Should we put prices for our high-value services on our website? Or should we only reveal them when we make an offer?
At night the Siberian Wood Frog freezes solid but does not die.
When most animals freeze ice crystals form in their bodies which slice through their cells and tissues like daggers, killing them but not the Wood Frog. Why? It has high levels of glucose and urea in its blood which prevents ice-crystals from growing. So when morning comes and the temperature rises, the Wood Frog thaws out and hops around as if nothing happened.
Most frogs prevent themselves from freezing to death by living much further south than the Siberian Wood Frog. We can prevent our potential clients from freezing up when they see the prices of our offers by omitting prices from our websites and brochures. But then what do we do to make sure clients are willing to pay our premium fees?
We do that with three ideas:
1. Presenting a price after a personal selling process
2. Guiding your clients to the right package for them
3. Knowing what to say when they ask for a price upfront
1. High price offers require a personal selling process
This is because people often don’t see the value of our offers until we connect our services to their needs. One coach I know helps busy professionals lower their stress. In his program, one module has to do with developing stress-reducing habits.
When he describes the habit module to potential clients on a discovery call, he speaks to specific needs he uncovered earlier on the call. If they have poor sleeping habits, he can talk about how that module will help them develop better sleeping habits which lower stress. If they don’t have exercise built into their days, he talks about how his program helps them form exercise habits which make people bounce back from stress more quickly.
He expertly calibrates his examples for each person he speaks with. Unfortunately, our websites can’t yet read minds and adjust copy to each client that comes along. So you need to get your clients on a discovery call to forge the connection between your offers and their needs. If he were to merely list list packages and offers on his website, many of his potential clients would walk away without looking further because the site can’t help visitors make such specific connections to their needs.
2. Many clients need our guidance to choose the right package for them
When Steve Jobs took over Apple in the 90’s as it was on the brink of failure one of his first acts was to reduce the number of products Apple sold by 70 percent. He did this because all the choices confused customers. They couldn’t figure out what to buy and so some potential customers didn’t buy at all.
As a coach, you may only have one offer or you may have fifteen. However, it’s unlikely that your potential clients can tell exactly what they need from you. If they are confused, then like Apple’s customers they won’t buy at all or even call you. That’s one reason we do discovery calls. We educate our potential clients and guide them to the right offers for them.
One business owner who had a social media business said she already had two of the five skills that I teach in my Leveraged Offer program. If she were reading copy, she may have been left thinking that she shouldn’t buy into my program since she knew some of what it teaches. But because she was speaking to me, I could coach her a bit at this point.
“It’s wonderful that you have these skills. Now, what kind of results have they been getting you?” Her results were mediocre. It turned out that even though she had the skills she wasn’t using them consistently and strategically. So I was able to show her that I can help her deploy those skills far more effectively. Sales copy couldn’t do that. Personal guidance was necessary for her to make a good decision.
3. What to say when they ask for a price up front
First, be honest. Here’s a couple of questions that will help you answer this question. Are you the most expensive person offering this service? Probably not. Are you the cheapest? Probably not. Do you have more than one offering? Hopefully you do. Based on the typical responses to these questions you can then give the following response.
“I’m not the most expensive and I’m not cheap either. I have several offerings and I don’t want to mislead you by quoting a price for something that may not fit your needs. The best thing for us to do is to get on a discovery call in which I can recommend what fits your needs.”
The person either decides to show up for a discovery call or not. If they do they are already a bit prepared for a high but not exorbitant price.
However, what if you keep getting people on discovery calls who aren’t prepared to invest the kind of fees you charge?
That’s an understandable concern since each discovery call with someone who can’t or won’t spend as much as you charge, takes time away from doing something else more valuable. My solution is to always have the client fill out a brief questionnaire before a call. Ask how much they are willing to invest to get their desired results. If they don’t answer or put down a low number, you can decline to schedule the call or be extra prepared for price objections.
For my clients who don’t feel this question is appropriate, I’ve had the ask instead how much their potential clients have already invested. Either question helps reveal if the person is willing to pay money for results.
Summary
- Present prices after a personal selling process (e.g. discovery calls)
- Give your potential clients guidance as to what package they need from you
- If you’re asked for a price upfront, let them know you need to get them on a discovery call to make a recommendation
- Have potential clients fill out a survey to ensure they are ready to invest
Next Step
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