Doesn't this sound familiar?

Joshua Jeffryes' On Design blog talks about how he sees, "...requests for proposals that play coy. They refuse to reveal the scope of the project, the experience level required, and/or the budget. The people that do this seem to think that by playing some kind of amateur shell game with designers, they'll trick one into doing a job for less money than they should."

He is talking specifically about designers but it is the same no matter what the (professional) service. Buyers think they can get a better deal by keeping information close to the vest.

As I posted on his site, I think people believe they are at a flea market or a fair and, by not saying how much they have in their pocket, how high they are willing to go or what they really want to do with the item in question, they can haggle or bargain their way to a deal.

For those readers who are on the other side: take note - the more you give us, ultimately, the less it is going to cost you. Think of it like taking your car into the shop or visiting the doctor instead of going to a flea market. The more information you give the more likely you are to walk out with your car or your health they way you want them.

Professional service firms, be they designers or architects or lawyers, want to get this current engagement, impress you with their work, then get the next and the next and the next. They do not want to get in, charge a lot and move on. That is not the business model.

As an apocryphal story from a co-worker goes, in this case: MORE IS MORE!