Have you checked your hourly consulting rate lately?

Do you have the right hourly consulting rate? At Maven, we know that your time is valuable and have built a platform to connect you with the people who value your expertise the most. At the same time, we want the value our customers receive from their interactions with you to be appropriately priced relative to your background and expertise – and if you think about it, your expertise is changing all the time! With each passing day in your chosen occupation you gain experience that should be reflected in your consulting rate; if you move into a new role or industry, the value of your expertise to Maven’s customers also changes.

Maven is a marketplace and our participants’ hourly consulting rates span a very wide spectrum. When a customer reviews the results of a request for expertise, they compare Mavens based on several factors, including background, qualifications, perspective, ratings… and price! In other words, if your rate is appropriate for your background and industry, you have a much better chance of being selected to consult. But remember, other Mavens are competing with you for our customers’ attention, and if someone else has similar qualifications to you but a lower consulting rate, the customer may select them instead of you.

All of these factors lead to a simple conclusion – periodic review of your hourly consulting rate is critical to ensure your success on Maven.

If you aren’t getting selected for Consultations even though you are very qualified for the topics proposed, there is a very good chance it is because your rate is too high. Likewise, if you’re generating a lot of consulting activity on Maven and you’ve had the same hourly rate for a while,  it might be a good time to raise it.

We suggest you revisit our Rate Calculator is based on an algorithm that takes into account several factors related to your background and experience to suggest a rate in line with our customers’ expectations for someone like you. We adjust the algorithm from time to time to reflect trends in our Global Knowledge Marketplace, so even if your job role hasn’t changed recently, your suggested rate still might fluctuate a bit.

So take a moment to check the Rate Calculator to ensure you’re still pricing your time appropriately. You might be surprised with the results!