I was having this conversation with a client and was inspired to share a bit with you about this idea of determining value. As a service provider of sorts it can sometimes become challenging to put a “price tag” or value on a service that you are providing.
Do you agree?
You know, its really easy to get caught up in looking at what others are charging for a similar service, looking at your “competitors”, thinking logically about how much time they get of you and how much money you want to make and all that jazz.
And it totally makes sense to look at all of those things.
There is of course a caveat as well that you may want to consider, and this is the gist of what we were talking about, well, actually, its three things.
1 – your personal experience (which is why BTW that there really is no such thing as competition because nobody is you, you have unique experiences and a unique way that you deliver what you deliver). You learn through trial and error and bring your own experiences into the mix with your clients and the programs that you create.
2 – your personal investment in learning and becoming, meaning, let’s say that you can nail down what someone’s business model and strategy is as well as who their ideal client is in minutes, that’s one of my gifts too. Do you know why you can nail it down in minutes after talking to them? Part of it is likely because of all the ways that you have invested in yourself to get to this place. You have invested in learning what works, what doesn’t work, you understand the marketplace, you understand business models, you understand strategy. You likely also learned through doing your own work on yourself, as in your own personal development work, to understand what makes people tick, what makes you tick, understanding blindspots etc.
3 – what is the transformation the solution will provide if the client has skin in the game? you see sometimes you can end up pricing your offer too low, out of fear or out of wanting to be of service and it back fires because the client needs to actually do the work to get the result. This is especially true for the inside work.
Often times it is really easy for you to forget that part of the equation of determining the value is considering all of the above.
The majority of the clients that I work with, have literally invested tens of thousands and sometimes well over a hundred thousand in personal development alone, I know I personally have and that has value in it and you “should” be getting paid for it and it “should” come into the equation of pricing your products and services. The investments you make in yourself, and the “mistakes” you make save your clients time, money, energy and resources because they do NOT have to make those “mistakes” like you did.
I have seen it time and time again, your intentions are in the “right” place wanting to help, so you put together a low price offer in the hopes that you will be able to help the folks that need you.
However, it can backfire because either the right people do not end up investing because they do not see the value for the low price point and the folks that do invest end up not doing the work because they do not see the value in it or they do but their ego gets in the way, they don’t have enough skin in the game and they don’t do the work, they don’t get the result and then you end up not helping the very people you wanted to help by making the price point accessible.
You have to trust that the folks that are meant to work with you are willing to work with you at the investment you want to receive, not what you think you can get them to invest if that makes sense. And please, consider the above as part of the value that you add to the equation of creating your offers and accessing the value you deliver 🙂
Love and blessings,
xox, Kim
hey, I’m Kim + I am ridiculously passionate about helping you to work smarter and not harder + to realize how freaking amazing you actually are, exactly as you are and how easy business really can be when you are in alignment + simplify + add systems to organize your business + plan your business growth. I’ve been geeking out about online business, online marketing + systems + personal development + all that stuff since I created my first business back in 2006 + sold it.
This whole business owner thing is not for the faint of heart, there is a reason why most businesses fail!
While the road to burnout doesn’t look the same for everyone on it there are some similarities you typically experience on this path!
- You’re always in the weeds of your business
- You don’t have efficient systems and processes (or maybe none at all)
- You aren’t delegating effectively
- You can’t take time off
- You’re trying to do too many things at once + wearing all the hats
It’s exhausting just thinking about it! But there’s a way off the hamster wheel!
If you’re overwhelmed, overworked, stressed out, and worried that if you take time off the bottom will fall out from beneath you and your business will fall apart.
Then, you are in the right place my friend, been there, done that, got the tee-shirt and I’d love to support you in ending the cycle!
