do specialize in equine sites, so that part will be a breeze, but I couldn' t see how the others would fit.
I sent her back some of the questions listed in the other thread, and asked that she provide me with examples of sites she likes & dislikes.
I also included that I thought this looked like, at a minimum, two different sites, possibly three (the stall drapes will be a sideline to the horses I think).
The busier I get with " real" (as in they give me cold hard cash for the work I do) the more I realize how little I know about the " business" of the business. Up to this point I' d been using boiler plate contracts and not asking the right questions or thinking things thru well enough.
Great to have a place to bounce things off of other professionals!
Cheers,
Laurie
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brcorner
Posts: 42
Joined: 8/21/2002
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/6/2003 14:00:14
Hi Laurie-
This is the most sensitive part of the process to me. I am a fan of talking to the potential client on the phone, or preferably in person. I have found (by experience) that I am much more able to build my perceived value in the eyes of a prospect when I meet the person who makes the decisions. However, I have been in sales for 20 years, so I have some skill in those areas. If you can' t or don' t want to do that, I would have a 15-20 minute telephone interview with the prospect, and have a list of questions written in front of you that you need specific answers to. You can be thorough without being exhaustive. I have gotten $2000 jobs in that situation, and lost $500 jobs by just sending a quote(both were the same amount of pages and work) The main thing is that you will never get a chance to prove your value if you don' t have a personal dialoque with them. I don' t think it is enough to show that you know how to do a pretty website, or even a dynamic one, until the prospect knows you care about and understand their business. 10 minutes devoted to prep for the call and 20 minutes on the phone will yield more profitable results.
Good luck Laurie.
Bigdoggy
_____________________________
Bigdoggy
www.icorner1.com
" Don' t be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the Ark and professionals built the Titanic!"
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bnavis
Posts: 227
Joined: 12/14/2001
From: Wisconsin USA
Status: offline
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/6/2003 22:54:07
quote:
I am a fan of talking to the potential client on the phone, or preferably in person.
I agree 100%. I have been much more successful landing web clients by meeting them personally. It is way to easy for a potential client to shoot you an e-mail with an idea they have and want a price. Once they get a price, they begin to actually put more thought into their web project and it ends up not being the same project at all.
Make any sense?
_____________________________
" To start, press any key. Where' s the ANY key?" Homer Simpson
www.NavisTechSolutions.com
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nskryxpressionist
Posts: 13
Joined: 2/26/2003
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/7/2003 10:17:09
quote:
Once they get a price, they begin to actually put more thought into their web project and it ends up not being the same project at all.
I totally get it! And have quite an amusing story about meeting with the client face to face.
Last month I was contacted by a potential client asking what I charged. I gave him my hourly. He then asked for a couple of sites in my portfolio. I expected to never hear from him again, he sorta gave me the impression of being a tire kicker.
I couldn' t have been more wrong. Within an hour I had photos & content in my inbox (without a contract) and a request to meet with him that evening at a local pub (yum!).
I did so. He signed, handed me the deposit and then disappeared on vacation for 9 days. I piddled around, got most of the site done (it wasn' t complicated, took no time really). Left him a msg in his inbox that I had the " concept" ready for him.
Well, he returns from vacation and is on the phone almost immediately.
Now I' m thinking that it is a great thing I got the deposit up front cause he hates what I' ve done and I' m about to be fired.
I avoid the next face-to-face for a couple of days and then agree to the meeting. The whole time I' m thinking " ugh, I' m so fired" .
I couldn' t have been more wrong. The face meeting this time was to hand over THREE more sites. How cool am I  ...
It was an important lesson for me in actually MEETING with the client and not relying entirely on email.
I had another prospect contact me a few months back, we emailed back & forth, I never set up a meeting ... and I lost the client.
I think, because as " designers" , we are so web-based we tend to forget the " personal" touch. Yes, email contact is fast & painless, and meeting strangers sucks, but heck, it isn' t as if we are cold-calling.
Cheers,
Laurie
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bnavis
Posts: 227
Joined: 12/14/2001
From: Wisconsin USA
Status: offline
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/7/2003 10:25:44
quote:
he hates what I' ve done and I' m about to be fired.
Sorry to hear that. I had a site I made for a client, they loved it, paid in full and I thought all was well with the world. Later on they thought the entire color scheme did not blend with the environment/climate of their business. Needless to say, I basically developed an entire new look by editing everything to do with color scheme. We had some additional hours in their maintenance agreement which they completely used up now.
But, they thoroughly love the site. I e-mailed them to check it out. They e-mailed me right back. The subject was " You Rock!" That was an ego booster.
I surely think face to face is the way to go.
_____________________________
" To start, press any key. Where' s the ANY key?" Homer Simpson
www.NavisTechSolutions.com
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bnavis
Posts: 227
Joined: 12/14/2001
From: Wisconsin USA
Status: offline
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/7/2003 13:01:29
Sorry nskryxpressionist, I misread part of your post.
The hardest part for me is doing my absolute best to design the web a client wants and then worry about it until they give the final " OK." I have had all positive responses but it is just my nature to worry about that.
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nskryxpressionist
Posts: 13
Joined: 2/26/2003
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/7/2003 16:31:00
quote:
The hardest part for me is doing my absolute best to design the web a client wants and then worry about it until they give the final " OK." I have had all positive responses but it is just my nature to worry about that.
I used to take the critique personally, until I realized that the client knows their business better than I do.
Plus, perhaps what they envision for their site isn' t exactly what I did. That' s why I think it is important to give 3 or 4 options for layout to the client before you spend a lot of time on their site. And, round-trip back to the other thread on what questions you ask ... I think that is where asking the client to provide examples of sites they like & dislike is SO important.
Cheers,
Laurie
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bnavis
Posts: 227
Joined: 12/14/2001
From: Wisconsin USA
Status: offline
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RE: Responding to request for quote - 3/7/2003 21:25:19
I actually get some clients who think they just need to get on the web because " everyone else is." I have had some clients fully trust my judgement after we discussed their ideas. So far, so good, but I will need to do a better job getting clients ot have samples of websites they like and don' t like.
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