Is there a scope for doing part time MS Excel consultancy via the web?

Question

I am like the ubur super daddy at Excel and am constantly getting requests from colleagues at work asking how to upgrade / fix / tweak / design their spreadsheets doing anything from simple sorting and formulas to complex pivots and VBA coding.

So there's definitely enough people needing help, but are there enough people out there do you think that would be prepared to pay for it? And how much?

Answer 1

no one will pay. becuase excel is not a programming language and u are not giving any completed software (finished product like banking software, hospital management software etc)

u are only helping them by giving some tips.

u can consider doing this freely globally.

Answer 2

As a professional spreadsheet modeller I would say no.

Typically commercial uses of expert excel skills are as an integrated part of a team. You see most businesses don't want people to tell them solutions, they need people to implement the solution.

This is particularly true for Excel because the use of excel itself is generally for short term bespoke solutions, such as modelling business cases or analysing moderate sized data sets. Anything beyond these functions is better left to specialist software because excel works best when you use it to answer questions rather than as a part of business process.

There undoubtedly a need for better excel skills throughout the business world, but this is usually 'solved' by hiring blue chip consultancy resource or contractors (like me). My excel skills are supplemented by strong skills in all office apps and experience on several billion pound projects (4 years as a big-4 consultant...you have to do your time!)

In terms of adhoc support to solve a particular problem, your main competitors would be the many Internet resources that exist for the exchange and solving of technical problems & solutions. Experts Exchange is one of the top sites.

Realistically the big money in excel is in Finance so you need to get some experience or qualifications in this area too. Then you can just become a £500 ($1000 a day) front office developer for a merchant bank in the city instead

Answer 3

Depending on what your doing you can earn quite a bit.

If building repetitive applications using VB with multiple workbooks and multiple sheets of medium to high complexity, charge $60 to $100 per hour.

If doing customized reports, importing raw data, graphs, pivot tables, etc. Charge $40 to $80 per hour.

That's the ranges for here in NYC area. But to charge those rates you'll need to be able to provide samples of your work and give the number you would charge for each. That way potential clients can gage your competence.

You see, if paying by the hour the client will assume some of the risk of complexity. You can assume all the risk by quoting fixed prices for prospective jobs. You may need to do that in order to get into the business and build a track record.

But that's the point. You apparently haven't the experience. So you really need to assume the risk whilst building experience and client loyalty. Just like any other career opportunity, you'll need to prove your value before you can charge the higher rate or expect clients to assume the risk.

Hope this helps,
Kind regards,
QwertyKPH @ Yahoo