Have you segmented your client base into A, B, C, D clients? On what basis are they segmented – contribution to revenue, profit, good looks, clever wit, political influence, or the kind of car they drive?
In a free market you can charge what you like, to whom you like and when you like so long as you stay within the law and remain solvent.
The thing is though citizens of our democracy have some notion of ‘fair’. People don’t like it when you play favorites – if they are not considered one of your favorites, that is.
People don’t like sitting on a plane knowing that their fare was $500 dearer than the person beside them. Similarly, if I knew my dentist charged you less than me I would no doubt get huffy.
How you present your price is important. Did the person on the plane leave it to the last minute to book? Is my dentist rewarding you for more dental work over the last year?
It’s not always what you charge that’s important – it’s how you charge. You need a credible reason for charging people differently.
Take a look at this interesting blog post by J.C. Bradbury, author of ‘The Baseball Economist’.
©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
Jane Francis is available as a coach, speaker and workshop leader to help sales teams and companies pitch and present their price with creativity and confidence.
Tuesday, April 06, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Price Yourself Right and Freelancing
Following on from my last post about being a commodity, here is a nice article by marketing guru, Seth Godin, on why a freelancer should aim to be more than a commodity in the eyes of their clients.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Price Yourself Right: Are you a commodity?
"There will never be another YOU. Be you!"
"You are unique", is the message of many self-help books BUT in the marketplace you are a tool, a solution, a product, call yourself what you will but rarely are you eligible to be paid for your uniqueness.
There will nearly always be another plumber, accountant, doctor or fitness trainer you can go to. She may not be your preferred supplier, Deirdre Dare To Be Different Dumbell, but that other person can still fix your problem.
How special are you really?
The only time you are not a commodity is when it is only you who can do what you do, and will be valued for that uniqueness. (Like in your role as a mother, brother, husband, daughter, friend etc).
Unless you wield the brand franchise power of J K Rowling, Miley Cyrus, Venus and Serena Williams, Hugh Grant (who according to the May 2003 issue of Vanity Fair commanded a $3 million fee for a ‘barely’ 20 minute speech to a conference meeting of thoracic surgeons) you are, in the marketplace of life, a solution-provider. You are in other words, a commodity... humbling, isn’t it?
©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
"You are unique", is the message of many self-help books BUT in the marketplace you are a tool, a solution, a product, call yourself what you will but rarely are you eligible to be paid for your uniqueness.
There will nearly always be another plumber, accountant, doctor or fitness trainer you can go to. She may not be your preferred supplier, Deirdre Dare To Be Different Dumbell, but that other person can still fix your problem.
How special are you really?
The only time you are not a commodity is when it is only you who can do what you do, and will be valued for that uniqueness. (Like in your role as a mother, brother, husband, daughter, friend etc).
Unless you wield the brand franchise power of J K Rowling, Miley Cyrus, Venus and Serena Williams, Hugh Grant (who according to the May 2003 issue of Vanity Fair commanded a $3 million fee for a ‘barely’ 20 minute speech to a conference meeting of thoracic surgeons) you are, in the marketplace of life, a solution-provider. You are in other words, a commodity... humbling, isn’t it?
©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
Price Yourself Right and desperation
What is the best advice you have received from a book?
I read a lot, and always have, but just the other day I was thinking about which books have actually changed my life?
One book in particular stood out. I read it when I was in my early twenties when I was working for a pharmaceutical company where I (along with the rest of the all female sales team) was being harassed by a male sales manager who offered to share expenses by sharing the same room. It was my first ‘real job’ and I got a company car (yeeha!) But I was vulnerable, I didn’t want to quit but I hated the impossible situation of going on away trips with that creep…. Anyway, back to the book: What they don’t teach you at Harvard Business School by Mark McCormack. The single most major piece of advice I took from that book was start saving some ‘Go Jump’ money so that you don’t need to worry about staying on in order to get a good reference and so you can quit any time you like.
In business and in life you never want to be desperate for the money. There have been many times in my life when I have been grateful for the ‘Go Jump’ advice.
Not many books inspire people to take action but this was one that did it for me. Of all the books you have read which ones introduced you to an idea that was so profound that it changed your life in some way?
Life changing books are a good investment, ne c’est pas?
If you wish to copy this article please include this acknowledgement: ©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
I read a lot, and always have, but just the other day I was thinking about which books have actually changed my life?
