Do you ever get in a panic over quoting your fees or presenting the cost of a project that is way more expensive than you have ever done before? Don’t worry, you are not alone in this feeling. It is a very common problem.
“Pricing Panic” has happened to all of us at one time or another. A little case of the nerves is not a problem, but when you are so terrified that you avoid talking about your fees, you begin to damage your business.
Sometimes the cost of project is so high that we sabotage our success by our inner voice telling us “Oh, this room costs more than my house. This is crazy, my client isn’t going to go for this.” So we diminish the job and charge less so we are more comfortable. Never mind that it was exactly what the client asked us for.
You do not have to be stuck here, as there are ways to solve this problem.
Here are three great tips to help you conquer a case of “Pricing Panic,” and learn how to present your fees and product pricing with grace and ease.
Tip #1 – Practice saying the “big number” out loud. Over and over again until you can say it with conviction and comfort. Practice while you are driving your car, while you are in the shower, anywhere you can you can speak out loud and people won’t think you are crazy.
Practice until you take your self seriously. Remember if you don’t take yourself seriously you can’t expect your clients to.
Tip #2 – Try to remember to keep your own values and history about money out of your client’s design job. Our clients are often very wealthy and their ideas of value and price may be very different from ours.
For example, just because we would never consider spending $400/ft for tile doesn’t mean that the client feels that way. If they are asking you for something special, exclusive and expensive, let them have it!
They will be happy with the purchase and you will be happy with the profit.
Tip #3 – When you are speaking to a potential client, emphasize the value of what you have to offer rather than the process that you use.
Take the time to understand the design challenge they are trying to solve. Remember, they would not have called you if they could fix it themselves, and understand that affluent people are used to spending money to fix a problem. When you become the valuable solution to resolving their problems, you become the hero.
Remember that the more you talk with your clients about the value you bring to a design job on a regular basis, the more you begin to realize what you are really worth.
To learn more ways to feel confident about quoting higher fees and big numbers in even bigger design projects be sure to be sure to SIGN UP HERE and be on my next FREE CALL Eight Money Magnet Secrets for Designers.