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“What’s In the Budget For This Project?”

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Hallelujah! A prospect you’ve courted for quite some time has finally agreed to consider using you for a project. You’ve been invited to meet with a couple of members of the project team. You’re preparing for the meeting like a seasoned pro and that includes asking questions that show the prospective client’s priorities matter to you. You’ll ask about the ideal outcomes for the project, how the project fits in with long-term company goals and how a successful project is expected to promote brand awareness and grow the customer base. You’ll ask who will make the decision as to the vendor and when that decision will be made.

You know the right questions will ensure that you understand what the project is expected to achieve and confirm your ability to produce the deliverables. The right questions also signal to the prospect that you intend to meet or exceed expectations. But after you’ve inquired about the project specs, remember to ask another question, an essential question that is sometimes neglected—-the amount of money that’s been earmarked for the project budget. Without ascertaining this vital piece of information, you cannot move forward. To think that you can write a credible proposal without first discussing at least a ballpark price is unfair to both yourself and the prospect. Do you shop without looking at the price tags? Of course not.

The budget is a critical component of the project specs and there must be transparency. Without knowing how much money can be made available, neither you nor the prospect will know if either can afford to do the project until the proposal has been sent and that is too late. When the money talk is omitted from the project specs discussion, decision-makers and stakeholders waste time.

Money talks are intimidating for many. You’re thrilled to be invited to meet with a prospect and you want to make a sale, you want to get to yes. However, if you’re going to be a successful Freelance consultant, you must learn how to discuss money. The money talk brings on the big reveal—-can the prospect afford to work with you (and the flip side, can you afford to work with this company)?

As you know, attitudes about money are an emotional issue and you won’t know how the prospect will respond until you go there. Some prospects are comfortable being up-front and transparent about the budget. Others are not that evolved—- they jolly well know their budget, but they don’t want to tell you. Oh, well!

Nevertheless, you must face up to your money talk and tiptoe through whatever emotional baggage your prospect may have. Here are three direct but polite money talk icebreakers that are guaranteed to make it comfortable for your soon-to-be client to be candid about the budget before you write the proposal. If you’ve done it right, you and the prospect will first discuss the pertinent matters, including budget, and your proposal will confirm in writing what the parties have agreed to.

  1. Is your budget in the hundreds or the thousands?

This question quickly helps you understand the resources that your prospect is willing and able to invest in the project. If the response in the thousands, you can further clarify by asking if an amount that seems reasonable would be in the thousands or tens of thousands?

2. Are you thinking $500, $5,000, or $50,000? 

This question encourages the prospect to verbalize a spending range for the project. Remember, these are not your actual prices; these are numbers that make it easier and less intimidating for the client to express what s/he can afford.

3. Would an amount somewhere between $7,000 and $10,000 be affordable?

Suggesting to the prospect a range that’s close to the higher end of what you’d likely charge for that type of project is another good tactic. This question lets you know what type of services the prospect can afford and will make it clear to both of you if it’s worth moving forward with you as the project vendor. Fish or cut bait.

Finally, if you choose to give a verbal estimate, say the price, or the range, and be quiet. Silence gives your prospect an opportunity to consider the price and respond. Silence also communicates that you have confidence in your price. The worst thing you can do is announce your price and then offer to negotiate it down before the prospect has had a chance to say yes or no. Resist the urge to say, “Will that work for you?” Or “We can negotiate that if it’s too much!”

The best lesson you can learn as a Freelance consulting professional is that your time and talent are worth money and you deserve to exclusively work with clients who value what you bring to the table. Those who who attempt to wheedle or bully you into accepting a price that does not reflect your estimation of the value of your services is best avoided. Have the courage and the self-respect to walk away, as disappointing as it is. There’s no point in wasting it on a proposal for a client who can’t afford you.

Having money conversations is not an art–it just takes confidence and practice.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Anand Purohit/Getty Images. An Indian lady is shopping and is ready to pay in rupees.

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# Red Light

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So off you go, on a mission to reconnect with clients you haven’t worked with since the four month long COVID-19 shutdown began. You gracefully maneuver to position yourself to grab some billable hours before all of your Paycheck Protection Plan money runs out. You’re also on the hunt for new clients, maybe picking up the thread on leads you were checking out in the first quarter, before the rug was pulled out from under.

