The kit is laid out
before the patient walks in.
The practice runs the way an operating room runs. The brief is read against the toolkit and the toolkit is sharpened by the brief. There is no separate deck — the work is the deck.
Engagement min.
6 months
Phase length
~6 weeks to first stage
Pricing
Replacement value
Practice size
One operator
01
— Phase 01
Diagnose
A teardown of what is already there — site, brand, data, touchpoints, operating rhythm. The output is a working document the operator can argue with on the same surface they will eventually approve.
— Week one. The first invoice belongs to clarity, not output.
02
— Phase 02
Stage
The system is built in the open, on a working URL. The operator reacts to the actual artifact, not a slide of one. Iterations land as commits — by go-live, the system has already been live for the people who need to sign on it.
— Weeks two through six. The deliverable is the deliverable.
03
— Phase 03
Hand off
Every engagement ends with a delivery list — repos, URLs, fonts, files, formulas, credentials, runbooks. No leverage held, no proprietary CMS, no vendor lock. The artifacts already work without me.
— Week six and forward. The retainer is a continuation, not a leash.
— What the practice does not do
The list of nots
is the list that holds.
Most practices list their capabilities. The harder list — the one that determines whether the practice keeps its shape — is the list of things it refuses to do.
- ×Pitch decks for new business
- ×Spec work or unpaid concept rounds
- ×Hourly billing or "flexible" scope
- ×Proprietary CMS lock-in
- ×Co-mingled credentials or shared logins
- ×Content that names other clients without explicit permission
— Pricing model
— Replacement value
Pricing reflects the cost of the system the operator would otherwise have to build, hire, or wait for. Time compression is the leverage.
— Audit
$500 — $1,500
Single-pass diagnostic, written for the operator. The door, not the deck.
— Build
$2,500 — $5,000+
A working system delivered to a 6-week stage. Brand, web, dashboard, or report.
— Retainer
From $1,250 / month
Standing operating relationship. Pulse + monthly maintenance + new surface as needed.
The work is the deck.
Every engagement closes with a delivery list — repos, URLs, fonts, files, formulas, credentials, runbooks. The artifacts already work without me.