“Just one small change”
Requests that arrive mid-sprint as clarifications
Log it as a changePrice it before it starts
SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT AGENCIES
Stop funding scope creep from a fixed price.
Software projects are often sold on a fixed fee and a hopeful estimate. MarginNudge helps you connect that price to the developer time, discovery work and change requests the build will actually require before you send the quote.
14 days. Payment details required. No charge before your trial ends.
Pre-proposalReview
Project quote check
Fixed-price build
PRICE
£48,000
MARGIN
34.2%
Delivery planExpanded
Additional effortDiscovery + review
Decision
Review before the proposal.
Built to scale
The same commercial discipline, shaped around how your team ships.
Founder-led studios and small dev teams
Give technical founders a fast pre-send check when pricing still relies on a day rate, a gut-feel estimate and optimism.
Larger agencies with delivery leads and PMs
Give delivery managers, tech leads and finance the same view of team mix, scope changes, senior oversight and approval decisions.
THE WORK CHANGES WHEN THE SPRINTS BEGIN
The client sees a feature list and a fixed price.
A project may begin with a sensible estimate and a defined scope. Then requirements shift mid-sprint, discovery was never priced, senior developers keep stepping in to review, and post-launch fixes arrive as warranty. The client may still receive the agreed product, but the economics have changed.
Visible in the proposal
Client-ready- Scoped features and user storiesQuoted
- Agreed sprint team and timelineQuoted
- Testing and release managementQuoted
- Launch and handoverQuoted
Absorbed by the agency
Unpriced- Discovery and technical scoping+3 days/mo
- Rework from shifting requirements+4 days/mo
- Code review and senior oversight+2 days/mo
- Environment, DevOps and tooling time+1.5 days/mo
- Post-launch fixes treated as warranty+2 days/mo
12.5 developer days a month sit outside the original estimate
WHERE SOFTWARE PROJECT MARGIN GETS ABSORBED
The delivery risk sits behind a clean statement of work.
Margin leak
Change requests arrive dressed as clarifications
'Small tweaks' and 'one more thing' land in the sprint as if they were always there. Without a line between clarification and change, the fixed price absorbs both.
Protective rule
Define what counts as a change, and make every change a priced decision.
USE MARGINNUDGE BEFORE THE PROPOSAL BECOMES A COMMITMENT
Connect the feature list to the work it will actually require.
The goal is not to constrain the build. It is to make discovery, review, rework and support visible before the proposal reaches the client.
- 01
Break the build into priced components
Separate discovery, design, build, testing, DevOps and support so each carries its own effort and rate.
- 02
Model the intended team mix
Include senior, mid and junior developer time, plus QA and project management, instead of a blended day rate alone.
- 03
Account for the work around the build
Include scoping, code review, client demos, environments, documentation and handover.
- 04
Define the commercial model
Set the fixed price with a change process, the sprint-team rate, or the cap for time-and-materials work.
- 05
Compare the commercial choices
Test changes to scope, team mix or timeline before the proposal is approved and sent.
ILLUSTRATIVE QUOTE
A fixed-price build is proposed at £48,000.
The plan assumes a blended team with discovery absorbed, but the client expects senior oversight and a requirements phase that has not been costed.
Commercial insight
The client now has a clean choice: keep £48,000 with a blended team and no priced discovery, or accept £54,500 with discovery and senior review included. The agency is not defending an arbitrary uplift. It is connecting the price to a visible change in the delivery plan.
Review
Quote check
Fixed-price build
Initial version
£48,000
Approve only with discovery absorbed
Reworked version
£54,500
Approve with priced discovery and senior review
CLIENT PRICE
£48,000 fixed
£54,500 fixed
DELIVERY PLAN
Blended team; discovery absorbed
Priced discovery phase; senior review included
MODELLED COST
£31,600
£35,900
EXPECTED MARGIN
34.2%
34.1%
Decision options
Keep the blended priceApprove the priced discoveryAdjust the team mix
Pre-proposal check
Have an active build proposal under review?
Run the numbers through MarginNudge before you send the quote to surface discovery time, team mix and change request boundaries.
14-day free trial · No charge before trial ends · Cancel anytime
MAKE TRADE-OFFS VISIBLE BEFORE NEGOTIATION
Turn client requests into a commercial choice.
Make scope changes, discovery, warranty work and price pressure explicit. Then hold the boundary, trade scope or reprice the build without overwriting the assessed quote.
“Can you sharpen the price?”
Pressure on the fixed fee without reducing scope
Trade scope, not marginOffer a phased release
“We'll provide the requirements”
Discovery assumed to be free or unnecessary
Price a discovery phaseShow what it de-risks
“While you're in there…”
Enhancement requests during the warranty window
Define the warranty termsQuote enhancements separately
WRITE A STATEMENT OF WORK THAT SUPPORTS THE ECONOMICS
Make the commercial assumptions easy to follow without exposing internal economics.
A strong statement of work makes the scope, change process and client responsibilities clear enough to support the build and the fee.
Approved
Client-ready quote
Fixed-price build
The client sees the scope, change process and warranty terms. Internal cost, margin and approval notes stay inside MarginNudge.
Internal economics hidden- The features, integrations and platforms covered by the build
- The number of revision or feedback rounds included at each stage
- The change request process and how changes are priced
- The warranty window and what counts as a defect versus an enhancement
- The client responsibilities for content, access, feedback and sign-off
- The treatment of work requested after launch or outside the agreed scope
WANT THE COMPLETE WORKFLOW?
See how MarginNudge handles fixed-price builds, sprint teams and support retainers through one consistent commercial workflow.
Explore the shared workflow for setting commercial rules, checking expected margin, comparing options, securing approval and producing the exact cleared client version.
Make the commercial logic as clear as the technical plan.
Show what the build covers, where the boundaries sit and what must change when the client asks for more.