If good fortune prevails, you’ll bag a live one and generate some much-needed revenue. But do keep your senses tuned to any “off notes” while you and the prospect discuss the project specs. You are trying to work with this person, or someone on his/her team, and by no means do you want to walk into a toxic environment because you will fall. You will not be able to perform at your best. You will not be able to use that client as a reference.

it is important to notice and acknowledge the behavioral cues displayed and statements made by every prospective client. Do not get carried away by a seductive mix of need and excitement. Yes, making money is the point and you may also crave a project that you find not just lucrative, but also exciting. There may be a special skill that you own but rarely have the opportunity to display and at last you could be able to flaunt it.

But if the prospect makes you feel uncomfortable before the project work has begun, the smart Freelancer must find the strength to stop and walk away from someone who is already telling you that they’re a jerk who is out to hurt you. Assuming that this individual even pays the full amount of your invoice, in the end you will have to admit that the money earned from working with this guy or gal was not work the aggravation.

The best damage control that a Freelancer can take is to stop the process and walk away. Let’s examine a few examples of bad guy/ gal behavior:

“I’ve tried working with Freelancers before. I never get what I want.”

This prospect either doesn’t understand how to write and explain the project specs; doesn’t know what actions will achieve company goals; doesn’t understand and refuses to provide the support or authority a Freelancer needs to successfully complete the task; is a rabid micro-manager who is never satisfied by any work other than his/ her own; or cannot/ will not allocate the budget to hire a Freelancer who is able to do the work.

Do you see yourself swallowed by a giant whirlpool? You should. Stop. Turn around. Walk away.

Prospect don’t trust your references

You’ve supplied two or three solid references, clients for whom you’ve done work similar to what the prospect is looking to get done and the clients were very pleased. You exceeded expectations and created a positive experience. But the prospect is not convinced. Your references are not good enough, as far as s/he is concerned.

A dear friend of mine has often said that there are some people who will not take Yes for an answer. This prospect is not ready to become your client, for whatever reason. Maybe the prospect now feels uncomfortable with outsourcing this project to any outside expert?

Whatever. You cannot satisfy this individual. Shake hands and say goodbye, while you can still pretend to smile.

Prospect questions your fee and the value you’ll bring

The shutdown caused most businesses to take a significant financial hit and the impulse to keep all costs low is in the air. Freelancers are wise to be flexible about balancing their project fee against the work that clients need to do to get their ventures moving forward and the lower budgets that clients now live with. However, exploitation is never acceptable and must never be tolerated by a Freelancer.

Before your proposal is in writing, project specs should be discussed, including a ball park budget figure. Using that information, Freelancers can with confidence draw up a proposal with budget and submit it to the prospect. In this way, there will be no surprises. When the prospect shares some indication of the earmarked project budget along with the project specs, the Freelancer will quickly know whether or not s/he can do the job for that price.

But when the prospect wants to be secretive, it’s a bad sign. People need to be transparent and if they don’t want to do that, it will be unpleasant to work with them. Moreover, if the prospect alludes to the fact that his/ her team has the ability to do the job themselves, you may need to diplomatically hint that they might need to do just that because the work to be done demands a certain amount of time and skill.

You are willing to be flexible, you are willing to do a smaller piece of the job for the money that the client has suggested for the entire project, but you cannot give your work away. Then shut up and hear what s/he says in response. The specs will either shrink or you’ll walk.

Project timetable and other guarantees are unrealistic

Timetables and deadlines may require some help from the client if they are to be met and the smart Freelancer will put into writing the kind of resources that the client will provide and by what date. Furthermore, in certain cases the full scope of the project cannot be known until the work has been started. Obtain as much information as possible about the project specs to minimize risks and promote client satisfaction.

If you’re having trouble either reconnecting with current clients or signing new ones, you may need to tweak your pre-COVID-19 business model. Things have changed. No one has a written-in-stone game plan. Pivot has become the word of the month, if not the word of the year. Your first assignment may be to get a fix on what services are in demand now and how you can package and promote your entity to be considered a trustworthy and reliable purveyor of those services.

When speaking with current clients, even if you send out an email to say hello and get the ball rolling, ask how doing business has changed and make it known that your goal is to help them cross the river without taking any more of a bath than they may have already done.

