i have an idea to ad
[2023-05-12 04:04:47 PM] : i have an idea to advance my consulting work, prompted by Samir’s comment about productized services. (i also must give credit to Ernesto (he/him) for planting some similar ideas in my mind some time ago)
name: test suite audit
price: $250
what it is: give me access to your repo and i record a 30-minute video scrutinizing your test suite and telling you what i think are your highest-yield improvement opportunities. turnaround time is one business day.
i think this might be a decent way for people to dip their toes into the waters of hiring me without committing to my $X,000/mo service. once they see how much value i provide in 30 mins they might want to hire me to help them in a bigger way.
1 Reply
[2023-05-12 04:08:31 PM] : just a logistical detail, maybe when i first launch the service i shouldn’t provide any specific turnaround guarantee. if e.g. 25 people buy it then a one-day turnaround time wouldn’t be realistic
[2023-05-12 04:10:53 PM] : yeah maybe first-come first-served to begin with. It reminds me of that “roast my website” guy from a few years back, seems like a great idea
[2023-05-12 04:14:10 PM] : i’ve actually had this idea for a long time but for some reason it only ever occurred to me to do it in written form. but video is way easier on my end and probably more valuable on the client’s end. i feel like a dunce for never thinking of video before!
[2023-05-12 04:15:07 PM] : anyway, i plan to try this very soon. i can’t see reason not to go for it
[2023-05-12 05:01:24 PM] : I like it! I don’t know why exactly but I think $250 might be too low for the value you’re providing.
After all, I assume you’ll need to:
1. Get access
2. Prep your content
3. Run the test suite?
4. Create the video
5. Share it
6. Then offer one round of Q&A?
Maybe I’m overthinking it.
[2023-05-12 05:13:41 PM] : Ernesto (he/him) you may well be right that it’s too low. although the only steps will be this:
1. get access
2. create the video, which will involve opening a handful of files, commenting on them, and maybe editing some code for illustrative purposes
3. share it
all told i think it might be like 45 mins of work
[2023-05-12 05:14:13 PM] : maybe i’ll start at $250 and go up from there
[2023-05-12 05:15:12 PM] : it did occur to me that maybe i could add the option for a higher tier, where we actually schedule a call and do the same thing but for an hour and it can be interactive. but i’m not sure if that would overcomplicate the offer
[2023-05-12 05:15:29 PM] : seems like it might muddy the waters
[2023-05-13 12:00:17 AM] : Yes, The goal here is not to complicate or give higher pricing. The goal here is to win the trust, so you can encash them with consulting. In worst case they will spread the word about you and bring you referrals.
[2023-05-13 07:26:19 AM] : Khaja i think that’s spot on
[2023-05-16 09:34:55 PM] : Will you add a limit to the size of code repo? or no of tests? Because you wouldn’t want enterprises to be landing and demanding too much for 250 bucks
[2023-05-18 10:25:19 AM] : +1 on the pricing. think about how much dev time your expertise can save them, times developer rates. I'd suggest that $250 sends a low quality signal for a productized service like this.
[2023-05-18 10:25:52 AM] : they aren't paying for 30 mins of video, they're paying for developer time saved.
[2023-05-18 10:39:42 AM] : Bhavani Ravi no, i don’t think i need to limit it on that end bc the 30-minute video is a natural limit
[2023-05-18 10:40:13 AM] : alex duly noted…will consider raising the price