The Retainer blog

Notes on running an independent practice.

Practical guides on pricing, client relationships, and the business side of consulting — from the team building Retainer.

How to Price a Consulting Retainer (With Examples)

A step-by-step framework for turning your hourly rate into a monthly retainer number clients will actually say yes to — with worked examples.

Most churn isn't a delivery problem — it's a silence problem. Here's why relationships go cold and how to catch it before it costs you the renewal.

Spreadsheets work fine — until they don't. A practical checklist for knowing when your client tracking has outgrown a spreadsheet.

Hourly and retainer pricing optimize for different things. A practical framework for choosing the right one, and when to switch.

Client count is the wrong metric. The real math behind consulting capacity — available hours, committed hours, and target utilization.