I was reading THIS POST recently by Jim Connolly on why ‘Offering free consultations can be an expensive mistake’ and I urge all architects (and any professional for that matter) to implement the advice immediately. The good news is that this has been the policy I adopted over a year ago and have never looked back.
In addition to the post by Jim I’ll add the following:
• By charging for every consultation you show that you value your time and in turn people will value what you do and your time better.
• There’s no such thing as a simple ‘chat’ about the project. If you want a chat, you can buy me a pint down the pub but these chats are work and work should be paid for. No matter what anyone says, every single ‘simple chat’ has involved professional advice that has taken years of training and experience – why give this away for free.
• There are lot of ‘tire-kickers’ out there. By charging for consultations you sort the wheat from the chafe.
I would be more than happy for every architect in Ireland (the world!) to adopt this method, let’s value our time and create a level playing field for all design professionals.
Hi Mark,
just on this topic – I read recently a post by american architect and you probably will agree with him…
http://thinkarchitect.wordpress.com/2013/02/15/no-free-lunch/
Margaret
Hi Margaret
Yup, nailed it perfectly
Mark
Hi Mark,
While I agree that you can’t work for free I would have expected you to spend some unpaid time talking to potential clients and winning new work. Prospective clients will want to talk with you to see if you would be a good choice for their particular project. If you don’t engage with them then I would have thought it’s highly unlikely that you will get the job.
I currently work as a freelance web developer and I will always get emails/calls from prospective clients who will send me details of jobs which I will need to reply to. I can’t ignore this fact as all clients now expect this mode of working.
How do you achieve this balance between acquiring new clients and not working for free? Or do you charge for acquiring new clients as well?
cheers,
James B.
Hi James
Yes it’s a tricky one; I think Lee hits it well in his post: http://thinkarchitect.wordpress.com/2013/02/15/no-free-lunch/
Yes I do spend time on the phone/emails uncharged but I have to cover a big area of Ireland and travelling out to houses unpaid (even just expenses) is not feasible. Invariably these aren’t ‘chat’ meetings but always involve some form of work – which…needs to be paid for,
Mark
Hi Mark,
I came across another post on this topic, but this time from irish perspective. You might have read it already: http://pmnarchitecture.com/why-you-should-never-work-for-free/
Belive or not, I stumbled upon it yesterday after reading your post – there must be many people thinking about the same issue these days…
And I really enjoy reading your posts – very informative. Keep up the good work!
Margaret
Hi Margaret
Yes, I know Paul well and we’re both thinking along same line
Many thanks
Mark