Since I post content about raising prices, I’m buried under the low-effort “gotcha” comments like “But what about competition, why can’t the client just find someone cheaper”.
The answer is a single word: leverage.
That may seem like a daunting thing to achieve when you are just a solo player facing off big or huge clients, and it seems like they have all of the possible leverage on their side.
Firstly, the BATNA principle applies, and if their pain is big and urgent enough, they will be willing to compromise.
But completely apart from that, and requiring no direct conflict, are the two components of leverage you can have over your client: trust and confidence they have in your skill.
It’s simply convenient and downright comfortable to solve tough problems that require outside expertise with someone you already trust – and clients are willing to pay more in order to avoid the “stick” of having to be vulnerable for a stranger.
Confidence in your expertise is the “carrot” part of leverage, as clients pay to use your level of confidence in solving a difficult problem, instead of their own.
This is why it’s important for potential clients to hear about or consume some of your advice before you ever start working for them: the more they trust you and count on your problem-solving, and change-making prowess, the more leverage you will have on them once the negotiation starts.