Do you ever feel like you should be charging your clients more money? Maybe you’ve wanted to raise your prices for a while but aren’t sure how to approach the subject or start the conversation.
It can be an uncomfortable topic for a lot of people and it’s a conversation I avoided for far too long. It can be quite frustrating because we know that we should be charging more, but there are lots of things stopping us. Maybe you are worried about the client going with someone cheaper, maybe you feel like they can’t afford the increase or maybe you just hate talking about money!
Whatever the reason is, if you don’t increase your prices, you will eventually start resenting your clients and the quality of work will slip.
I was having this discussion with a mentor a few years ago and he really helped me to shift my perspective. He told me to stop obsessing over what I thought my work was worth and find out what the client thought it was worth. All of a sudden, I realised I had no idea what my services were worth to the client!
The worst thing was, I didn’t really know how to find out. My mentor encouraged me to be open and inquisitive and let the client answer that question, rather than me telling them. So the next time I had a meeting with a client, I didn’t just tell them I was raising my prices. I took the time to understand what they really wanted to achieve and then I asked them what it would be worth if I could help them achieve that.
Initially, they weren’t quite sure how to respond, but it allowed us to open up the conversation around value and what my services were bringing to their business.
As a result, I ended up charging them almost three times as much as they were already paying me. The best thing was, they were the ones who suggested it! sounds crazy. So the next time you’re thinking about raising your prices, don’t be afraid to flip the question around and ask the client what it is worth to them. It takes the awkwardness away and allows you to open up a discussion around price.
