The Desert of Arizona
Sunny 40 Degrees
In less than 5 days, you’re going to be able to double the fees you charge
for your services. First, I want you to think about why you are currently charging the fees you’re charging. [I’ll give you a minute to think… Do this… really, it’s important.]
Ready? OK… now most likely, all of the reasons you came up with are total B.S. They are lies you either told yourself or lies you believed from someone else. “That’s what everyone charges… my clients won’t pay more… I don’t think I’m worth more… No one’s going to pay that much for X…”
ALL OF THOSE ARE TOTAL B.S.
If you want to believe them, fine… but if you’re ready to give all that up
for the truth, then keep reading.
There are 4.5 steps you need to take to get this done. You can tackle one per day. Let each really sink in before you move on. Or, if you’re like me, you can just swallow the whole enchilada in one piece and get on with things.
Here are the 4.5 steps:
STEP 1: PUT ON YOUR OWN COSTUME – You know that feeling when you show up to a party and you’re wearing the exact same clothes as someone else? Kind of makes you feel dumb. Well that’s how most service providers go out into the world. All of the designers wear the same costume. All of the writers wear the same costume. YOU NEED YOUR OWN COSTUME. How is what you do and the way you do it unique in a way that’s valuable to your client? Get that answer and start talking about it.
STEP 2: BREAK FREE BY NO LONGER CHARGING FOR WHAT YOU
DO, START CHARGING FOR WHAT THEY GET – This is key. If you think about money the same way every other service provider does, you will get the same thing every other service provider gets. Most service providers charge for the service
they provide. They pay little to no attention to the value of what their client
gets because of the service they provide. Ask yourself, “Just how
valuable is the product of my work to my client’s business and life?” Clients will pay for value (a result), but there’s a limit to what they’ll pay for a “service.” Don’t charge for the service, charge for the result.
STEP 3: EMBRACE REJECTION – Your goal is not to sell the client. Your goal is to find the client who already wants what you’re selling. Few service providers have a “rate” problem. Instead, that’s only a symptom of too few leads coming in the door. Getting a NO doesn’t mean you lower your rates. Getting a NO means you find better prospects.
STEP 4: GO IN WITHOUT NEED (aka ALWAYS BE WILLING TO WALK AWAY) – The quickest way to double your fees is to stop “needing” the business to close. This is a feeling you practice and has little to do with your circumstances. You can have this feeling even if your electric is about to get shut off. Clients can “smell” a needy service provider. It’s not attractive. Practice generating this feeling on demand in your solar plexus region. This is where fear lives. This is where neediness lives. You are in control of this feeling. Practice it.
STEP 4.5: JUST DO IT – Raise your rates. This isn’t rocket science, it’s about believing in yourself enough to ask the world for what you want. PERIOD.