Engagement models
Four ways to work with us, and an honest account of when each one is the wrong choice.
Ecosystem
How does Digistan structure engagements?
Four models: fixed-bid for well-defined scope, time and materials for evolving work, a dedicated team for sustained capacity, and retainers for ongoing services like marketing or support. The right one depends mainly on how settled the scope genuinely is.
Fixed-bid
A defined scope, a fixed price, a fixed timeline. It suits work where requirements are genuinely settled — a marketing site, a defined integration, a discrete audit.
The trade-off is rigidity. Every change goes through a change request, which is slower and often more expensive than it would have been under time and materials. Fixed-bid on unsettled scope tends to produce either a padded price or an adversarial project, and frequently both.
Time and materials
Billed for time worked, with a rate card and an agreed cadence. It suits work where requirements will evolve, which is most application development honestly assessed.
The trade-off is budget uncertainty, which we manage with sprint-level estimates, a running burn report and an agreed ceiling that we do not cross without a conversation.
Dedicated team
A named team allocated to you for a monthly fee, working to your priorities. It suits sustained work over quarters where you want continuity and control of the backlog.
The trade-off is commitment — you pay for the capacity whether or not the backlog fills it, so it is poor value for intermittent work.
Retainer
A monthly fee for ongoing service — marketing management, support, monitoring, optimisation. It suits work that is continuous rather than project-shaped.
The trade-off is that value is harder to see month to month. We counter that with reporting tied to outcomes agreed at the start, and we would rather you challenge a quiet month than quietly renew one.
How we choose with you
The deciding question is how settled the scope actually is, not which model sounds safest. Clients often prefer fixed-bid for the certainty and then discover the scope was not as fixed as assumed.
| Scope fully defined, short project | Fixed-bid |
|---|---|
| Scope will evolve as you learn | Time and materials |
| Sustained work over several quarters | Dedicated team |
| Continuous service, no end date | Retainer |
| Genuinely unsure what you need | A paid discovery or assessment first |
Frequently asked
Questions we get about this
Why do you not publish rates?
Because a rate without scope is meaningless, and a price list invites comparison on the wrong variable. We quote after understanding the work, and we quote in a way you can compare against other proposals.
Can we start small?
That is usually what we recommend. A paid assessment, a pilot, or one well-chosen first phase tells both sides whether the working relationship fits, at a fraction of the cost of finding out later.
Do you take equity instead of fees?
Very rarely, and not as a default. It creates an alignment we would have to manage carefully and it is generally worse for the client than it first appears.
Talk it through before you commit
A discovery call is a working session on your constraint, not a sales pitch.
Quick inquiry
Tell us what you're trying to build
A short note is enough. You'll hear back from the team, not a bot — usually within one working day.
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