Value-Based Services

[Jonathan Leer <jleer -at- MV -dot- MV -dot- COM>]

I am researching information for an article about the value of various
technical communication services as perceived by the marketplace.  I would
appreciate any practical information from the members of this list who
purchase or sell (and have budget control) these (or related) services.

If you wish to contribute, I would appreciate it if you could:
(1) indicate if you purchase outside services and/or sell your services
(2) briefly describe your market (e.g., government - midwest)
(3) qualify the importance (to whoever is purchasing
    the service): high, medium, low, none (where the buyer is reluctant
    to pay a fee to for the service)
(4) indicate the RELATIVE perceived dollar fee that the
    buyer of the service (you or your customer) is willing to pay
    in relation to your market's average writing rate per hour (i.e.,
    the average rate for a writer with average experience would have
    a relative perceived dollar fee of 0).
    (e.g., if the average writing rate is $30 and a buyer is willing
    to pay $40 for illustration, illustration would have a relative
    perceived dollar fee of 10).

The services under consideration:
* writing
* editing
* production (layout or other specific services)
* conversion between applications (e.g., Pagemaker, Word, Framemaker)
* conversion between platforms (e.g., MAC-Windows)
* translation (e.g., North American English to German)
* special services such as on-line help development, Web Page design
* Other (please specify)

Any responses will be handled with strictest confidence.  This article will
be prepared for publication in various technical communication journals.

Thank you for your assistance.
Jon Leer
Leer Technical Communications
Coyote Publishing