Why You Need to Forget Your Hourly Rate
That’s right you heard me!
The challenge as consultants and professional service providers is, if you currently selling your time, you’re charging by the hour. We have an issue, time is the most valuable resource that we use human beings have. There’s only so much time that we have and we only have a certain amount left, none of us know exactly how much that is, but the average lifespan is comprised of 4,200 weeks. How many weeks do you have left?
Couple of Key Issues If You’re Selling Your Time
1. Easy to Price Compare
Firstly, it makes you really easy to compare apples with apples or at least your clients will think that when you’re quoting. And if you say my hourly rate is $110 for an hour, $200 for an hour, $50 for an hour, $500 an hour or a thousand dollars an hour or wherever on the scale your are.
It means that if someone else gives them a quote and its just $50 an hour, $20 an hour, or cheaper all of a sudden, they’re going to probably go to the cheaper on.
Charging by the hour means you’re competing on price so moving away from that will help stop you competing solely on price.
2. Hard To Grow
The second thing is, if you charge by the hour and you’re a one man bank, or you only have a few staff. Theres only so many clients you can take on board before all of the sudden you’re really struggling to grow.
You’ll need to hire more staff, you’ll need to try to duplicate, and clone yourself and if you already have staff and have tried to do this before you know just how challenging it is to take what’s in your head and make it replicable so others can do it.
You’re cutting your income and the ability of what you can earn.
When I work with my clients in the accelerator programs, one of the key aspects that we focus on is helping you productise your services.
Sell one-on-one time last and focusing on selling products and packages!
How can you productise your information into books, into cd’s, into audio programs, into software, into products that people can just use and do it for themselves and solves their problem.
How can you package your services in a way that they become more systemisable, more scalable and easier to sell and easier for the client to buy.
Will You Stop Charging By The Hour?
I want you to stop charging by the hour first and ensuring that it is the last thing you’re selling and start creating products and packages.
If you want to talk about, how you could start doing this now and would like me to help you put together a plan on how to do that, reach out and apply here.
Until I see you next. Go out and live life at 110% and stop charging by the hour.
Carl is the Author of Red Means Go! and founder of Business Builders Academy. He invests in and runs a number of businesses, and regularly teaches business skills through online training and live speaking events.
