Gordon -

Your example works for the ONE SERVICE MODEL as well.

Way back in the dark ages of 1988, when I first left the corporate shelter and started my consulting company, I broke down my income goals the same way.

I wanted to make at least $80,000 per year working an average of four days per week for 50 weeks per year, or 200 total days.

That meant I had to make $400 per day, or $50 per hour for eight hours. I added another $25 per hour for overhead, taxes and other pesky entrepreneurial expenses (a low estimate, BTW:-)) and that's how I figured out my minimum client pricing.

As I went along, I used fixed, per project pricing that added bucks to my pocket, and other revenue generating methods (including outsourcing and controlling product rights) but the hourly "nut" always served as a baseline that I was committed to making, and prevented me from taking less lucrative gigs or devaluing my services. As I gained more experience and perceived value, I just raised my minimum nut to what the market would bear.

Also, psychologically it wasn't too overwhelming to figure out how to make $75 in an hour, and I found that I could make much more by listening and learning all about the clients and their needs, providing honest proposals of what I could realistically deliver (exceeding their needs), and finding other areas in which I could help the client as well (i.e., lifetime value per Jay A.).

So, great example and one that worked for me!

Bob