How much is that item? How much is your time worth? What should you price that service at?
Pricing is a hot topic that continues to present itself when I am working with business owners.
A lot of times there are issues around pricing because the business owner has not priced their product or service correctly, they are not able to make the money in their business that they really want to make and/or they have fear talking about money. Often this fear comes up when it is time to discuss pricing and share their prices with their customers.
If you are one of those business owners who is fearful when you talk about money I want you to ask yourself, “What am I fearful of?”
Are you fearful of putting yourself out there?
Are you fearful that nobody is going to buy your product or service?
Are you fearful that you may fail?
Are you fearful that you are going to launch a course and you are going to hear crickets?
If any of the above sounds familiar to you it is time to check in with your thoughts and feelings. Those are valid fears to have and you are not the only business owner who is, or has, experienced those feelings. We allow the limited beliefs we have around pricing hold us back from reaching our business goals. It is time that you work on understanding WHY you are having those feelings and understand that you deserve to ask for the price that ensures you are fairly compensated and leaves you with a healthy profit margin.
Here are some of the factors you want to look at when determining your pricing:
- Overhead costs
- Cost of product/service
- Net profit you would like to be making
- Your salary/hourly fee to ensure YOU are paying yourself (something I see come up too many times is business owners not paying themselves!)
You need to ensure that you are looking at all of these factors when you sit down to decide how to price your products and services.
Stop setting your prices at the same price points as your competition. A lot of times your competition is probably having similar pricing issues that you are experiencing. They probably also have a lot of the same limited beliefs and fears around pricing that you may have. Yes, it is good to know what your competitors are pricing their services at but don’t set your prices and just forget them.
Cover your expenses. Pay yourself. Stop being afraid to ask for what you are really worth. Set a price that truly reflects what you are offering AND ensures you are looking at detailed numbers in your business with a careful eye.
Are you comfortable with your prices now? Maybe you are, which is great! But, when was the last time you increased your prices? You are an expert in your field. You have clients who are continually purchasing from you because they believe in your products/services. You continue to solve your target audiences problems again and again. So, are you increasing your prices to reflect that? Regularly evaluating your pricing should be a part of your business planning.
Set some time aside in your planner. I want you to evaluate your pricing every few months. I want you to have a successful year. I want you to be making the money you deserve to be making. A lot of times as wellness professionals we hold back. We think, “Oh, but I just really want to help them. I want to serve them and I want to make other people feel great about themselves.” You know what? That’s awesome. That’s fantastic. We love to hear that, and because of the profession we’re all in, we want to help people. We want to help people better their lives. But, my question to you is “Do you want to help people better their lives while not fairly compensating yourself?”
Are you really willing to allow your life, your family, your lifestyle to suffer and not be able to grow because you want to help others? I truly think there can be a win-win situation for everyone involved, so sit down, check out your products and services. What do you need to move forward within your business so you feel feel comfortable about your pricing and so you feel confident about how you are being compensated in your business in 2017?