Working With JoshCanHelp
It’s important to me that you feel good through what could be a very unfamiliar process for you. It’s also important that you know ahead of time what to expect from me. Keep in mind that this is how things naturally go and that I’m very open to finding a process that works for both of us!
This page is about setting expectations, not being picky and inflexible. My goal is your satisfaction and this page will just help us get there much faster.
Please keep in mind…
… that I’m working for you and committed to your goals. It’s important to me that you find great value in what I do and understand the “why” behind the “What.” If you don’t understand something, are confused by the process, feel misunderstood, or don’t like the direction of the project, always feel free to approach me and we’ll figure it out together. I love what I do too much not to create ecstatic clients, customers, and partners.
Hours of operation
I’m located in Seattle and on Pacific time. I’d rather not admit how often I find myself online, shunning the outdoors and social occasions for the warm, inviting glow only a pair of LCDs can offer. That being said, I do have “standard” operating hours. Please keep in mind this is typical and, given advance notice, I can accommodate requests.
All day every day: I check email and keep my phone on all day, everyday. If you have a truly urgent request (see below), you can contact me at any time and, if I am available and near a computer, I’ll jump right on it. If I’m out of the office, you’ll get a voicemail or email auto-reply to that effect.
Mondays: I have a few recurring meetings and project check-ups on Mondays so they aren’t the best time to schedule anything with me. Still, I’m available to talk and I’m using grinding through projects in between meetings. I don’t schedule meetings after 6pm on weekdays.
Tuesdays – Fridays: These are my prime work days and I try to stay to stay as close to a computer as possible. I may or may not be on Skype but I’ll usually get back to emails within a few hours (or minutes). The end of the week is usually easier to schedule things with me; I’m not sure why but it’s been this way for a while. I don’t schedule meetings after 6pm on weekdays.
Saturdays & Sundays: I reserve these days to catch up, work on projects, and relax a bit (just a bit). I’m happy to schedule in a call or project during these days but my availability on the phone or on email is spotty. Please keep in mind that if you call at 9pm on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday evening, I may already be one Quaddrupel into the night and not in the frame of mind to jump right on something. The best bet is to leave me a message or email and I’ll take care of the problem as soon as I can.
Communication
I communicate via many different channels (see below) though I’m flexible to find a communication means that works for both of us. Everything listed below are channels that I use regularly but with different frequency so please see each section for specific information.
My pet peeve, just so it’s out there, is when people contact me on multiple channels at the same time for a non-urgent issue. If you leave me a voice mail explaining your problem and then type it out over email, time, both yours and mine, is wasted. I’ll never call you on it but you might hear it in my voice when I say “yes, I got your voice mail AND email.”
Email: This is my primary and preferred form of communication; my email address is josh@joshcanhelp.com (though you might see one slip by with a Gmail address one rare occasion… please always use my joshcanhelp.com email). I get an email every 5 minutes or so during the day so I frequently have a back log to take care of. I believe in getting back to people quickly, regardless of whether or not I can help at that moment. If you haven’t heard back in a day or two, feel free to check in with me.
I try to check email at intervals throughout the day (morning, noon, and evening, Pacific time) instead of staying online but I break this rule frequently. Feel free to send an email with “Urgent!” or similar in the subject line and I will take care of it as soon as possible (see below for what “urgent” means to me). If your request is not timely, it might be a day before I get back to you.
Phone: Though I prefer email, I understand the importance of a phone call. If you prefer the phone, I’m happy to oblige, just let me know. My phone number is 619-434-0903 (though you might see me call from a 206 number) and it goes to my desktop first, then my mobile. If you have my 206 number, please default to the 619 number as it’s more likely that this will find me in a position where I can help you.
Twitter (@joshcanhelp): DMs and @ messages are fine but please don’t send me anything urgent because I have been known to avoid Twitter for a few days at a time. Also, feel free to send referrals, introductions, or recommendations.
Facebook (facebook.com/joshcanhelppage): I don’t use my personal Facebook for business so don’t be offended if I don’t connect with you there. I do, however, have a page where I’m happy to accept your questions, comments, and links. I share links, my own posts, photos, designs, comments, and questions here.
Skype: I use Skype as my phone line and for my long-term clients. I’m less likely to connect here initially so an email or a phone call first is preferred. You’re welcome to try me here but, even if I’m online, I may not be available to help. Also, email is much better for incoming requests because it saves your question/modification in a central place.
Google Talk: Similar to Skype, online does not necessarily mean available.
