by mobweb on 12/8/13, 3:42 PM with 3 comments
Now I'm at a point where I think I can make enough money by only working on the latter: Projects that I can implement from scratch, and that take at least a couple of weeks to implement.
But at the same time I get a lot of requests for smaller projects that take just a couple of days from start to finish.
While I like working on these smaller projects as well, I feel that they may harm my productivity in the long run: Always juggling multiple projects (at least one big project and a couple of small ones) means that in my mind I'm constantly occupied and there's always something that should be (and can be) done quickly, as opposed to bigger projects where there aren't any immediate deadlines and I can plan my work better, and also take a few days off every now and then without feeling guilty about it.
I've been thinking lately if I should perhaps ditch these smaller projects completely, and only take on large projects.
But at the same time I think I would feel bad not accepting these smaller projects for various reasons:
- It's always nice to get to know more people, I might profit from such a relationship later on - A small project might turn into a big one - A few small projects still equal a nice profit - It might hurt my "image" if I have to reject too many requests
So I've thought about perhaps adding additional requirements for small projects, e.g.:
- Minimum budget size for any kind of project that I take on - Selling my work in "packages", where I tell the customer that I can help them, but they will have to buy at least N hours of my time
Perhaps somebody else has been at this point before and could share their experience?
by esw on 12/9/13, 9:19 PM
1. Some won't return a call at all.
2. Some will call you back to say that they're in the middle of a project, and are too busy to take your business.
3. Some will happily schedule you in for a date in the distant future (like, three months from now).
I'm unlikely to bother calling the first two again for work, but the third makes me think, "Man, this guy is so busy that he's booked until March? He must be good."
by waivej on 12/8/13, 4:27 PM
by tagabek on 12/9/13, 10:59 AM
I would suggest raising your prices for all new clients. You might also consider bringing on subcontractors to handle the smaller jobs for you.