A few months ago I advised a client on some potential tax issues he was concerned about. It took a while to research; well mainly to check as I had good knowledge of the issues. It is always important to check one’s memory against the latest legislation and case law as things can change.
What my client was looking for was not a tax scheme – I don’t do those – but the answers to a series of questions. It was a “what if?” sort of project.
When I was asked to quote in the first place, as always I thought about the value to the client. How valuable could it be to him in terms of money-saving in choosing the right path? How valuable was it in terms of peace-of-mind knowing what course of action he should take, and what to avoid doing?
I quoted a fee which he accepted. It was worth doing from my point of view because I could make a decent profit taking into account my overheads and time, but the determination of price was nevertheless the value to the client.
More recently I have been asked by another new client virtually the same set of questions and “what-ifs?”. Really, subject to a few minor tweaks, I can give pretty much the same advice. However, it will take much less time and other costs will be minimal.
Should I charge less? Of course not! I believe the value to the new client is much the same as to the previous client. I can bill him the same, and he will be happy paying for the money-saving and peace-of-mind. I know that because he has accepted my quotation.
Those of us who provide advice, knowledge, or if you like, our intellectual property, have studied hard for a long time, and have constantly to keep up-to-date with the latest happenings in order to give the correct current advice.
We have earned our value and deserve our reward. Why should we sell ourselves short and think in terms of labour costs? Never undervalue your own expertise when selling to clients.
