How To Stop Being Everybody’s Free Website Guru
January 26th, 2010 | 
Author: If you can build a web site, or know anything at all about computers, the Internet, search engines etc., then you must have already experienced the friends, family and associates of friends who always seem to want a favour, but don’t seem to place any value on the knowledge you have.
It happens a lot in my world and it’s entirely my own fault, because I love demonstrating what can be done with a web site, especially in terms of business task automation.
Since developing my new business model for the commercial property site and the one that’s upcoming for the tribute act site, I’ve had something of an epiphany.
Part of my new model is to get some web site clients on board and make them some pretty nice sites using Wordpress, or have sites custom-made using the developers I’ve been involved with lately.
I’ve always had difficulty pricing web sites, since they generally don’t take me long and I quite like making them. That’s the problem. Friends and family don’t think I work!
So, I changed how I approach those who ask me for their favours and it’s starting to work.
I now tell them that it takes me several hours to get a Wordpress site up and running, with a unique design (theme) and that this is time I could be using to earn money elsewhere, so it has to be paid for.
I then explain that Wordpress and associated plugins are updated constantly, so there’s time involved each month in maintaining the site and making sure that everything works properly.
Then of course, there’s the hosting etc.
But, my favours extends to doing the build and setting everything up, like email addresses, templates etc., for “mates rates” starting at £99 + VAT (17.5%) and then the maintenance, hosting and updating the software is costed from £19.99 + VAT per month payable on a credit card via a recurring payment, with a minimum term of 18 months, because as they know, you can’t really get a custom made web site for £99.
I’ll change my prices according to the complexity of the site of course, but the model is one I am carrying through to Hollywood Internet, my limited company which isn’t really a company, as there’s only me. But who’s to know that?
The upside for them is that they become a client and get their site supported.
They get to learn how to add, edit and remove content from their sites too, because the client area of my own site has instruction videos that I make myself – and they only explain what I want them to know.
The upside for me is that £19.99 minimum monthly recurring fee across dozens, if not hundreds of sites.
Online, nothing beats monthly recurring revenue.
I’m not a charity and I’ve stopped being an idiot, even for family.
Posted in Internet Marketing
Hi Dave,
You mentioned that the time spent on other peoples websites are hours that could be spent making money elsewhere – this is quite important to remember, in my opinion.
Of course, it depends on what you actually like doing and what else is in it for you (improving web development skills, making relations with new clients that could end up buying other services and so on). However, it can sometimes be very hard to turn down projects that, when you do the math, are only distractions from other tasks that may be several times more profitable on a per hour basis..
Regards,
Trond M.
Absolutely right Trond. I was referring more to the free web sites being the distraction, though in fairness, I have done a few that have stretched me technically and I’ve had to pick up new knowledge – and that keeps me ahead.
The change in my stance is that I’m now not afraid of saying no and I am fully prepared to stand by a scale of charges
It’s very hard to reach readers. I’d say that patient is big part of running online site, no matter if is website or blog. I try with many different method to get indexed, and after many months got great results. Everything takes time!