I am at present investigating the establishment of a project economic consultancy in South Africa and my business plan is slowly developing. The one concern I have is what to charge my potential clients per hour or per day for the service. The service covers project feasibility studies, social cost-benefit analysis, resource economics, economic development planning, needs and economic activity surveying, econometric modelling and strategic planning. The client base consist of our government departments at national, provincial and local levels, development financing institutions and I am planning to also venture into Africa.Could you please give me some indication about what rates one can use in such a venture?I thank you in anticipation of your answer,Kind regards,Robert BradfieldPostal address:P O Box 6051,Ansfrere. 1711Republic of South Africa.Telephone:Land line: +27-11-672-6202Mobile: +27-82-716-9266

In my opinion, any consultancy worth its name would charge no less than GBP 1000 per day. Indeed, this may vary depending upon the client, industry verticle, nature of work, location, reputation of the consultancy, etc.For instance, Accenture is currently involved in the merger of two banks (from an operational perspective) based in london and, I heard, they are charging GBP 1800 per day per consultant (which, in my view, is on the higher side considering the quality of their consultants, quality of their deliverables, current economic climate, not to mention that all they are doing is project management).

Whatever you do, don't just blindly pluck a number out of the sky.Pricing consultancy needs to reflect what the market will bear, what you're trying to do with that client and how strong your brand is.Look at potential competitors or people doing the same type of consultancy in different areas. What do they charge?I have a broad client base (in many sectors) but charge out my consultants at anything from £400 to £3,000 per day.

Thank you for responding to my request. I am sorry that I am only replying now. you were all very kind to share your information with me.Regards,Robert Bradfield