Avoid Being Overworked and Underpaid. Focus On The Vision, Not The Cost.

I often speak with business owners in the services, coaching or consulting space who are astounded when I tell them that some of our clients are charging $5k - $10k per client, per month for their services - it doesn't take having loads of clients investing these kinds of rates to be venture deep into 7 or even 8 figures per year - we see this regularly.

Leading a marketing company that is deeply involved in the service, consulting and coaching world - I'm seeing a divide between premium, high-quality service providers and low-ticket volume-focused service providers. When speaking to the latter, they are in disbelief that people or businesses would pay 6 or 7 figures per year for services.

This is a problem because if your goal is to sustainably grow your revenue, you cannot build a service business based on high volume and low cost - trust me it's not a fun business model. It means you may be failing to see the value and ROI that your service provides. You also run the risk of taking on too many clients, for low fees and burning yourself out or not being able to deliver sufficiently due to capacity issues. Finally, when you compete on price, you have ultimately commoditized your business in what is now a race to the bottom - you are forced to cut corners, you don't make the revenue you deserve and your client doesn't get results - it's a lose/lose.

So based on this logic, premium service providers charging premium prices are entering a win/win situation where they're fairly compensated for their work and clients receive huge value because of this. I believe this is what creates a successful service business. One that stands the test of time.

Getting tactical, it does take skill and a mindset shift to enter the world of premium service, and premium price.

A lot of service business owners are caught in a trap in this respect. Instead of focusing on the vision that potential clients have, they focus instead on what they THINK potential clients can afford, and then they design a service around that. This automatically steers the conversation quickly to cost and away from value. I've said this so many times, but I will repeat myself. As business owners, we're the head salesperson for our company. And effective salespeople need to focus on value, not price to be successful and help others.

When you truly believe, deep down, that you are giving crazy amounts of value through your services. When you understand your target market, what makes them tick and what they want to achieve along with how you will help them achieve it, cost becomes almost irrelevant. When people want something badly, they will get resourceful about making it happen.

If you can help them reach that vision, that's what matters most. Focus on what you can do for them. Price is merely a formality when the value you're offering is high enough and you convey that effectively, yes price needs to be talked about but it's not the focal point.

This doesn't mean you should shy away from talking about the price of your services, in fact, I recommend tackling the payment issue fairly early on and assertively - know your value. On the same coin, it shouldn't be a big deal - because what you have to offer far exceeds in value the price of it (if you're doing things right!). Don't dwell on price, and never assume you will be too expensive because visionary business people are willing to invest in their goals.

Think about it, if you're working with a CEO of a $1 million dollar company, and through your support that CEO goes from $1 million to $2 million, $100k is really no big deal for them. In fact, they are getting a 10x ROI. Not to mention the impact they're making on their people, the economy, their clients, families etc. Yet a high proportion of service providers working with small business CEOs shy away from pricing themselves this high because they're too wrapped up in the cost and not focusing on the value and possibility they can unlock for their clients. By dwelling on costs themselves, they limit their ability to really add value and open up possibilities for their clients. They also limit their ability to create a thriving business that doesn't cause them to be overworked and underpaid.

Switch your focus to the vision and away from the cost. I dare you.?