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Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

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Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#21

Post by dvnguyen »

osullip wrote: post #11

I run a consulting firm. Get one client. Do an amazing job. Use that to tell other clients what you do. Be specific. Most people outside tech have no idea how it works. Tell them what they will get. Increased sales, reduced costs, better productivity. Whatever it is you do, forget about the tech and talk about the benefits. Get your elevator pitch right. Mine is "I help businesses fix their procedures". People then s…

What would be a good way to get the very first client if I’m a nobody outside of my tiny friend and colleagues circles?

Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#22

Post by neilv »

stuckkeys wrote: post #7

Do not do free work for "testimonials" rather do it for a discount. I do not give sh-t who it is, I am not devoting my time for free to anyone. Your sidekick should be ChatGPT or any AI assistance you can get your hands on (if you are starting solo) It will help you tremendously. Do not be scared to reach out to organization. Buy some add space on google and target regions. You are going to kill it. I believe in you…

> Your sidekick should be ChatGPT or any AI assistance you can get your hands on (if you are starting solo) It will help you tremendously.

Copilot has been found to spit out copies of code it was trained on. You don't want to violate your contract with client, nor expose client to IP theft or GPL taint.

Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#24

Post by benjaminwootton »

cik wrote: post #16

Just a few random thoughts from ~10+ years of doing this. These are not ordered, as I've been out of this for the past few years. - Contracts, contracts, contracts - Immediately stop all work when any customer doesn't pay an amount owed. There's a natural inclination to keep going, but this is a firm of pathetic cost fallacy. - Work with an escrow provider and eat the fees. You'll generally have a 10% non-collectable…

Your points on not getting paid sound overly pessimistic. I’ve had hundreds of large clients. They are usually absolutely glacial to pay and totally ignore payment terms, but I’ve never had a debt go totally bad. Invoices have always been paid in the end.

That said, regarding payments, my tip to the OP would be around negotiating down payment terms and chasing finance teams with the anger of 1000 suns if you need the cashflow!

Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#25

Post by osullip »

dvnguyen wrote: post #21
osullip wrote: post #11

I run a consulting firm. Get one client. Do an amazing job. Use that to tell other clients what you do. Be specific. Most people outside tech have no idea how it works. Tell them what they will get. Increased sales, reduced costs, better productivity. Whatever it is you do, forget about the tech and talk about the benefits. Get your elevator pitch right. Mine is "I help businesses fix their procedures". People then s…

What would be a good way to get the very first client if I’m a nobody outside of my tiny friend and colleagues circles?

First, you are somebody. You have more skills in your area of expertise than anyone else you will meet.

My first clients came from volunteering at the local football club. As others have said, connections matter.

Do what doesn't scale. But don't do it for free.

Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#26

Post by 8note »

tptacek wrote: post #19
cik wrote: post #16

Just a few random thoughts from ~10+ years of doing this. These are not ordered, as I've been out of this for the past few years. - Contracts, contracts, contracts - Immediately stop all work when any customer doesn't pay an amount owed. There's a natural inclination to keep going, but this is a firm of pathetic cost fallacy. - Work with an escrow provider and eat the fees. You'll generally have a 10% non-collectable…

I would push back on a lot of this. These seem like strategies to avoid getting ripped off by shitty clients, and I'm sure they work, but they're also a strategy to avoid closing business with great clients. Try to focus on the kinds of customers you won't ask for down-payments and up-fronts --- the kinds of customers who will routinely delay a full quarter or two on payables, and you'll put up with it, because they'…

> Try to focus on the kinds of customers you won't ask for down-payments and up-fronts --- the kinds of customers who will routinely delay a full quarter or two on payables, and you'll put up with it, because they're paying for several people's salaries, and the people you work with there don't control the accounts payable people to begin with.

Can't you just volunteer for these companies instead? If the need free work so they can get their employees to do something useful and pay for it, and you want them paying their employees instead of you as a contractor, you can be straight up about giving away your labour, instead of pretending that they're going to pay you as your customer

If you're giving stuff for free on purpose, just give it away for free

Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#27

Post by tptacek »

8note wrote: post #26
tptacek wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would push back on a lot of this. These seem like strategies to avoid getting ripped off by shitty clients, and I'm sure they work, but they're also a strategy to avoid closing business with great clients. Try to focus on the kinds of customers you won't ask for down-payments and up-fronts --- the kinds of customers who will routinely delay a full quarter or two on payables, and you'll put up with it, because they'…

> Try to focus on the kinds of customers you won't ask for down-payments and up-fronts --- the kinds of customers who will routinely delay a full quarter or two on payables, and you'll put up with it, because they're paying for several people's salaries, and the people you work with there don't control the accounts payable people to begin with. Can't you just volunteer for these companies instead? If the need free wo…

I don't follow. The companies I'm describing are likely to be your most lucrative clients.

Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#28

Post by 8note »

tptacek wrote: post #20

Random bullets. * You need to be making 150-200% of your FTE rate to come out ahead in a year * Bill daily, not hourly (you can bill weekly, or quarterly, too.) * Raise your rates. * Count on signing your clients master agreement, not yours * You can win by getting every contract reviewed, or by just signing them blindly * Specialize * Incorporate; it's easy and cheap * Keep your SOWs vague * Don’t waste time on your…

What's an SOW?

Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#29

Post by 8note »

tptacek wrote: post #27
8note wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Try to focus on the kinds of customers you won't ask for down-payments and up-fronts --- the kinds of customers who will routinely delay a full quarter or two on payables, and you'll put up with it, because they're paying for several people's salaries, and the people you work with there don't control the accounts payable people to begin with. Can't you just volunteer for these companies instead? If the need free wo…

I don't follow. The companies I'm describing are likely to be your most lucrative clients.

Looking in from geophysics, 3/4 lucrative customers for the 1 non-paying is not sustainable.

If you're looking for customers that don't intend to pay, is it 1/5 that end up paying well? 1/100? 9/10?

Re: Ask HN: What is your experience in tech consulting?

#30

Post by bruce343434 »

neilv wrote: post #22
stuckkeys wrote: post #7

Do not do free work for "testimonials" rather do it for a discount. I do not give sh-t who it is, I am not devoting my time for free to anyone. Your sidekick should be ChatGPT or any AI assistance you can get your hands on (if you are starting solo) It will help you tremendously. Do not be scared to reach out to organization. Buy some add space on google and target regions. You are going to kill it. I believe in you…

> Your sidekick should be ChatGPT or any AI assistance you can get your hands on (if you are starting solo) It will help you tremendously. Copilot has been found to spit out copies of code it was trained on. You don't want to violate your contract with client, nor expose client to IP theft or GPL taint.

Ignoring technicalities, legalities, ethicalities etc. How would anyone ever find out, assuming their product is closed source?
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