When approaching a prospect, a version of the previous question can be asked, perhaps as a statement, “As you and your team work to help the organization regain its bearings and serve your customers in the way they now want, or legally must be, served, I’d love to talk to you about how I can help you do that efficiently and cost- effectively.”

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Photograph: Kim Clark. Massachusetts Avenue leaves the Back Bay and enters the South End.

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Freelancers Hiring Freelancers

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Are you preparing to submit a proposal for a big assignment you hope to win and know that the project specifications will cause you to subcontract some of the work? Congratulations! You will have the pleasure of hiring one or more of your Freelancer peers. Together, you will become a team whose mission will be to produce the client’s deliverables by achieving outcomes of the highest quality, on or in advance of the project deadline and on budget.

You, the external team leader, must understand the skills that the project requires, know how much it will cost to secure the services of your Freelancer team and write a winning proposal.  Project management is an everyday reality for Freelance consultants and the bigger the project, the more planning is involved. Your reputation is forever on the line and when subcontracted work is involved, you must be diligent in your search to identify the best talent to bring on board.  Read on and get some helpful advice on how to assemble a winning team that will enhance your brand and your billable hours, current and future.

Get budget estimate

Get a reliable project budget estimate from your client, if possible.  If the client prefers playing possum with that amount, then make sure you are able to accurately estimate both the quantity and quality of work the project requires so that you can first, calculate your own labor cost and target profit margin and next, understand what you must budget to pay your subcontractors.

Hire specialists

Directly ask candidates you interview and confirm that the skill you need is a competency in which that candidate excels and that s/he has performed often enough to claim deep experience.  You are in no position to train someone on the job.  You must guarantee superior results.

Pay well

Why not ask candidates what they want to make as a subcontractor on the project? Start by researching the going rate range for that specialty, so that you’ll know what to expect to pay and you can rule out those who attempt to take advantage of you.  People will do their best work when they feel valued. They’ll be happy to give extra to make you look good and make themselves shine along with you.  They’ll go above and beyond because they’ll want to be hired to work with you again since you value their capabilities.

If you encounter someone who seems a perfect fit for the project but his/her subcontracting fee is somewhat beyond what you planned to offer, then ask what perks might make that person happy, in addition to money.  You may be able to get who you want for a little less money if you give a little more in another area that demonstrates how you value the skill set.

Set clear expectations

If the project is on a tight time frame and in order to meet the deadline long hours and a seven-days-a-week schedule will be needed then you, the external team leader, must present this schedule information to your candidates in the interview.  You need team members who are able to block out the necessary time and are willing to work hard.  If time is an issue, expect to pay a premium to your subcontractors and add a premium to your own fee as well. Develop a contract for your subcontractors, so that all responsibilities, relevant milestones, the project deadline and the rate of pay are in writing.

Communicate often

Request weekly or bi-weekly written progress reports from your subcontractors and send similar updates to your client.  Announce to the client and your subcontractors whenever a project milestone has been met.  Interim victories will give you an opportunity to thank and congratulate your subcontractors and inspire them as you do.  Learning that you and your team have reached a milestone gives your client confidence in you.

View work samples

In the subcontractor interviews, be sure that work samples provided correspond with the project specs, to confirm that you are evaluating what is relevant.

Check references

Ask to speak with two of your candidate’s clients.  Confirm the type of work that the candidate has done for each reference.  Inquire about the quality of that work and the candidate’s willingness to do what was needed to get the job done.  Ask what it’s like to work with the candidate—is s/he positive and upbeat, or a constant complainer? Finally, ask if there’s anything else you should know about the experience of working with the candidate.

Paperwork

Once you understand the project specs, the role that your subcontractors will play and what you will pay for their services, you can then write a draft contract.  Also, download from the IRS website tax form W-9 for your subcontractors to complete and return to you. You’ll retain the W-9 and use it to prepare and mail to subcontractors IRS form 1099 before January 31 of the following year if payments to any subcontractor reach $600.

Finally, set up an accounting method that will allow you to easily and accurately calculate hours worked and dollars earned for each subcontractor.  If you’ve seldom worked with subcontractors, then speak with a bookkeeper or accountant for more information.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Photograph: Seven Samurai (Japan, 1954) Directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshiro Mifune (foreground)