How I work
A huge part of any successful project is the working relationship between the people bringing it together. This page gives you an indication of how I work and sets expectations so that everyone knows what’s what.
Initial consultation
I offer a free 30-45 minute meeting for all prospective clients to go over what it is they’d like to achieve and how they’d like to go about it. This can take place via telephone, or via video conferencing (e.g. Zoom, Microsoft Teams etc).
If you’d like me to attend an initial consultation in person, this is possible but my time will be charged (including traveling to and from the consultation).
Rates
My current time-based rates are £85 + VAT per hour or £650 + VAT per day. Min invoice time of 30 minutes.
Individual project and retainer rates, maintenance and audit packages all available – quotes on request.
Payment Terms
All new project deposits are on strict 7 day terms. All other invoices are billed on 14 day terms.
I prefer to accept payments via BACS (bank transfer) but can also accept payments via Stripe, PayPal and GoCardless on request. There may be additional fees involved in receiving payments via PayPal.
In the event of an invoice going more than 30 days overdue, a debt collection fee plus statutory interest calculated at 8% plus the Bank of England base rate is payable on all balances.
Response Times
My standard support and response times are as follows
- Telephone support: 9:00am to 5:00pm UTC Monday – Thursday
- Email support: monitored 8:00am to 9:30pm UTC Monday – Friday
Emails received outside of 9am – 5pm will be collected, however no action can be guaranteed until the next working day.
Please note, if I am engaged in ‘deep work’ i.e. working on a project that requires high levels of concentration, or am in a consultation, I may close my e-mail inbox to allow me to finish uninterrupted.
Emails from existing clients are prioritised over new prospects and quote requests.
Urgent enquiries should be communicated as such, i.e. with appropriate labelling in the subject line of an email, or via text message. Emergencies (e.g. server or website going down) are treated as a priority regardless of ongoing commitments. In the event of multiple emergencies happening at the same time, I will work in a ‘first come, first served’ basis but may recruit additional external support if required.
Existing Commitments
I have several clients on retainer, which means I allocate some time each week to their projects and ongoing needs. New projects are arranged around existing commitments and estimated project timescales will reflect this.
I utilise additional development capacity through my company, Ultimately Better Ltd, to bring projects to a close on time or where an emergency takes me off a project temporarily.
Location, Location, Location
I work primarily from home (Shropshire, UK). I am happy to attend client meetings or work short term contracts on site; all travel time is chargeable at my standard hourly rate.
I work with clients all over the globe and can travel nationally and internationally for meetings and work where travel and accomodation expenses are covered in addition to project / time costs.
Project Management
I primarily use ClickUp to keep track of project timelines, todo lists and project related documents. I also pull in a freelance project manager for larger projects, where applicable.
Data Protection
I am registered with the ICO as a data controller with reference: C1035785
Insurance
Ultimately Better Ltd trading as Jem Turner has professional indemnity insurance provided by Beazley Solutions Ltd to cover a value of up to £100,000 per claim.
Third Party Services
I work with several third party services (hosting, email provision, licensed plugins etc). All clients have the option to manage these services internally or to delegate to me to manage. Where client hosting is managed by myself, a 10% admin fee is added to package costs to cover setup and ongoing maintenance. Support with these products is charged at my standard hourly rate.
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Page inspired by Paul Waring – How I work