Paul Jacobson

Pricing matyrdom

I have been working on the assumption that if I charge less for comparable services to larger firms clients will flock to me to take advantage of those lower fees.  While lower fees do make a difference, they don’t seem to be as big an attraction as I initially thought.  In fact it seems that the fees I charge are not as important as other factors like value received, certainty and quality of service.

I am beginning to wonder if my insistence on lower fees isn’t a little silly.  I have this image of myself standing at my lemonade stand with my low prices advertised on the stand watching potential clients drive into the local service station and pay more as they have always done.  Maybe if I charge a bit more there will be more perceived value in my services and the number of clients bringing me work will outnumber the clients who can’t afford the higher fee?

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4 responses to “Pricing matyrdom”

  1. Roy Blumenthal avatar
    Roy Blumenthal

    Hiya Paul…

    In my experience as a freelancer, the only time to charge lower fees than the competition is if you want to get bruised and hurt and abused by your client.

    This is not a function of the clients WANTING to abuse you. It’s a function of perceived and actual value.

    In my business (I’m an industrial theatre practitioner and facilitator) the client generally wants to know that he or she is in safe hands. There are huge repurcussions to getting an intervention wrong. I find that they will happily pay a premium price to get a brilliant intervention.

    I’m more expensive than the other people around doing what I do. But I generally get called first for gigs. I believe this is for three reasons: (1) I know my stuff. (2) I deliver. (3) I’m more expensive, and am partly perceived to be higher value.

    (Being more expensive is a pre-screening tool to ensure that I don’t attract loser-clients. Those who can afford to pay my price are people who have the necessary resources to successfully implement what I come up with. The reverse doesn’t ALWAYS hold. For instance, there are NGOs who have limited resources, who are NOT losers in the slightest. However, with paying clients who are in the business of making money, price should be a non-issue. Value should be the determining factor. (And value is NOT a price issue. It’s about measuring the deliverables and the outcome of achieving those deliverables.)

    Blue skies
    love
    Roy

    Reply
  2. Roy Blumenthal avatar
    Roy Blumenthal

    Hiya Paul…

    In my experience as a freelancer, the only time to charge lower fees than the competition is if you want to get bruised and hurt and abused by your client.

    This is not a function of the clients WANTING to abuse you. It’s a function of perceived and actual value.

    In my business (I’m an industrial theatre practitioner and facilitator) the client generally wants to know that he or she is in safe hands. There are huge repurcussions to getting an intervention wrong. I find that they will happily pay a premium price to get a brilliant intervention.

    I’m more expensive than the other people around doing what I do. But I generally get called first for gigs. I believe this is for three reasons: (1) I know my stuff. (2) I deliver. (3) I’m more expensive, and am partly perceived to be higher value.

    (Being more expensive is a pre-screening tool to ensure that I don’t attract loser-clients. Those who can afford to pay my price are people who have the necessary resources to successfully implement what I come up with. The reverse doesn’t ALWAYS hold. For instance, there are NGOs who have limited resources, who are NOT losers in the slightest. However, with paying clients who are in the business of making money, price should be a non-issue. Value should be the determining factor. (And value is NOT a price issue. It’s about measuring the deliverables and the outcome of achieving those deliverables.)

    Blue skies
    love
    Roy

    Reply
  3. Roy Blumenthal avatar
    Roy Blumenthal

    Hiya Paul…

    In my experience as a freelancer, the only time to charge lower fees than the competition is if you want to get bruised and hurt and abused by your client.

    This is not a function of the clients WANTING to abuse you. It’s a function of perceived and actual value.

    In my business (I’m an industrial theatre practitioner and facilitator) the client generally wants to know that he or she is in safe hands. There are huge repurcussions to getting an intervention wrong. I find that they will happily pay a premium price to get a brilliant intervention.

    I’m more expensive than the other people around doing what I do. But I generally get called first for gigs. I believe this is for three reasons: (1) I know my stuff. (2) I deliver. (3) I’m more expensive, and am partly perceived to be higher value.

    (Being more expensive is a pre-screening tool to ensure that I don’t attract loser-clients. Those who can afford to pay my price are people who have the necessary resources to successfully implement what I come up with. The reverse doesn’t ALWAYS hold. For instance, there are NGOs who have limited resources, who are NOT losers in the slightest. However, with paying clients who are in the business of making money, price should be a non-issue. Value should be the determining factor. (And value is NOT a price issue. It’s about measuring the deliverables and the outcome of achieving those deliverables.)

    Blue skies
    love
    Roy

    Reply
  4. Roy Blumenthal avatar
    Roy Blumenthal

    Hiya Paul…

    In my experience as a freelancer, the only time to charge lower fees than the competition is if you want to get bruised and hurt and abused by your client.

    This is not a function of the clients WANTING to abuse you. It's a function of perceived and actual value.

    In my business (I'm an industrial theatre practitioner and facilitator) the client generally wants to know that he or she is in safe hands. There are huge repurcussions to getting an intervention wrong. I find that they will happily pay a premium price to get a brilliant intervention.

    I'm more expensive than the other people around doing what I do. But I generally get called first for gigs. I believe this is for three reasons: (1) I know my stuff. (2) I deliver. (3) I'm more expensive, and am partly perceived to be higher value.

    (Being more expensive is a pre-screening tool to ensure that I don't attract loser-clients. Those who can afford to pay my price are people who have the necessary resources to successfully implement what I come up with. The reverse doesn't ALWAYS hold. For instance, there are NGOs who have limited resources, who are NOT losers in the slightest. However, with paying clients who are in the business of making money, price should be a non-issue. Value should be the determining factor. (And value is NOT a price issue. It's about measuring the deliverables and the outcome of achieving those deliverables.)

    Blue skies
    love
    Roy

    Reply

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