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There are a few things you need to get right to build a sustainable soloist business: positioning yourself in a tight niche, a compelling point of view and a well-priced array of services/products.
But there is one seemingly small element that can make all the difference when you’re struggling to make your revenue grow faster: alignment.
Alignment is when your stories, actions, visuals AND pricing all deliver a seamless message.
Say you have a deep, rich expertise—and you think you’ve found the right way to package it for your ideal clients and buyers.
But if you price it too low relative to the value of the transformation you’re promising, one of two things is happening:
Your ideal people check it out (maybe even ask for a sales call if they can’t determine price from your website), but quickly decide that your price is too low for your message to be believable. They exit, never to return.
Or, you attract exactly the wrong people: price buyers who are delighted, but never morph into ideal clients.
It’s hard to see this when you’re just trying to serve clients every day.
But there is one way to test if your prices are out of alignment: raise them.
The easiest test is with a productized service where you’re delivering a specific result for a flat price.
If you’re not selling (m)any at $25,000, try raising it to $35,000 or even $50,000 (this is assuming you’ve got a niche audience and aren’t trying to pitch yourself as a generalist).
Then leave it at that price long enough for it to constitute an actual test.
I get that this can feel counter-intuitive—and downright scary—raising prices on something that already isn’t selling well. Every instinct screams it’s time to discount your price.
But until you try it, you won’t know.
If you’re wrong, then you’ll miss out on a project or two with meh folks.
If you’re right, you’ll have some fabulous new clients and your revenue line will thank you…