Do you charge for the first conversation?
No. Thirty minutes, no charge, no obligation. If there is work to do after that, I will quote for it.
Start with a conversation
Most people who get in touch are not ready to buy anything. They have a website that is not pulling its weight, an agency relationship that has gone quiet, or a board asking what the plan for AI is. That is the right time to call, not after you have already spent the money.
Send a message
Prefer to type it out? Tell me what is going on and I will reply within one working day. Me, not a form response and not a junior.
A rough idea is plenty. Working out what the actual problem is tends to be the first useful thing that happens.
What happens when you get in touch
I reply within one working day. Not a form response, not a junior, me.
If it looks like something I can help with, we book 30 minutes. If it does not, I will tell you that and point you at someone who can. I have been doing this long enough to know the difference and there is no upside in pretending otherwise.
What the first call is
Thirty minutes, video or phone, no charge and no pitch.
You describe what is going on. I ask questions, which is most of what I do for a living. By the end you should have a clearer view of what the actual problem is, whether it is worth spending money on, and roughly what that would cost.
Sometimes the answer is that you do not need a consultant. That is a legitimate outcome and I would rather say it in the first half hour than the third invoice.
What it is not
- No slide deck.
- No discovery process you have to pay for before anyone tells you anything useful.
- No proposal arriving three weeks later from someone you have never spoken to.
You get me on the call, and if we work together you get me doing the work. No juniors, no subcontractors.
Who I usually work with
Leadership teams at organisations between roughly 10 and 500 people. Law firms, charities, financial services, manufacturers, and agencies wanting to fix how they run.
A digital audit
from £500When nobody can explain what the website is actually doing.
An AI opportunity audit
from £2,000When the board wants a plan rather than a pilot.
Agency selection or RFP support
When a firm is about to spend six figures on a website.
Coaching or a non-executive seat
When the capability gap is the problem.
If none of those fit, call anyway. Half my work starts as something else.
Questions you might have
How quickly will I hear back?
Within one working day. You will hear from me, not an assistant.
Do you work outside the North East?
Yes. Most engagements run remotely and I travel for on site work where it makes a difference. Clients have ranged from regional firms to global law firms.
What does an engagement cost?
The reviews carry published fixed fees, starting at £500 for a digital audit and £2,000 for an AI opportunity audit. Advisory, leadership and implementation work is scoped to the job, and you get a one page scope and a fixed fee in writing before anything starts. I do not do open ended day rates.
Do I need to know what I want before I call?
No. Working out what the actual problem is tends to be the first useful thing that happens.
Not ready to talk yet
Fair enough. Two things worth your time instead.