Retainer clients
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- tOki0
Pros:
- You can plan revenue in advance
- You get to continue improving a project after it has gone live
- It can be very profitable if you minimise the time spent whilst meeting client objectives
- You will have more time to spend taking care of your clients than trying to find new ones
- Often will lead to a closer more partner like approach to work, where if a client leaves one company, they will be much more likely to hire you again at the other (have seen this happen several times myself)Cons:
- Most retained clients expect immediate service and care little for your schedule. Afterall, they belieave they are paying you every month to be on call.
- More time is generally spent managing 10 small tasks worth $10,000 than 1 task large worth $10,000. It's not as efficient.
- Many clients have little concept of scope and that the retainer is a set amount of hours and therefore you cannot act on their every whim.
- Working on the same project for 12 months can be quite boring, and with difficult clients very disheartening. (very important point if you have staff or contractors)
- It''s easy to overspend your monthly retained hours, then be in a difficult position where you have to meet expectations in the coming months