Webmaster tips & trix   contact | privacylink partnersfree website content
Home » Articles » Miscellaneous
Articles

» Affiliate programs
» SE optimization
» Miscellaneous
» Newsletters & E-zines
» Promotion
» Web design
» Usability
» Domain names
» Create income
» Web writing
» Hosting
» Guerrilla marketing
» Accessibility
» Web credibility
» Data recovery

» Archive

 


Special articles

» Google tools/services
» Yahoo! tools/services


Increase perceived value by trading off

A student of mine, Jeff, recently graduated from my web development class. He's new to the industry and trying to build his own business. He once asked me the following question, which I thought was interesting:

"Mike, my friends have a very small business, and they have asked me to do a website for them. They say they can't really pay me that much. I have told them I will do it for free as long as I get rights to the site and can use it for a reference and in my portfolio. I think this is a wonderful opportunity to get more experience, but my wife wants to see some money on the table. I value your opinion. Can you help?"

Here was my answer...

I believe the trade-off is good in principle, but meager. I would consider some money -- and here's why. Doing a website completely for free is not good. What you should be looking for is a return on your "investment," for two reasons:

  1. To stop potential nibbling, grinding away your time and resources;
  2. And to add value to your services (doing something for free paints a low perceived value and makes you, or the services you provide and especially the final product you create, look cheap).

In short, you want to take away the focus from a trade-off based on a free website to one based on a concession: Value for value in other words, not final product for value. The idea is that, once the service is rendered, a couple of problems could crop up. For one, the person can ask you for more, and more, and then more, and ... Nibbling away. I know this from personal experience. I've designed websites for clients who kept asking for small tweaks, here and there, all the time. And I never got paid. These are "time-munchers."

Even when there's a signed contract, they could still find a way around it and ask for more (or limit your use of the site, even revoking it, in different ways or for different reasons, thus putting you at a disadvantage and, of course, out of money). They could say things like: "Our contract says that we get this and that (not that you have to do this and that), and I'm not abiding by our contract until you do …" Trust me. I've been in these situations too many times.

It's not because the site development is free but because it is free *and* what you're asking in return is meager when compared to the concession you are making -- the concession being a finished, completely design website. Psychologically, you did not add enough value to your concession. Therefore, the perception is that the website will be of low value too.

(At any rate, asking for tradeoffs is good and you're doing well in asking for one. It adds value to any concession by always asking for something in return. Remember, in class, I told you that this is taught by most of the master negotiators out there, like Roger Dawson at http://www.rdawson.com/, Herb Cohen at http://www.washspkrs.com/speakers/h_cohen/h_cofr.htm and Chester Karrass at http://www.karrass.com/.)

Nevertheless, even if they're friends of yours, remember that the perceived value of the service depreciates immediately after the service is rendered. If you design the website and, since you didn't ask for a penny (or if you don't have a signed contract), this could open up a whole new can of worms. If you only have full rights to the website, would you ever consider taking the site away from friends? It's something to think about.

Also, it depends on the complexity of, and the amount of work involved in, the site. If you have to design a fairly complex site (I would say either 5 pages or more, or even just a single page but with a robust backend), then in my opinion it's not worth the mere portfolio benefit. Ask yourself: "Am I prepared to work like crazy and deal with problems for a mere addition to my resumé?"

On the other hand, doing a site for a large enough discount and, as a tradeoff, asking for full rights to the site (like adding it to your portfolio), is better. The idea is that the tradeoff is not based on the site but on the *discount*.

Ask for some money upfront, even if it's little. Say: "I understand that this isn't in your budget range, Mr(s) Prospect. In exchange for a special consideration (a discount, in other words), may I suggest ... " You then add weight to your tradeoff. Stated differently, they're giving you the rights in exchange for a discount, NOT for a free site. The site therefore has -- and keeps its -- value.

Here's another option. I would consider doing a site for free if (and only if) I get residual value (i.e., royalties) from the site, such as a percentage of sales the site produces for a predetermined period of time after the site is launched). Or ask for a deposit to be applied against future royalties, which is safer.

You can even ask for half as deposit to be applied against other things. Here's a scenario. Get half as a deposit. Finish the website. Have them sign off on it (a statement saying they're very happy). Have them write a testimonial letter about you. Ask them to add a link at the bottom of each page of their website stating "Design by Jeff," linking to your own site or email address. Have them sign a release that they give you rights to the site for you to use as you please. (Most of the above are preferably done before work begins.) Then cash the deposit. If they don't comply with their end, then ask for the balance.

Again, having all this written down in an agreement prior to commencing any work is essential. Don't get burned like I did. And remember, it's better to negotiate on a consideration (a discount) then the actual site itself. If you negotiate on the site itself you lose the value of the services you offer once rendered, and it could cause you more problems.

