The cost of cheap services

To quote Albert Einstein, "Sometimes one pays the most for the things one gets for nothing".

In my discussions with small business owners and not-for-profit organizations, I often hear the phrase "that costs too much". I see business owners going for the cheapest service that they can get. I see not-for-profit organizations getting volunteers to provide support for critical services. In both these cases, the cost of getting free or cheap services is often poor performance or a a poor result.

Obviously nobody should be spending more money than should for service, but what should they be spending?
I recently asked for professional help to develop a brochure. Instead of going for somebody that "I could afford", I went with experience. Two things happenned: One, I got a much better quality brochure; Two, I learned a lot about grphics and developing brochures. I will be smarter next time around.

The same is tru of support for computers. When you go with "Your nephew" or "your neighbour's son", you are unlikely to get the kind of skills that you want. You will most likely get someone who is comfortable fixing computers. But, fixing computers is not why you are in business. You are in business to deliver services to your customers and being paid. If your computers aren't helping you do that, or require constant maintenance, you aren't going to be productive. The cost of the productivity loss may be much more than the cheap support that you are getting. You may not have enough time or information to focus on new sales, or even worse, you will lose sales.

Not all junior people are poor solutions, just like not all suppliers provide good service for your business. However, if you set the standard expectation for how you want your computers and business software to operate, you will have a better quality, more reliable service, and this will help you to focus on growing your business.

Start by focusing on your business goals, and what you must have in terms of functionality and service in order to achieve them. Then look at the cost of getting that service. You may have to compromise, if you don't currently have the money, but at least you will know what you are missing and what you have to do when you have the money.