One of the most popular questions I’m asked is, when doing fixed pricing, how do you accurately scope a Salesforce project? Don’t you need to add tons of conditions to protect yourself?

Note: This question doesn’t apply when you’re selling a product or a productized service, as the price and scope are already established. This applies for managed services, retainers, and value-based projects.

Fixed pricing requires a mindshift, because determining scope is the *last* step, not the first.

The first step is determining the value of the project, which is a blend of math and art. During the sales call, you need to ask a lot of questions, usually beginning with the words, “why” and “what”.

Then you do some rough calculations, shake your magic 8-ball, and produce a project value. Once the value is known, you create three options. For each option, you choose the scope.

Generally,

  • Option 1 is everything the client needs
  • Option 2 includes everything the client wants
  • Option 3 includes everything the client wants and more

We’ll discuss what these look like in a subsequent email.

The takeaway
Scope last?! WTF?! The client told me what they want, how can I deliver more or less?

Don’t forget *you* are the Salesforce expert. They came to you because you’ve established yourself as a reliable provider. So the choice of scope is actually yours.

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