Urgency
I respond to urgent requests as fast as I possibly can. Actually, I respond to all my requests as fast as I can but urgent requests get priority and can make me stop what I’m doing and react. You’re always welcome to check the status of a project with me and see when you can expect to have it complete.
That being said, I don’t work in a life or death field and I don’t have an on-call pager so it’s possible that your request will not be taken care of within minutes or hours. Feel free to call or email or Skype and explain the issue completely and I’ll get on it as soon as possible.
Here’s what I consider an urgent request and will do everything in my power to accommodate:
- Site, email, or other function is broken (server down, emails not appearing)
- Incorrect information displayed leading to issues (incorrect phone number, email, event details)
- Unexpected real-life event that requires a web-based response
- Sudden change in timeframe for a site going live
Here’s what I do not consider urgent:
- Design, content, or layout problem that does not lead to the inability for people to use the site
- Changes to a design mock-up or site that is not live
- Proposals or RFPs (my current clients have to come first)
I’m known as being very responsive to issues both urgent and trivial so if you have any questions about this, please ask!
How I Charge
I’ll be straightforward here: it’s very difficult to price services on a per-project basis (as in “here’s what it will cost to do this”). I also understand it’s difficult, in some cases, to get approval or to keep to a budget if the pricing terms are open-ended.
I will, in some cases, give you a project cost if the work is straightforward and we have a solid plan agreed upon. If the project starts to shift (more work is added or the terms change), I will ask that we alter the project cost accordingly. In other cases, I can provide an estimate but will keep track of hours and bill based on the time it took to make those changes. In both cases, I keep track of time and can provide you with a rough timesheet. If your company requires me to bill, track time, or invoice in a certain way, please let me know before the project so I can make things easier on both of us. I have a great time-tracking app I use and it’s quite flexible how the invoicing is set up.
If I am charging you an hourly rate, I bill by 15 minute increments and literally keep a stopwatch going as I complete projects. I find the 15 minute increment fair for two reasons:
- A change may take 5 minutes but it could interrupt something else that is going on at the same time.
- I’m hoping this will lead you to send me multiple changes at once instead of one per day. Like an auto mechanic, once the files are open and I’m connected to your server, I can take care of several things at the same time and it will take me much less time.
I’m open to consider hourly work trades, payment in products, equity projects (I have to really like the idea… and you), and other alternative forms of payment (that’s not what I meant). It can never hurt to ask!!
What I charge for
This is a tough one and depends on how I’m charging you.
First, I’ll mention that I don’t charge for:
- correcting mistakes I made (I’ve very pro-active about removing this time from invoices)
- learning new techniques to use on your site (unless it’s something proprietary to you or your company and I’m not going to be able to use it elsewhere)
- time outside of what we’ve discussed (though I may ask if we can expand the project cost to take care of issues that cropped up or additional features)
- obstacles caused by events outside of your control (computer crashes, “I forgot to save it” issues on my end, acts of god)
If I’m charging you on a project basis, I’ve added some time for phone calls, emails, and other issues. I won’t be cutting corners but I will be looking for where I can maximize my time. I would rather cover several issues on one phone call than multiple calls.
If I’m charging you by the hour then I charge for all of the following (beyond the actual designing or writing code):
- Phone call or chat meetings (within reason)
- Email communication (again, within reason)
- Training time (either creating documents or over the phone)
- Communicating with other people involved with the project
- Research time
What if we end up talking about your weekend for a while? What if I send you an email out of the blue with an article and what I thought about it? I love to socialize with my clients and I don’t charge for conversation (I’m not that interesting, really). I’m looking to be as fair as possible so trust that I’m not looking to pad the clock. I love what I do too much to try and get paid for work I didn’t do.
I’m only human
The lamest excuse someone could give for making a dumb mistake is “it’s complex!” Working on the web is, in fact, complicated, but the reason errors are made is that humans are fallible and perfection is impossible. Ask anyone who has written a book and they’ll tell you they found typos even on the hundredth time they read the final draft.
I try hard to get things right the first time but it always helps to have a second (third, fourth) pair of eyes so I’m not embarrassed to submit (mock or proof) pages with a few errors. In my mind, I’d rather get it to you quickly and correct errors on the second round than spend an inordinate amount of time looking for slip-ups.
That said, I want your live site to be polished and as close to perfect as possible. I do spend time looking through each page to find code errors, display problems, broken links and images, and content spelling and grammar problems.
