Despite the risk of “discount addiction”, the “stench of desperation”, appearing “suspiciously cheap” and all of the other very real traps that I usually write about, charging low prices can be good for you in some cases. No, I haven’t bumped my head, hear me out.
I’ve worked with a lot of designers, and one of the great things they taught me is that bad taste can be good taste if applied with skill, and good taste. Well, I think a similar thing can be applied to bad prices, which can be good prices if properly designed and thoroughly de-stigmatized.
There are a couple of rules here:
1) Equip them with a clear reason to be cheap – introductory rates, cover prices, bundles, etc.
2) Set clear conditions for when the price applies – timebox it, clamp down on the scope
3) Use other ways to express value offered despite the low price – frame it in a valuable context
4) Use them as a gateway to more elaborate services – pair them with next steps that cost more
I had a client raise their price 2,5x, then charged 1/3 of it up front, with the rest that only applies as commission if the client gets a dream result. His low price was vindicated by the pricing model, which demonstrated his high confidence in all going according to plan.**
IKEA is legendary for using self-assembly as a reason for de-stigmatizing lower prices.
Find yours, and charge as low as you like.
And if you don’t like that
You can always go the other way. Maja Puškarić, a LinkedIn expert and personal branding coach, and I talked about what happened when she increased a price 5x. Find out more about how and why that worked in the latest podcast episode of the “What I should have charged” series here:
YouTube link
Spotify link