Your Tech CompassYour Tech Compass is an editorial publication first. We partner with founders and B2B leaders to produce deep-dive research and analysis. Payment covers research time, testing, and editorial production. It never buys a score, a verdict, or a favorable outcome. All prices are in USD.
These rates reflect senior editorial expertise, domain specialization in African fintech, AI, and SaaS, and the kind of research depth that makes a published assessment worth citing. We do not produce commodity articles. We build evidence.
Who This Rate Card Is For
We are highly selective. We operate as strategic partners, not a volume-based content mill. If your company falls into one of these categories, we are likely a strong fit.
Three Ways to Work With Us
Start with a $350 Scoping Audit, credited toward a Feature, or go straight to a published Authority Feature. Both use the same published methodology and the same two editors; the difference is whether anything is published. A Re-Score is available only after a completed Feature.
What payment buys
When a company commissions YTC, it pays for research time, testing, and editorial production. It does not pay for a score, a verdict, or a favorable outcome. Every commissioned piece is labeled “Commissioned.” The verdict remains YTC’s. The client receives reuse rights to the published piece but does not receive approval over the score or removal of negative findings.
Independent: hands-on tested, unpaid. Commissioned: hands-on tested, paid for. Research-based: independent desk research, not hands-on tested. Every YTC review carries one of these three labels. Read our editorial policy.
Format | What’s included | Rate (USD) |
|---|---|---|
Authority Feature Scoping Audit Start here 1 week. This is the first step toward an Authority Feature. A private, hands-on evaluation of your product under our published methodology. Nothing is published, and no public score is attached. | 1 week of hands-on testing against the published YTC framework (capped at ~10 hours of active testing) Private scorecard across all five dimensions (never published) Prioritised gap report: what to fix, in what order, before going public Clear go / no-go recommendation on a Commissioned Feature 100% of the fee credited toward an Authority Feature if you commission within 60 days | $350 one-time · 1 week |
YTC Authority Feature Core offer 3,000+ words. 1–2 weeks. Deep product immersion, market research, and a published assessment labeled “Commissioned.” | Hands-on product testing & stress-testing (1–2 week engagement) Market research & competitive context Published assessment on YTC (3,000+ words), labeled “Commissioned” YTC Intelligence Score & badge reflect what the product actually earns under our published methodology, never negotiated Reuse rights to the published piece: share and cite it. This does not include editing it, approving the score, or removing negative findings Commissioned FinTech Trust Index assessments are not yet available | $800–1,200 one-time · 1–2 weeks |
Authority Re-Score After a Feature Available only after a completed Authority Feature. | Fresh hands-on testing after your product has changed Published score updated to reflect what we find; it can go up or down Same methodology, same two editors, same labeling | $400–600 one-time |
Already Reviewed by YTC? Get Your Badge Free.
Generate your YTC Intelligence Score badge and embed it on your homepage, pricing page, or press kit. No fee; it’s yours to use.
How We Work Together
Every engagement starts with the “2-minute version” of what you’re building. We review every inquiry personally, tell you whether YTC is a good fit, and suggest the most useful starting project.
Scoping Audits: 100% upfront. Authority Features: 50% upfront, 50% on delivery. Authority Re-Scores: terms confirmed in your proposal. Accepted via bank transfer, Wise, or M-Pesa. Invoices are issued within 24 hours.
Authority Features include 2 rounds of revisions. Revisions cover factual corrections and clarity edits within the agreed scope. They never change the score or remove negative findings. Additional rounds or scope changes are quoted separately.
Scoping Audits take about one week, and Authority Features take 1–2 weeks. We do not rush deep research.
Private audits and unpublished engagements are treated as confidential by default; NDA available on request at no charge. Published commissioned pieces are always labeled “Commissioned” on the page, regardless of the client’s preference. That transparency is non-negotiable.
You may withdraw the piece before publication (a staged withdrawal fee applies, growing as work progresses). Or publish as-is, with your written response appended. Scores and verdicts are never revised at a client’s request.
Paid work covers research time, testing, and editorial production, never a score or verdict. Scores reflect what we find under our published methodology and are never negotiated. Every commissioned piece is labeled “Commissioned.” Read our editorial policy on how we separate editing from consulting.
Published pieces receive full YTC distribution: SEO long-tail indexing, editor LinkedIn amplification, newsletter inclusion, and reuse rights to the published piece for the client (share and cite; no editing, score approval, or removal of negative findings). We sell credibility, not reach — but credibility compounds.