Carlos and Ben wrap up their Happy Pricing podcast series with a look back on what they’ve learned, and take a moment to think about what’s next. Links Join the Happy Pricing course Listen to Peripheral Thinking , Ben’s podcast Listen to the Happy Entrepreneur podcast , co-hosted by Carlos
What's the first thing you do when a potential customer tells you that they don't want to work with you? Run and hide? Here's how it went… You've had a great conversation. You've explained to them what you do and how experienced you are. They nodded and smiled and listened to everything you said. They even asked some questions. They then asked you to send them a proposal and a price. You do that. And then tumbleweed. A couple of days later you follow up with an email, and a couple of days after ...
When you’re working for yourself or running a small business, navigating challenging times can feel like being a little boat on choppy seas. Your job is to keep the boat float until calmer waters come. You're feeling nauseous from the continues ups and downs of the waves and at the same time you’re trying to scrabble around grabbing ropes trying to steady the sail and keep on course. That's a lot to deal with on your own. So what can you do? For Ben, these three quotes helped: "A whole and rich ...
How would you sell and price an immersive retreat experience for people in the corporate world? What would we need to do to be confident and clear about the value and the cost? There have been similar discussions within the Happy Startup community about pricing services for corporate clients. In this episode, bioinspired business consultant Lucy (of Work Wild ) joins Carlos and Ben to discuss pricing experiences in nature for teams of varying sizes, from small charities to large corporates. Link...
Carlos was watching a webinar from the "6 figure side hustle" people when he heard them talk about some really interesting pricing principles. "People aren't logical. They're psychological." And so there are simple things you can do that can help you increase your prices. Whilst it may seem like manipulation, it's also about believing in the value you create – and making sure your customers believe in it too. On this episode, Ben and Carlos discuss options and ordering, framing, and 10xing your ...
Alexlouise is a money success coach and author of Rock Solid Money Maker. She joins Carlos and Ben to talk about financial freedom. They cover what it means for her and what she believes you need to think and do to achieve it. Links Join the Happy Pricing course Join the conversation live
Ben and Carlos reflect on the pricing of the Do Lectures’ latest course, the Secrets of Small Magical Events – a course to help you run events that benefit your business rather than burn you out. For over 15 years, David and his team at the Do Lectures have iterated towards a model for an events business that works for them, and now they’re sharing it with others. Both Laurence and Carlos were curious about this course, as this they hosted their own small “magical” event, the Happy Startup Summe...
Recently one of the Happy Startup community members approached Carlos with a challenging situation. They are owed several thousands of pounds for work they’d done for their client but the client said they were unable to pay the whole amount in one go. While they’ve offered to pay in a set of 3 monthly instalments, the community member is feeling nervous about that proposal – they’re worried they won’t get paid the full amount. However, they were nearly going accept this offer but caught themselv...
Tom Nixon is a coach who helps founders create purpose-driven companies. He's also the founder of Maptio, an online tool that helps fast-changing organisations visually map how their teams are organised and evolve. And he's the author of Work With Source , a modern guide to business building. And he's also a money geek. He sells coaching services, and he sells a software product. On today's episode, he shares his pricing approach to both. Links Tom’s website Maptio Work With Source Join the Happ...
If you’re a coach, consultant or agency one way to be able to guarantee some steady income is to work on a retainer basis. But what does that mean from the client’s perspective? How do you generate the commitment from clients to engage in a longer relationship, particularly if the work you do can be responsive and emergent? How do you set the boundaries and expectations for the work? And how do you come to am acceptable price for the monthly retainer? This blog post by Tom Nixon is a helpful way...
In November Matthew Matheson is hosting a retreat to help people re-connect with their authentic selves.It 's an idea that he developed during his time on the Vision 20/20 program. Carlos and Ben talk with Matthew about the process he's been going through to price the retreat and see if they can help him get clearer about what that price could be. Links Join the Happy Pricing course Join the conversation live Matthew’s retreat...
Ben and Carlos try to interpret an email from Seth Godin to see how it relates to pricing and selling. How do we help our customers make a decision (to buy from us)? And how do we do that with integrity and not feel slimy? It can feel like we’re manipulating their ability to choose but we may also be helping them make the best decision. Which side of the fence are you sitting? Master manipulator or benevolent guide? Links Join the Happy Pricing course Join the conversation live...
Proposal shouldn't contain any surprises – particularly not the price.The role of a proposal is to replay everything you've already spoken to your client about. In the previous episode, Carlos and Ben were joined by Hazel Martin, an executive and personal coach, who had a question about proposals and prices. She'd already had a couple of calls with the client and sent them a proposal. Her third call was coming up and she knew that they'd want to negotiate on price. She was thinking that maybe sh...
Beccie D'Cuhna is the founder of CourageLab and empowers leaders and teams to have courageous conversations, through mediation, training and coaching. She took part in our first Happy Pricing course and says her business is now looking very different these days to the extent that she believes she's now pricing by value not time. She talks with Carlos and Ben about how she's got to this point and what she needed to learn or unlearn. Links Join the Happy Pricing course Join the conversation live...
Jim Ralley helps with the design and strategy of learning experiences for NGOs, governments and corporate clients. Last year he tried to find the right balance between work, parenting and time for himself… and failed. This year will be different. He has a solid plan. He has the support of his family, colleagues, and clients and a strong desire not to get into that situation again. He says that "to be a good parent and partner, I have to find work that doesn't exhaust me, and that I don't mentall...