About the author
Michel Fortin is a direct response copywriter and consultant dedicated to turning sales messages into powerful magnets. Get a free copy of his book, "The 10 Commandments of Power Positioning," when you subscribe to his free monthly ezine, "The Profit Pill." See http://SuccessDoctor.com/ now!

Latest articles

» Change your mind about an eBay bid?
We have all made choices in life that two seconds later we know we should take back. Especially when there is money involved this can become a problem.

» A simple way to create 7 effective autoresponder messages
Email is the Net's most powerful marketing tool. And autoresponders are the best idea yet for marketing with email.

» 7 ways to drive laser-targeted traffic to your website
Getting people who matter to see one’s website is a difficult undertaking if he tries to consider the fact that there are rivals everywhere waiting to pin him down.

» Website valuation: Why standard website pricing methods will emerge
The market of buying and selling developed websites is becoming more and more liquid each day.

» One way links are better than reciprocal links
You probably know by now that where your website ranks in the search engine rankings dramatically affects how many visitors you have to your site. Did you also know that you can change where your site is ranked by being proactive and getting as many one way links to your site as possible?

» How to make visitors stay at your website
The very first thing which you should provide the visitors with is some free interesting reading material.

» How to make your visitors click your ads
Here is a simple solution; Convert your banner advertisement to look like a text advertisement!

» Offline advertising should be a part of your online strategy
Day by day, online business has become more & more complicated and competitive.

» How to sell traffic
Selling the traffic arriving at your site is a good method to increase profits from your portal.

» Make money from online auctions
Online auctions have the best benefit of a vast platform. Your product is viewed by loads of people & hence there is more possibility of finding a suitable bidder.

» Groupware explained in easy terms
Groupware is a term used frequently to describe collaborative software. Groupware is application software that integrates work on a single project by several concurrent users at separated random workstations.

» Timely back up can save you from disasters
Few things which people often back up are e-mail addresses, bank records, photographs, personal records, software’s, music etc.

» Why should one go for autoresponders
Autoresponders are programs which get automatically executed in particular situations.

» Become your own boss - Start your own online business today
A survey conducted by SBA states that two third of new business survives at least two year and about forty four percent survives at least four year.

» Express your thoughts - Creating your own blog!
What exactly is a blog? Technically speaking it is a journal or a newsletter which is regularly updated and can be used by any one.

» Pop-up ads - To be or not to be?
According to a study conducted by the Bunnyfoot University, “The Efficacy of Pop-ups and the Resulting Effect on Brands” Internet users feel harangues and harassed by pop-up ads.

» Why content is king on the Internet
The advantages that Internet holds over the rest of the other communication mediums should not wasted because of the inability to find a comprehensive plan that will bind all these faculties together.

» 10 niche marketing tips
In our increasingly driven consumer economies, the average customer is bombarded by choices. With increased saturation of the market, companies look towards niche marketing to search new, ever-evolving and sophisticated consumers.

» Using free traffic exchange
These days internet has emerged as both, a market and hub for marketing. Unlike the ‘brick and mortar’ world where large manufacturers manage to squeeze out the market bases of smaller companies, the internet provides haven like the free traffic exchange.

» Ten ways to drive traffic to your website
Developing a web site and then letting it grow is like planting a tree and then nurturing it.

» Marketing through keyword articles
One of the most effective tools of Internet marketing is the use of keyword articles.

» Want to make money online? Market a service to businesses
Don walked across the street from his house to mine to announce he had finally retired. "But I'm not ready for the golf course," he said. "I want to make a living on the Internet. What can I sell?"

» Web site design mistakes - Database parameters in URLs
Creating a web site takes thought, planning and execution. Unfortunately, many designs are dead in the water before they are even published as far as search engine optimization is concerned. Whatever you do, avoid these critical mistakes.

» Alexa Toolbar - The ultimate internet tool
There are numerous tools available on the Internet to assist online businesses. A valuable tool that you should use is the Alexa Toolbar. Even better, this tool is free.

» Web site design mistakes
Some wise human once said "Learn from the mistakes of others. There isn't nearly enough time to make them all yourself." Hence this article. Here are five of the most annoying and common web design mistakes.

» Abandonment - Why visitors don't turn into customers
Every good Internet business understands the value of conversions versus hits received. Far too often, businesses become fixated on the hits they are receiving instead of monitoring their hit to sale conversion rate.

» Creative search engine optimization - A case study
Search engine optimization this and search engine optimization that. You read and hear about it all day, but what about your site?


Tools & services to enhance your online business

» Site Build It!
Over 100,000 small businesses of all kinds outperform larger, well-financed competitors. Read about this all-in-one site-building-hosting-marketing system of tools that delivers results.

» Secrets To Their Success
Take a private tour of two "Mom & Pop" web sites every month that earn $100,000+ a year... and discover the exact step-by-step strategies they have personally used to generate these massive profits.