Quote:
Originally Posted by PleasantSurprise
I'm in the shower fifteen minutes ago and I'm facing away from the shower head with a bar of soap in my left hand, and as the bar of soap is going up and down my butt crack, it hits me….
If a client were to offer a provider 50% of her rate, would it be acceptable for the provider to put forth 50% effort?
Pretend for a minute it normally takes a provider 2 hours to get ready for a date. For the client paying 50% of the rate, the provider cuts her prep time in half and only spends 50% of the usual time spent getting ready, in other words she stops getting ready after 1 hour.
That might mean she skips the shower, or it could mean she hops in but does a quick rinse instead of being thorough, it may mean mouth wash was used rather than the toothbrush, it could mean the main areas are shaved but there wasn't enough time for the armpits. It could mean she was running errands when you called and doesn't run home and grab the supplies she would ordinarily bring. Upon arrival she may be sweaty from rushing around, or she may look like she just stepped out of bed, she isn't as excited as she usually gets for a date, and she provides half of the services she would normally offer.
As a client, would you offer a provider 50% of her rate for 50% effort?
As a provider, if a client offered you half of your rate…. would you say sure, 50% for 50% seems fair?
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You use bar soap?! j/k
I'm going to take this from a provider point of view to one I'm more familiar with, my business. I've been a photographer for quite some time and recently did a shoot with a couple. They told me, at the end, that it was the least stressful shoot they've ever done. I asked them about other experiences they've had and they hesitated because their past experience was with an acquaintance of mine in the business. Eventually I pried it out of them. There was a time where he had set up several shoots in the same day and everyone there got a chunk of time and paid a flat rate. However, when it came to be her turn, she was rushed, shown some disrespect and her time was cut short by him taking care of another client for 15 minutes of her time with him.
Needless to say, she wasn't happy about it. Especially since she paid good money to do this.
Having said all that, some providers are like that as well. It doesn't matter what the price is, you get whatever effort they feel like putting forth. For some people, the price is the price. If they don't want to pay your rate then they really don't want to see you that badly. However, this is different from a negotiation. Negotiations are different in that you both have something of value to the other and you are trying to give one another as much of what you each hold without feeling unfulfilled at the end of the day. What you provide has not changed just because the value someone else places on what you provide has changed.
I did photos for a provider earlier this year and I had told her my rate. She had some special requirements and asked for a different rate to reflect those requirements. Although I accepted working with her at a lower rate, that does not mean that I did not give my best effort for doing so. Why? 1) I agreed to the price and 2) It is my reputation that gets tarnished if I give a 50% effort on something that is connected with me. I still brought lights, lenses, filters, ideas, creativity, communication and almost a decade of experience to the table... even at half the price.