One book in particular stood out. I read it when I was in my early twenties when I was working for a pharmaceutical company where I (along with the rest of the all female sales team) was being harassed by a male sales manager who offered to share expenses by sharing the same room. It was my first ‘real job’ and I got a company car (yeeha!) But I was vulnerable, I didn’t want to quit but I hated the impossible situation of going on away trips with that creep…. Anyway, back to the book: What they don’t teach you at Harvard Business School by Mark McCormack. The single most major piece of advice I took from that book was start saving some ‘Go Jump’ money so that you don’t need to worry about staying on in order to get a good reference and so you can quit any time you like.
In business and in life you never want to be desperate for the money. There have been many times in my life when I have been grateful for the ‘Go Jump’ advice.
Not many books inspire people to take action but this was one that did it for me. Of all the books you have read which ones introduced you to an idea that was so profound that it changed your life in some way?
Life changing books are a good investment, ne c’est pas?
If you wish to copy this article please include this acknowledgement: ©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
A short story with a moral
We bought some outdoor timber and canvas chairs several years ago. They came with a lifelong guarantee – a very generous guarantee and not very practical too, we thought, wondering how this would work out.
A few years went by and we took the occasional broken limbed chair in to be repaired – each time at no charge. Wonderful! Until January this year when, even before I got the chair out of the car, I could tell the business had changed ownership.
I was left in no doubt when, hands on hips, I was greeted by stony-faced Viking Matriarch, Olga. ‘That vil cost $60’, she said, ‘Ve will ving ven it is done’. ‘Ok,’ I said, leaving the chair with them.
Although I wasn’t bothered about the $60, and had tacitly agreed to pay by virtue of leaving the chair there under those terms, I decided that when I returned to pick up the chair I would mention the lifetime guarantee – just out of curiosity. (Research purposes, you understand!).
‘You know when we bought these chairs we were promised a lifetime warranty.’ I handed her my credit card.
‘You can’t have veen,’ she barked, stiffening her shoulders and snarling like a Doberman snapping at the end of a steel chain leash.
I stood stock still just in case she leapt for my throat!‘Don’t worry,’ I replied, ‘I said I would pay... How long have you owned the business?’
‘A few months,’ she sawed my card though the machine, ‘PIN or signature? The chairs only had a 5 year varranty. Those chairs are at least 10 years old.’
…. It was a beautiful summer’s day. I couldn’t have cared less about the $60, I just wanted my chair repaired. A person has got to earn a living, I get that. But talk about sensitive! I’d lay a bet I’m not the first person who’s gone in there with a broken chair and a ‘lifetime’ warranty.
I doubt this business will survive under its new owners. Who wants to do business with Olga? Not me. No thanks!
Faults in body language aside, Olga was unable to open a discussion about price, and unable to soften the news that now I would have to pay. Olga feared her customer was going to get something for nothing and leapt to the defensive... Her attitude towards the customer was as foe rather than friend, and she was unable to calm her instincts from that of going into battle to one of colluding with a satisfied customer.
The moral of the story: 1) Don’t promise things your business can’t honor and 2) don’t be defensive about the way you do business. Learn how to be confident and relaxed when discussing your price.
P.S. Actually our chairs are seven years old. But who am I, the customer, to know that?
P.P.S. If you would like some coaching around handling your price discussions please refer to www.priceyourselfright.com
If you wish to copy this article please include this acknowledgement: ©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
A few years went by and we took the occasional broken limbed chair in to be repaired – each time at no charge. Wonderful! Until January this year when, even before I got the chair out of the car, I could tell the business had changed ownership.
I was left in no doubt when, hands on hips, I was greeted by stony-faced Viking Matriarch, Olga. ‘That vil cost $60’, she said, ‘Ve will ving ven it is done’. ‘Ok,’ I said, leaving the chair with them.
Although I wasn’t bothered about the $60, and had tacitly agreed to pay by virtue of leaving the chair there under those terms, I decided that when I returned to pick up the chair I would mention the lifetime guarantee – just out of curiosity. (Research purposes, you understand!).
‘You know when we bought these chairs we were promised a lifetime warranty.’ I handed her my credit card.
‘You can’t have veen,’ she barked, stiffening her shoulders and snarling like a Doberman snapping at the end of a steel chain leash.
I stood stock still just in case she leapt for my throat!‘Don’t worry,’ I replied, ‘I said I would pay... How long have you owned the business?’
