Money makes the world go round. Or so the saying goes. And yet, so many of us find it deeply uncomfortable to talk about money. That’s problematic enough in daily life, but when it comes to running a business it can be one of the things that really gets in the way of our success.
We need to get better at talking about money so that we can get comfortable charging what we’re worth and attracting the ideal clients that will happily pay because they know the value that they’ll get from working with us makes it 100% worth the investment.
Money has become a dirty word, and yet we all need it. Unless you are one of the very fortunate few to inherit bags of money from a distant uncle (does that even happen in real life or just in novels of a certain era?) then the reason you work is to earn money to live your life.
I’d say that I’m more comfortable than most when it comes to talking about money in a workplace context because I’ve worked in sales for over a decade. I have had literally thousands of conversations about money, more specifically about budgets, value, and getting what you pay for. But I am by no means perfect at it or immune from the limiting beliefs we all have around money.
I’ve always been very open with what I charge for my business development support services with anyone who asked, but I realised recently that I haven’t published the numbers anywhere so it’s not easy to find unless you have a conversation with me.
On one hand that’s a good thing because I want the work to speak for itself and inspire people to have a conversation with me which is where the magic happens. Also, because all the work we do is bespoke rather than set packages, what you pay very much depends on what it is that you need.
On the other hand, it’s not very transparent and people might be inclined to think that it’s too expensive (it’s not for the right client but we do have a societal belief that if you have to ask for the price it’s going to be eye watering) and not bother to reach out meaning we both lose out on what might be a beautiful partnership.
That’s why I’ve decided to publish my rates.
There are several ways people can work with me to get my strategic, action focussed business development support on a project of their choosing within the sales, marketing, communications and training sphere of building a sustainable business.
For short-on-time big-on-impact support, choose a POWER HOUR. We’ll spend one hour together online doing a hyper focussed deep dive and you’ll leave with strategic insights plus a three point action plan. £100.
For targeted support in one area or for a set period of time, choose a PROJECT. We’ll work with you to define the start date, end date, and list of project deliverables helping you develop the strategy and take the action required to accelerate your progress in your chosen area of the business. From £1,000.
For longer term outsourcing where we bolt on as part of your existing team, choose a PARTNERSHIP. We’ll work with you for a set number of days per month for a minimum of three months and will be there to work on proactive and reactive opportunities in your chosen area of business development building momentum that will last. £450 per day for third sector clients and £495 per day for SMEs.
Finally, a note on my so called day rate and the actual transaction you enter when you contract with me on this basis, because it might not be what you think. You’re not paying for eight hours of my time, you’re paying for the fourteen years of experience I have doing what I do. You’re paying for the knowledge I have and the speed at which I can work to accelerate your progress and save the weeks, months, and sometimes years it would take you to try and do it alone. You’re paying to have a senior management level peer give you a distinct perspective on your work to help you figure out how best to share that work with the world in a way that is profitable and sustainable.
The term day rate gives us an easy shorthand by which to measure the transaction, but it can be misleading because what you’re actually paying for is the value you’ll get or the outcomes generated by that time spent.
So there you have it. Exactly what it takes to work with me to get the progress you want at the pace you need.
