I wanted to get your quick feedback on something I’m testing.

[dilipkumarkk]

I’m running a test offer for UK Businesses, offering pilot software projects at £499 to validate ideas or automate small workflows and solve their long-standing pain points.

I would love your feedback. Does this sound appealing or too low-priced for the UK market?

 

[fisicx]

That is a very confusing post. Why would I want to pay you £499 to validate some ideas?

 

[dilipkumarkk]

@fisicx Ah, sorry for the mix-up!
What I meant is, if a business owner’s some business operations issues that could be fixed through software, I would offer to build a quick pilot for £499 to test whether it actually solves the problem before they spend big.

I would really appreciate your take. Would this pricing feel reasonable and credible to UK business owners?

 

[fisicx]

I doubt anyone would be interested in your offer. The solution could be a simple process change which could be implemented for a much lower cost.

 

[Allen_Bernier]

Interesting concept, but £499 might sound too low for something custom. Maybe frame it as a “pilot package” or “proof of concept” to highlight value instead of price.

 

[fisicx]

But why pay £499 where these might be a simpler and cheaper fix? As an example, buying a better label printer could save hours of work each day. Or change a process to remove touch points. Or use a COTS application instead of a manual operation.

And of course there is the question of trust. How can I trust an unknown developer to actually deliver this product without first doing a business analysis?

Take a look at their website.

 

[Ozzy]

I would tend to agree with @fisicx because identifying the root cause of something often requires broader consultative review, rather then jumping straight in and assuming some bespoke software is the solution.

Hence, adding a +1 to @Allen_Bernier comment - batch it as a proof of concept and not a 'solution' because the point of a POC is to measure if something solves something not that it is the solution.

 

[StrategyDoctor]

I’m running a test offer for UK Businesses, offering pilot software projects at £499 to validate ideas or automate small workflows and solve their long-standing pain points.

I would love your feedback. Does this sound appealing or too low-priced for the UK market?

Interesting concept — and I can see where you’re coming from. Many small businesses struggle to validate whether technology can actually fix their operational bottlenecks before spending big on development.


From my experience working with SMEs, what often makes or breaks these kinds of offers is how clearly the outcome is framed. If you position it as a “low-risk proof of concept” that helps business owners test automation potential before committing to a full build, it becomes much more credible.


One thing to consider — for many SMEs, the unknown isn’t just whether the software will work, but what it would actually cost to implement at scale. You might strengthen your offer by including a summary or quotation for full implementation as part of the pilot outcome. That way, the client walks away with both a working prototype and a clear costed pathway forward.


£499 feels low for something bespoke, but if it’s positioned as a structured validation phase with tangible outputs and next steps, it could work very well.

 

[Gecko001]

What you are offering for £499 might seem too good to be true for many prospective clients, and consequently they will just not consider you, or they could see it as an opportunity to rip you off, by getting your expertise for a song and then going to another firm to develop the solution that you have come up with.

 

[fisicx]

But it still comes back to the initial analysis. You need to do this before deciding if a proof of concept is even needed.

If a business is looking cut costs, streamline processes, increase leads of whatever they will get in a consultant to look at the business. Once the issues have been identified you can then consider solutions. Which may or may not need a POC.

The offer by @dilipkumarkk comes much further down the chain. It’s not a starting point.

 

[StrategyDoctor]

I’m running a test offer for UK Businesses, offering pilot software projects at £499 to validate ideas or automate small workflows and solve their long-standing pain points.

I would love your feedback. Does this sound appealing or too low-priced for the UK market?

I take the view that by the time a business is exploring automation or custom software, they’ve usually already identified the pain point through some form of internal analysis or experience. The challenge isn’t spotting the issue — it’s understanding what’s feasible, what it would cost, and whether the ROI justifies the investment.


That’s why a small, structured proof-of-concept or pilot can make sense. It’s not about throwing £499 at every idea, but using a low-risk experiment to validate or discard a potential solution before committing serious capital.


It might also help if the offer includes a clear implementation quote and ROI outline as part of the pilot deliverable — so the client walks away knowing both the prototype outcome and the full-cost roadmap should they wish to proceed.


That framing makes the £499 pilot feel like a professional step in a well-defined process rather than a bargain offer, and it aligns much better with how SMEs typically make investment decisions.

 

[ThatDevAaron]

What you're offering is essentially building MVP (minimal viable product) products, and if I'm being honest, I don't see a market for this unless you're appealing to startups, and even then, I doubt it.

 

[fisicx]

I take the view that by the time a business is exploring automation or custom software, they’ve usually already identified the pain point through some form of internal analysis or experience. The challenge isn’t spotting the issue — it’s understanding what’s feasible, what it would cost, and whether the ROI justifies the investment.

Yes. But this is a rare occurrence. Most businesses will bring in external services to do the analysis (it's a specialist skill) and from there decide if you need a POC, process change, staff training or whatever.

A once size fits all offer of £499 isn't going to work for many. And in some cases may be woefully inadequate. Imagine a multinational logisitics company looking to implement a whole new tracking system - the POC would cost millions. On the other hand for a local builder struggling to manage projects £499 is a lot of cash.

And this still doesn't answer the question as to why anyone would employ HasoTechnology. Look at their profile on Google. Doesn't inspire confidence.

 

[GLAbusiness]

Echoes of bait and switch here. Get them in for £500. Using the old 80/20 rule they would then pitch for £2,500 at least to turn it into a workable solution.

I don't see much of a market for bespoke software development for SMEs.

 

[dilipkumarkk]

Thanks a lot everyone for your honest takes, really appreciate it.

Sounds like for this kind of bespoke software, I should probably frame it as a POC instead of a pilot version. I’ll have a proper think about it and plan my next steps.

Cheers for all the input, it’s been super helpful!