‘A few months,’ she sawed my card though the machine, ‘PIN or signature? The chairs only had a 5 year varranty. Those chairs are at least 10 years old.’
…. It was a beautiful summer’s day. I couldn’t have cared less about the $60, I just wanted my chair repaired. A person has got to earn a living, I get that. But talk about sensitive! I’d lay a bet I’m not the first person who’s gone in there with a broken chair and a ‘lifetime’ warranty.
I doubt this business will survive under its new owners. Who wants to do business with Olga? Not me. No thanks!
Faults in body language aside, Olga was unable to open a discussion about price, and unable to soften the news that now I would have to pay. Olga feared her customer was going to get something for nothing and leapt to the defensive... Her attitude towards the customer was as foe rather than friend, and she was unable to calm her instincts from that of going into battle to one of colluding with a satisfied customer.
The moral of the story: 1) Don’t promise things your business can’t honor and 2) don’t be defensive about the way you do business. Learn how to be confident and relaxed when discussing your price.
P.S. Actually our chairs are seven years old. But who am I, the customer, to know that?
P.P.S. If you would like some coaching around handling your price discussions please refer to www.priceyourselfright.com
If you wish to copy this article please include this acknowledgement: ©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Is it really your price customers are not buying in 2010?
Many a sales manager or business owner has been frustrated by how their own sales people have difficulty selling the 'listed' price. The weak sales person often attributes price as the number one reason why a customer doesn't buy. And why is that?
Often it's because the price was the last thing mentioned, after which the customer simply says "it's too dear", "I can't afford it", "I have to check my bank balance"... whatever. To that sales person it looks like cause and effect - mention price and the customer does a runner but in actual fact the REAL reason the customer is now beating a path to the door is because:
* They want to check out the marketplace (Now they've heard your spiel and got the low-down on price they want to see how it compares with others)
* They already know about a competitive product or service and believe it is better suited to them
* They were only toying with the idea of purchasing anyway
Whatever... To the amateur sales person it may seem as though it was all smiles until the price was mentioned, leading the unfortunate sales person to think that it all boils down to price - but it ain't necessarily so.
The real reason the customer doesn't buy is because he/she is not convinced you have the right product/service for them at this time... You have failed to convince them that what you offer is perfectly suited to them... You have failed to convince them that what you are selling is a 'must-have'... You have failed to convince them that your gadget/service will solve all their problems in the best way possible AND you have failed to convince them of the value your product/service represents to them.
In other words your sales spiel missed the mark. Did you customise your spiel to the customer you have in front of you? Did you find out what was important to them, and the context of their enquiry i.e. how long had they been looking, what else had they considered, what kind of budget did they have in mind, when were they planning on making a purchase, and why was that time important to them?
If you wish to copy this article please include this acknowledgement: ©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
Often it's because the price was the last thing mentioned, after which the customer simply says "it's too dear", "I can't afford it", "I have to check my bank balance"... whatever. To that sales person it looks like cause and effect - mention price and the customer does a runner but in actual fact the REAL reason the customer is now beating a path to the door is because:
* They want to check out the marketplace (Now they've heard your spiel and got the low-down on price they want to see how it compares with others)
* They already know about a competitive product or service and believe it is better suited to them
* They were only toying with the idea of purchasing anyway
Whatever... To the amateur sales person it may seem as though it was all smiles until the price was mentioned, leading the unfortunate sales person to think that it all boils down to price - but it ain't necessarily so.
The real reason the customer doesn't buy is because he/she is not convinced you have the right product/service for them at this time... You have failed to convince them that what you offer is perfectly suited to them... You have failed to convince them that what you are selling is a 'must-have'... You have failed to convince them that your gadget/service will solve all their problems in the best way possible AND you have failed to convince them of the value your product/service represents to them.
In other words your sales spiel missed the mark. Did you customise your spiel to the customer you have in front of you? Did you find out what was important to them, and the context of their enquiry i.e. how long had they been looking, what else had they considered, what kind of budget did they have in mind, when were they planning on making a purchase, and why was that time important to them?
If you wish to copy this article please include this acknowledgement: ©2010 Jane Francis is the author of Price Yourself Right: A guide to charging what you are worth (ISBN: 0-595-38601-6) available at Barnes and Noble (USA), WH Smith (UK) or online at amazon.com or amazon.co.uk
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