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Fixed Wireless Business

Consulting for Dollars

Members of the ISP-Wireless list say that people working at wireless ISPs can earn a thousand dollars per day when they land a wireless LAN consulting contract, but there's less of this work now than there used to be.

[September 10, 2002]

On the ISP-Wireless list in August, JS queried,

"I've been asked to do some consulting work at a location four hours away. Any suggestions regarding how to bill for this? I currently charge $60 per hour for networking, etc., but I'm not sure how much to charge for a WLAN assessment and recommendation report: $1,000 for two days seems a bit much. Is there a formula for this sort of thing?"

Some respondents offered approximate guidelines, while admitting that a compromise may be necessary:

[JN advised] "I currently bill my services at $125 per hour. Work is slow right now, though, so take what you can get."

[RJ added] "Considering it's four hours away, do make sure you have your time, hotel, and other costs covered."

[JS noted] "I charge $500 for a system design for small businesses. The work usually turns out to be 20 to 30 hours, with two to three trips to the business. At four hours away, I'd probably add a $200 trip charge, so I'd probably charge $700 total for the job. I used to charge much more, but I'm getting about 10 percent of the work I got last year: I have to take what I can get."

Others suggested charging a lot more:

[BM offered] "I'm not trying to insult you, but I would not get up from in front of this computer for less than $100 an hour. $700 for 30 hours of work is just over $23 an hour. I have a theory: people pay me for what I know, not what I do. I think you're selling yourself short."

[MS added] "You're not billing enough, if you're any good at this. Not many people can actually make these wireless systems sing (rather than just work) and be secure. I bill out at more than twice your rate."

[RS agreed] "I think you're shooting low. To do a site survey for a company that needs a wish list for an RF install in warehouses, distribution centers, or manufacturing facilities, we charge $3,000 per building, plus T&E, and we're regularly told we're one of the cheaper surveys. That's for a day and a half onsite, documentation, parts list, and certification from the vendor."

[MU observed] "$1,750 is our standard fee for one day. Ultimately, though, it depends on the work being done, how long your days are, what your guarantee is, and what the market will bear. Our customers always pay travel expenses, but travel time is non-billable. Pre-assessments are always billed at the full rate, but if they use us for the work, then they may get a break somewhere along the line. For every company, there's a different way of doing things."

[MV advised] "It's time to broaden your horizons! You should bill at an hourly rate of $150 to $200, or a daily rate of $1,200 to $1,500. We usually bill half rate for travel, plus a nominal per diem to cover food and incidentals. In our area, the going rate for on site survey work is $1,500 per day plus travel and expenses. Don't forget to make some money while you're having fun!"

—End