Customer surprised to be billed for work ... ???

[thecomputerguy]

So I have a client who is pretty much a low tier client. I only work with them once every couple of months, and they aren't the most convenient to work with.

She emails me a few days ago and says she is on the phone with Apple Care and she needs the server settings for her email to fix it. I tell her that her email is setup with Autodiscover so server settings are unnecessary. I tell her that they are doing something wrong if they are asking for server settings and suggest that we setup an appointment for the following day and I should be able to fix it pretty quickly.

I login to her computer the following day and sure enough I was able to fix it in about 5 minutes. So I send her an invoice for my remote minimum which is $35.

Today I get this email ...

" I was surprised to receive a bill for $35 for just a 5 minute quick fix. How did you come to this number and how would you charge us in the future if we move forward with you? "

Lol? They know my rate, I've done a couple dozen jobs with them before, onsite, and remote, and I always billed for all of it.

Without going into detail with her explaining that yes in fact I do not work for free. The software tools that allow me to provide remote support aren't cheap (TeamViewer), If I schedule an appointment I need to leave at least a 30 minute window to troubleshoot in case I can't fix it in 5 minutes, which prevents me from scheduling other things, I fixed it so quickly because I am clearly more knowledgeable than Apple with whom you spent hours on the phone with, I charge in increments of half hours for remote support, so my minimum remote support fee is in place so that I can meet the client halfway IF I am able to fix the issue so quickly.

So instead of explaining that, I think I'm just going to say ...

"Onsite is billed at $XXX with a 1 hr minimum, remote support is billed at $XX in half hour increments. In the event that a remote repair doesn't require the full half hour then I charge a minimum remote service fee because I don't feel it is right to charge a full half hour."

What do you all think?

 

[thecomputerguy]

Dear Client,

Please accept my apologies for fixing your problem so quickly on this occasion. I can only ascribe this to my knowledge of your system, years of experience, appropriate management tools, and ability to troubleshoot technical problems swiftly and accurately.

I regret this incident as much as you do and you may rest assured that all future work will take much longer, in line with your expectations.

Meanwhile, here is the detailed breakdown of your invoice:

Fixing the problem - $5.00
Knowing how to fix the problem - $30.00

Please feel free to pay any or all of these line items at your discretion, and have a nice day.

Best regards,

The Computer Guy.

Yeah I mean this type of sarcasm is right up my alley but might be a bit much ... :-D

 

[nlinecomputers]

No, I'd say. By gosh you are correct. We did bill you incorrectly. I bill in ONE HOUR minimums, here is my corrected invoice for $70/hr.

You should really be charging an ONE-hour minimum, if for nothing else to weed out those lowball asswipe clients like this.

 

[dgoglio]

That is the type of client you shouldn't be afraid to lose. The client knows your rates and how you charge. Never feel the need to explain further. It was only $35 she should feel lucky, my rate is three times that. Then again people like her are one of the reasons we don't touch residential work.

 

[Krynn72]

Hi, we have not changed our billing policy. We have a minimum fee of $35 to cover the overhead costs required for us to offer this service. This has always been part of our billing policy, and will continue to be in the future.

Sincerely,
Guy who charges for his skills.

 

[Slaters Kustum Machines]

We just fired one of these clients, it was great! They always wanted us to jump immediately, but only wanted to pay on their schedule and all work needed to be done after hours, lmao, family is great to work with.........

 

[TAPtech]

As others have said... I would simply state that you have a 1/2 hour minimum charge for remote work at $XX/hr.

I would not mention this part: "In the event that a remote repair doesn't require the full half hour then I charge a minimum remote service fee because I don't feel it is right to charge a full half hour." I think this just opens up the door for some low grade haggling.

I do all sorts of quick and free 5 minute fixes for my recurring clients... those that are doing a couple hundred in business with me every month. It is tough with the small customers. They often require much more attention and have small budgets.

 

[TurricanII]

Standard advice: make sure your terms are simple and attached to the first correspondence to them.

