It really comes down to how busy are you and how bad do you want the work?
If it's a great client you like to work with, you get a good hourly rate, you get to develop technology you can sell elsewhere, there are product or hosting sales giving you a back end, it's fun to do and/or you don't have other work on, do whatever makes them happy. I'd probably try to schedule something else so I could throw in the travel time, maybe work on the train if you can take public transport, etc. If on the other hand it's a lowball hourly, you don't like the work/the client, you're not learning anything, there is no back end, or you've got lots of other work paying the same or a greater hourly rate, you might have to let the client know that while you'd love to come in for the meeting, it's going to take you three hours of travel time which you would otherwise be billing another client for. You're more than happy to take the meeting by phone, to schedule it as part of a day of onsite consulting or to schedule it for a day when you'd be coming through their neighborhood anyway, and in any of those cases you'd only have to charge the 2.5 hours. If they MUST have you at that time for just 2.5 hours, you're going to have to charge out the travel time because it's money you'd otherwise be making. All you have to bill is your time, so whether you're writing valuable code, sitting in a room chatting with someone, or stuck in traffic, if the only reason you're doing so is because client X asks you to, then the only reason not to charge client X for that time is if you're willing to effectively discount your overall hourly rate to get/keep their business. For the record, there are plenty of clients I'll go out of the way to do what I can for, and there are some which can pay book rate or go hire someone else. It's all supply and demand - not only the supply and demand of programmers, but also the supply and demand of clients. Best Wishes, Peter On 11/30/07 11:25 PM, "Mike Kear" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Sorry if this is too off-topic. I dont think it is but never mind > i'll post anyway ..... > > What do you other contractors/freelancers do in this scenario: > > You work off site for a client, working from your own office on a > task, charging by the hour for the job. The client calls and says he > wants you in his office for a meeting with some of the stakeholders in > the job. The meeting will take 2.5 hours, on a day when you'd > otherwise be working by the hour for this client or another ... > > Travel to the client's office is 90 minutes each way, a total of 3 > hours travelling time when you count both trips there and back. > > You obviously charge the client for the 2.5 hours stakeholders > meeting, but do you also charge for the 3 hours travel time? If so, > at the full chargeout rate or a special travel time rate? > > I think if you are going to spend 8 hours at the client office, its' > like travel to and from work and therefore not chargeable. but since > this is a part of a day that would otherwise be chargeable if you > werent going to the meeting, do you charge for the 3 horus taken out > of the day travelling? --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "cfaussie" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cfaussie?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
