Your website is up, your services/workshops/products page
is finished. So... do you publish your prices along with it?
If you do, won't that scare people away? If you don't,
won't people think you're hiding something? It's a
lose-lose situation, it would seem. So, do your clients
need to see your prices, or not?
Safety first.
When someone is looking to hire you, in their heart of
hearts, they've already made a decision. There is a Yes or
No that has already sprung to life, because our inner truth
compass is just that certain.
The problem comes in when the mind gets involved. Because
following one's heart-knowing involves surrendering
control, the ego gets a mite touchy about it. "Uh, are you
sure about this?" your client's ego asks.
Unless your clients are all spiritually-enlightened
masters, chances are their egos will need some soothing,
and the price isn't going to do it.
Well, not the price all by its lonesome.
The question I often hear is "should I publish my prices?"
perhaps because money is such a hot topic. But, the truth
is, the price only makes sense in context.
"Balloon, $27,390" Seems absurd, until you realize it's an
Aerostar S66A Turnkey Ride System- a hot air balloon, with
all the trimmings, by Paul Stumpf. (www.stumpfballoons.com)
Price or no price, people will be slow on the uptake.
Unless you give them more. If you just have two or three
bullet points and a short paragraph, whether you have the
price or not is irrelevant. You're just not giving enough
information to answer all the questions churning in the
mind of your potential client.
That $27K Aerostar is going to raise a lot of questions
before someone buys. It may be true that your service or
class doesn't cost twenty-seven thousand gees, and yet if
you're asking any significant price at all, their egos are
going to need some answers, before they'll let the heart
take control.
So, publish prices or not?
You thought it was a simple question, and it is. But the
answer takes a little bit more work than you had thought.
But, never fear! It's worth it. The little bit of extra
work will mean extra safety, and extra safety means extra
responses.
So, what's the extra? Let's find out.
Keys to Publishing Your Price.
• Get help coming up with questions.
Use friends, colleagues, trusted clients: tell them the
three-sentence version of your offer. "It's a class about
finding work when you've been unemployed, it's a day-long
workshop, and I'm thinking of charging $200 for it."
Then, tell them to come up with all the questions they
might have about it. Don't ask them for answers. Don't ask
for what they want to see in the workshop. Just the
questions that they want to ask you before they say 'yes.'
Push 'em to give you some outlandish questions - the ones
they're embarrassed to ask. "Should I wear a suit? Do I
need to bring a resume? Does it matter if I was fired for
bad conduct?"
• Now, answer those questions on your web page.
Answer 'em. If they have the questions, then believe me
your prospective clients have the questions. And they'll be
looking for the answers. Including the price.
• And yes, include the price.
At this point, after answering all of their other
questions, it definitely will cause more suspicion on the
reader's part if you leave the price out. They'll be
wondering: "They've told me everything but the price... is
there some catch?" They won't want to call you or email for
fear of getting caught in a hypey, hard-sell attack.
Your price is your price. It's okay to present it. If it's
the right price, you've answered their other questions, and
it's really the right thing for them, they'll pay you
happily. If it's not the right thing, whether you show the
price or not, they won't buy, and they shouldn't.
Publishing prices is somewhat of a no-brainer - you want to
publish your prices. But you also need to answer as many of
their other questions as possible, or they'll walk away...
not because of the price, but because their egos don't yet
feel safe enough to trust the heart.
----------------------------------------------------
Mark Silver is the author of Unveiling the Heart of Your
Business: How Money, Marketing and Sales can Deepen Your
Heart, Heal the World, and Still Add to Your Bottom Line.
He has helped hundreds of small business owners around the
globe succeed in business without lousing their hearts. Get
three free chapters of the book online:
http://www.heartofbusiness.com
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