As soon as he balks, I say, "Oh, you're right. That bill is wrong. I was trying to give you a break; I didn't charge you for all the time I actually spent on your problem. Including the time I spent here learning about the problem, the time I spent at my office working on the problem, and the time I spent here today reinstalling your database, I spent SEVEN hours total. That means, at my extreme low-ball rates of $50/hr, the bill comes to $350. If there's anything else about the bill you'd like to bring up, I'm sure I could bring my hourly rates more into line with industry averages."
And I would tick off the client and never get any business from him again.
But then... I would have billed for every hour in the first place. And in the process probably gotten the client even MORE ticked off. Wanna hire me as your accounts receivable manager? ;) |
