Does it ever feel like your prospective clients are all talk and no action? You’ve revamped your messaging, content and copy to resonate with the right folks. You’ve validated that what you have to offer is both needed and super valuable. But you’re still struggling to get potential clients to commit to your higher-investment service. Because you know your work is worth the amount you want to charge for it, you'll be damned if you adjust down the price by even one cent. Still, after hearing “I can't afford this” time after time after time, you're starting to wonder what in the actual hell could still be missing. When folks get excited about working with you, but then balk at the price, it means what you're offering isn't aligned with their current priorities. That makes it hard for them to justify the investment. In other words, they may value what you do and be dying to work with you. But they won't commit, because you haven’t addressed what they need the most right now. To be fair, this isn't always an easy thing to figure out. People know what they want, but they don’t always realize what they need (so good luck getting them to articulate it to you). The good news? Overcoming this roadblock and getting potential clients to commit comes down to changing the way you present your offer to make the investment a no-brainer. Focus on selling an immediate winUnlike knowing what potential clients really need right now, the immediate wins in what you offer are not a tough thing to figure out. These can be found right in your core process. That is, your end-to-end approach to delivering the desired outcome your ideal client is looking for. Let's say, for example, you're an interior designer who helps busy consultants create the perfect home office. Your ideal client wants a completely custom solution that reflects their personal style and aesthetic. And, short of approving the overall design concept, they don't really want to have to be too involved in the project (they're busy enough with their own work). So your process to give them precisely what they want might look something like this:
Your offer—let’s call it the “Done-For-You Home Office” package—is the perfect, end-all solution that covers everything your potential client would need to have a completely functional workspace in an insanely reasonable time frame. There’s even a super-flexible payment option to make the total cost easier to digest. Yet they still balk at your pricing, saying it's too much to take on right now. But that isn’t really true. The truth is they can't see the immediate win that would make it easy to spend the money at this point. So let's look back at your process and see where you could lower the barrier to entry: Steps 1 and 2 cover the groundwork of your project—capturing preferences and requirements and coming up with the perfect design solution. It’s obvious that these steps are essential, because you’d be flying blind without them. But consider what else comes out of this part of your process … by understanding their preferences and requirements, you can also help them see the incredible things that will be possible for their new workspace space and the work they'll do in it. It seems simple, but it’ll be a complete game-changer for your client. Rather than just imagining themselves using the space, they’ll now be able to see how much more creative and productive (and successful) their work will be because of it. That’s a win! Now, let’s look at how that affects what you’re offering: We’ll say your end-all package costs $10,400, a value that you’ve assigned based on the current market, real costs, a decent percentage for profit (‘cus you’re smart like that), as well as the level of expertise and energy you’re pouring into delivering a high-quality solution that’s precisely what your ideal client is looking for. If you’re dealing with an “I can’t afford it” situation, you can now redirect potential clients to a lower-commitment, entry-level service that’s focused on getting them in the door. Your entry-level offer could be the “Ultimate Productivity Workspace” package, which includes an assessment of their productivity goals, work style and aesthetic. It could feature a one-on-one design consult to get your hand-selected, expert recommendations for the perfect solution—shared via private Pinterest board. By focusing on the immediate win, you’re actually accomplishing a few things:
Your client’s heart will be set on experiencing “ultimate productivity” in their new workspace, with a custom-crafted plan for making it happen right at their fingertips. Suddenly, it'll no longer be a matter of affordability for them, but figuring out how soon they can kickoff the project and get into their awesome new workspace. Then, paying you to implement it will be a total no-brainer. Boom. "When your prospects won't commit to your big-ticket offer, make it a no-brainer for them to say yes." |
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