What’s the value of a personal brand? When building your reputation, what would this reputation do for you? What financial value does it have? What’s it worth to get on the radar of the people that you’d love to collaborate with? How much time and effort should you invest in building your personal brand? You could write a book to build a personal brand, and so what are the costs of writing it? What are the benefits in terms of royalties? What are the benefits in terms of it being a marketing veh...
If you want to increase your prices, it has to start with an understanding of your value. Not just the mechanical tasks you perform, but the trust, familiarity, and unique value you bring to your clients. This can lead to a dramatic increase in price, which gets closer to reflecting the true value of the service provided. Mark Steadman is a podcast consultant who works with individuals contemplating their “second mountain”. He helps people use their voice to achieve change, as he believes the vo...
Being polarising in your pricing and your offering is way more impactful than trying to appeal to the masses. But it means being clear about who you want to work with and focusing tightly on them. This not only helps attract the right customers who’ll find value in your offerings, but it saves your time and theirs, by allowing those who aren’t a good fit to self-select themselves out of the process early on. In this episode, Carlos and Ben explore how having a clear, distinct stance can help fin...
Changing the way you present your product can greatly affect how people see its value and price. When you’re faced with a sticky patch, lowering prices or costs might not be the right thing to do. So instead, what might happen if you took those constraints and reframed the experience for the customer? In this episode, Carlos and Ben discuss the importance of creativity and perception in selling products and services, using the example of a restaurant owner. They explore how changing the presenta...
Pricing expertise is not determined by traditional models. It’s about understanding the value and aligning incentives with the customer. By challenging conventional pricing logic and considering factors like value and skin-in-the-game, you can better convey the true worth of your products or services. This week's guests are Claus Raasted and Filip Fučić. Claus is an “overpaid rockstar consultant” who specialises in areas like innovation, change management, leadership, public speaking, and market...
Pricing is not just about setting a number, but understanding the value that your product or service brings to your customers. It's about considering the problem you solve and the positive change you can create for your clients. Pricing should be based on a deep understanding of your target audience and what they are willing to pay for the value you provide. We need to overcome the stories and discomfort that can hold us back from pricing our offerings appropriately. By connecting to our motivat...
When we approach pricing without research or strategy, we end up with uncertainty, ineffective communication, and demonstrating a lack of understanding our customers’ needs. We need an outside-in approach that starts with researching the value customers get from our product or service. By focusing on the customer and their needs, we can develop a pricing strategy that is clear, confident, and effectively communicated. This week, Carlos and Ben discuss a blog post on the perceived mistakes Elon M...
If you raise an invoice for a client and then apologise for the amount, this creates uncertainty and can even damage your business. To avoid this, we need to shift our perspective and approach pricing with confidence. We do this by understanding our own stories about money, remembering the subjectivity of it, and creating a sense of certainty around what we’re delivering. The more we apologise for our prices, the more we project our own stories about value and create unnecessary doubt and discom...
Many of us can end up feeling like a commodity, just like everyone else in our industry. But by understanding our unique story, experiences, and values, we can differentiate ourselves and stand out from the crowd. In this episode, Carlos and Ben discuss delving into our own stories of change, and communicating it clearly and effectively to our audience. Undifferentiated businesses just become another name in a sea of competitors. They get overlooked because people can’t see anything special or d...
Our personality has a significant impact on how we approach pricing and value. According to the Enneagram, each personality type brings its own unique perspective and challenges when it comes to setting prices for our products or services. Understanding our own Enneagram type and the tendencies that come with it can help us navigate pricing challenges with more ease. It allows us to recognise any apologies or resistance we may have towards pricing and find ways to align our worth with fair excha...
Having mature conversations around money can be tricky and uncomfortable, and can lead to ineffective communication and missed opportunities. We need to approach money conversations with an open mind and a willingness to understand different perspectives. This starts with separating personal emotions from the conversation and focusing on the client's needs and the value you bring. Avoiding money conversations can lead to misunderstandings, missed opportunities, and a lack of clarity in pricing a...
You're about to draft a proposal, and you're wondering whether it will convince the client. Have you included everything necessary? You've poured hours into creating detailed, lengthy proposals in the past, only to face rejection. You've tried mirroring successful proposals from others, but the results are disappointing. In this episode, Carlos and Ben explore the pitfalls of overcomplicating proposals and how simplicity can be your greatest asset. They uncover why proposals aren't the heavy lif...
Many of us struggle with discomfort and negative emotions when discussing money and setting prices for our work. But by understanding and addressing our underlying money stories and beliefs, we can have more positive and confident conversations about money and pricing. If we don't address our money stories and the emotions they bring up, we may continue to struggle with setting fair prices, feeling confident in our worth, and having effective conversations about money. This can hinder our abilit...
Pricing an event that brings about life-changing experiences is complex and subjective. We need to consider the transformative value and outcomes of the event we’re creating, as well as the emotional commitment and investment participants are making in themselves. The price of a product with an emergent outcome should reflect the unique nature of the experience and the story behind it, rather than simply focusing on content or financial returns. It means reducing the uncertainty for potential pa...
In times of economic uncertainty, we need to have open, constructive, and compassionate conversations with clients and prospects. Understanding their worries and fears, and providing reassurance and clarity can help build trust and create value in the relationship. By focusing on the basics – like understanding clients' motivations and needs – and continuously improving our own skills and practices, we can navigate through difficult times and continue to be valuable and useful in our work. Links...
