You don’t need to know the technical words to ask for help with a spreadsheet. A little context goes a long way, and it makes it much easier to give you an accurate price and timeline.
1. A few sentences about the problem
- What the file is for, and who uses it.
- What’s going wrong, or what takes too long.
- What you wish it did instead.
Something like “our order list takes two hours to update every Monday, and we keep missing late orders” is plenty.
2. A copy of the file, not the original
Send a copy so your working file stays untouched. If the file lives in OneDrive, SharePoint, or Google Drive, you can share just that copy and remove access when the project is done.
3. Which program you use
Excel on Windows, Excel on a Mac, Excel on the web, or Google Sheets. Some features only exist in newer versions, so this decides which tools I can use.
4. Remove anything private first
Most spreadsheet problems can be solved without seeing anyone’s real personal details. Before you send the file, replace:
- Names, emails, phone numbers, and addresses
- Account, card, and Social Security numbers
- Pay rates or anything else you’d rather keep to yourself
Replace the values instead of deleting the columns, and keep the same format. A fake 10-digit account number in place of a real one keeps your formulas working exactly the same way. When the fix is done, it will work just as well on your real data.
5. Optional: a picture of the goal
A screenshot of a report you like, or a quick sketch of what you want to see, can save a lot of back and forth.
For more about how your files are handled, see the FAQ.