Thereafter, always know which of your nearest competition you dislike the most so that you can refer these time wasters to that company when they become more hassle than it's worth

 

[GTP]

I do all sorts of quick and free 5 minute fixes for my recurring clients

After looking at all the "5 minute fixes" that easily turned into half an hour sometimes, I quickly realised it had to stop!
When you actually think about how much time you put into "little fixes" every month it will surprise you!
I now charge a minimum fee for all small jobs. I alert the customer to this fact before I start. If they don't agree, which hasn't happened since I started doing this, I'll tell them to leave. People will take advantage of you if you start down this road.
I no longer work for free!

 

[resolvetech]

Dear Client,

Please accept my apologies for fixing your problem so quickly on this occasion. I can only ascribe this to my knowledge of your system, years of experience, appropriate management tools, and ability to troubleshoot technical problems swiftly and accurately.

I regret this incident as much as you do and you may rest assured that all future work will take much longer, in line with your expectations.

Meanwhile, here is the detailed breakdown of your invoice:

Fixing the problem - $5.00
Knowing how to fix the problem - $30.00

Please feel free to pay any or all of these line items at your discretion, and have a nice day.

Best regards,

The Computer Guy.

Now that's a keeper! I might have to borrow that letter to use on someone down the road. Too funny but boy does it get to the point.

 

[glennd]

it's the old story isn't it, i don't get paid to press the button, i get paid to know which button to press.

 

[TAPtech]

This should not be your problem. You're not obliged to provide steak if all they can afford is hamburger, though you might feel better if you can refer them to somebody who will sell them hamburger at hamburger prices.

Very often a small IT budget simply indicates that IT isn't seen as important to their business. This is their choice, not yours.

Sometimes you'll come across a genuinely deserving client who can't afford your services but you don't feel that you can let them go. You may be tempted to reduce your rate for this client but that's the start of a very slippery slope - before you know it you'll be haggling over everything with every client. Our approach is that we have only two rates - full price or free - and that we decide which rate applies for a particular piece of work. That's a per-job decision, not per-client: we're generous, not daft. It's worked out pretty well for us.

Completely valid- and good advice. You're 100% right, I should be charging for my time. With my good clients, they expect me to anyway.

 

[cypress]

Nothing wrong with the statement you want to send here. Completely justified with the cost and of course the reasoning behind it.

She is after all a low tier client that you do work for maybe every couple of months. You solved it quickly and got the job done. That is all that should matter. If she is gonna make a big deal about it, collect the invoice and drop her.

 

[GTP]

it's the old story isn't, i don't get paid to press the button, i get paid to know which button to press.

Can I use this? I think it's very aprapos.

 

[Thedog]

You have the exact right arguing, the 30 min time slot is also important. I sometimes refer to a study that it takes 7 minutes to get back to focus on a task after interruption. So if I am for example doing Web Development and a client calls me and I fix it in 5 min it is actually 12 min


Skickat från min iPhone med Tapatalk

 

[Eagle21]

it's the old story isn't, i don't get paid to press the button, i get paid to know which button to press.

Similarly, another old story is - if it's a quick job they complain how quick it was, and why are you even charging them. And if it's a long job they complain that it took too long and cost too much - either way with these types of poor customers, you can't win.

It's best to recognise them for what they are, and let them go.

 

[resolvetech]

This should not be your problem. You're not obliged to provide steak if all they can afford is hamburger, though you might feel better if you can refer them to somebody who will sell them hamburger at hamburger prices.

LOL, instead of "Biggie Sizing" their IT they can "Paltry Size" it! I love customers like this...actually I don't because I weed them out quickly. I mean just the time to generate that bill isn't worth it. Lots of hidden costs in every business.

 

[sapphirescales]

Man, with this and your other topic it sounds like you've got some pretty bad clients. It's time to dump 'em like radioactive waste and move on.

 

[glennd]

Can I use this? I think it's very apropos.

i stole it from here. I'm sure it must be a Technibble trade mark by now.

 

[Moltuae]

I was surprised to receive a bill for $35 for just a 5 minute quick fix.

My answer to that is simple: "The bill consists of 5 minutes of repair time, plus a contribution towards my investment in 30 years of experience (without which, the fix would've taken much longer)."