Closing Shop – How to Do It?

AAnonymous ·April 15, 2014 ·6 answers

I have a handful of clients here in MN and one out of state. I’ve made the switch to the corporate world and I have to say it’s a lot less stressful than when I was trying to start my own biz. I owned my web dev shop for around 8 years but over the last couple years haven’t done much at all with it and now am looking to move on from it.

I’m generating around $300/mo in residual hosting income and there are a few current clients that could use a website redesign. However, I’m no longer interested in maintaining these clients or growing the biz at all. I just want it to be out of sight and out of mind.

What’s the best way to cut the chord? Hand over everything to another web dev shop? Sell them off? Just shut down my server and send my clients an email? Anyone go through this process before?

6 answers from the community

AAnonymous· Apr 15, 2014

Give them significant notice of shutdown with suggestions for alternatives and offer to help with the transition (paid).

AAnonymous· Apr 15, 2014

Is 1 month enough?

AAnonymous· Apr 16, 2014

It would behoove you to at least do some research on mitigating the pain for your clients.

I fucking hate it when the startups who get acqui-hired and then in a blog post telling their users how much they "appreciate" them but at the same time kick them to the curb by giving them nothing other than "hey here's a way to get your data".. . WTF are we supposed to do with it?

Many hosting providers (HostGator, Bluehost, Dreamhost) will help new customers migrate over data and set them up on their servers - assuming your "solution" isn't terribly complex.

Alternatively at least refer them to Elance so they can find someone who will do it for them.

AAnonymous· Apr 16, 2014

Even better - a web dev friend will be taking over my clients and server so the transfer should be pretty seamless. Had that not happened, I was going to give them some options for migrating the site off.

AAnonymous· Apr 16, 2014

Good for you!

AAnonymous· Apr 16, 2014

You need to make it easy for them and give them alternatives. Give the business to someone else and tell that that it's being transitioned to them and that the rates will remain the same or whatnot. Also give them the option to have you set them up on an alternative server or provider of their choice and do it for free. None on this should be at any cost to them.

Closing Shop – How to Do It?

6 answers from the community

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