Let's dicuss on how we all will be billing our customs in a years time. 

• What are the expectable pushbacks from customers
• Value-based pricing
• how to transition

This is no presentation, it is an open discussion

--

We're talking about how we argue our prices in the FileMaker development world, when vibe coders can produce 'the same' in a much shorter time. What arguments do we have, to convince customers to stay with us, compared to the attractive looking 'quick-win' of vibe coded appa. short bullet points thanks

Thought for a couple of seconds

• “Same screen” is not the same system. A vibe-coded app can mimic the visible UI; it rarely reproduces the business rules, edge cases, permissions, audit trails, imports, exports, invoices, reports, backups, and support workflows.
• FileMaker systems are usually living business infrastructure. The cost is not building version 1 quickly; the cost is keeping version 37 reliable after years of customer wishes, legal changes, staff turnover, and data growth.
• We know the hidden domain logic. The customer often cannot fully specify what they do. Experienced developers extract, challenge, and stabilise the business process before turning it into software.
• Fast prototypes create false confidence. A demo that works with five test records may collapse with real data, multi-user access, permissions, printing, integrations, and exceptions.
• Cheap code becomes expensive maintenance. The question is not “Can someone generate it?” but “Who understands it, fixes it, documents it, migrates it, and is accountable when payroll/invoices/production stop?”
• Data is the real asset. We protect data structure, migration paths, validation, backups, recoverability, and long-term ownership. Pretty generated apps often underestimate this.
• Security and permissions are not decoration. Business apps need role-based access, auditability, GDPR awareness, safe deployment, and protection against accidental damage.
• Integration is where reality bites. E-invoices, DATEV, ERP, SQL, APIs, PDF output, barcode scanners, email, Excel, web viewers, server schedules — these need durable engineering, not just UI generation.
• We reduce business risk. The customer is not paying for keystrokes; they are paying for fewer failures, fewer surprises, fewer broken processes, and someone responsible.
• We build updateable systems. A quick app is attractive until the next change. Professional FileMaker work includes naming, structure, conventions, deployment, testing, and upgrade paths.
• AI makes good developers faster, not unnecessary. The value shifts from typing code to judging code, designing architecture, finding edge cases, and knowing what must not be automated blindly.
• The customer does not want an app; they want an outcome. Faster invoicing, fewer errors, better control, happier staff, legal compliance, smoother operations. Price should be argued against that value, not against hours.
• Ask the key question: “When this becomes critical to your business, who do you want responsible for it — a quick-win generator, or someone who understands your business and will still be there when it breaks?”