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- Vegas vs. Berlin: What I Learned About How Clients Want to Engage
Vegas vs. Berlin: What I Learned About How Clients Want to Engage
I reworked my fractional CTO practice by changing my mindset. I had been operating like a German Casino, and missing the mark, but I needed to be more like Las Vegas. Make it stupid easy for a client to hire and pay.
Stephan Smith
March 26, 2025
As a fractional CTO, I have encountered the same issue over and over: promising conversations would stall between proposal and kickoff. I’d invest hours into thoughtful scopes, pricing models, and onboarding plans—only to get ghosted or stuck in approval limbo.
It didn’t make sense. These were warm leads asking for help. So why weren’t they converting?
It turned out that I’d built my business like a Berlin casino—full of formal steps meant to create trust, but that mostly created drag.
The Rage Invoice That Changed Everything
One client had asked for multiple proposals over two years. We’d had several calls, and I’d given real value. Each time, it felt like momentum—but nothing ever moved forward.
After yet another call, I was frustrated. So I did something I normally wouldn’t: I sent a "rage invoice" for one hour of time—the hour we’d just spent on the call. No proposal. No follow-up. Just a straight invoice.
My biggest surprise? They paid it. Instantly. No questions. No delay.