Pitching and Pricing - Questions to Ask Yourself

Is it me or is pricing the most difficult thing ever? I know many individuals who have non-negotiable rates and others for whom it is all pure negotiation. I probably land somewhere in the middle of this.

In an older episode of Colleagues Getting Coffee, Steve Reeve and I talk about “confidence” is the key to pricing. While off-camera with Jane Cooke, she says it is about how pricing “feels.” Pricing, in general, seems tricky and begs the questions…

Should it be confidence?
Should it be feeling?
Should it be self-worth?
Should it be logic and maths…

What is the key?

The only reason I was inspired to write this is that I was connected to an opportunity by a colleague and pitched for it. I put together my fee based on attendees, location, previous workshop prices, prep time etc. and fired it over. Now unbeknown to me, I was not pitching directly to the client but to a middleman who had secured the gig and needed extra resource.

The response was less than favourable as they quite bluntly shared their “shock” at my price. They also shared their expectation of what I should have quoted.

If I’m sincere, this made me feel incredibly insecure. Did I think I was better than I am? Was I outrageous? My little imposter syndrome monster came out to play for an hour or so, and I felt physically sick.

But thinking about it I have decided to give myself a break not a beating about this. I am perfectly capable of logically putting together my prices based on my time, investment and knowledge. I can look at my previous pricing to work out what I think would be fair to the client, depending on their needs and learning requirements.

So my questions to you for your pricing…

Consider your hourly rate and how this translates into a day rate. Are you happy with this figure? Are you prepared to lower your fee for a full day or maybe charge more by the hour?
If you are running workshops, again do you have a set fee or it is by attendees? If you break down your cost per attendee, will they get that cost worth of value or more? If you think it is more, charge more!
Do you have consistent pricing regardless of sector, size, status etc? Do you offer discounts for charities as an example?
Do you package your costs? This helps you move away from the Time for Money approach and allows you to build in time for research, amendments etc. It is better to quote and reduce the price later than quote and increase it. Packages are great for this.
Do you feel it is fair? Given the time, resource, knowledge and expertise you bring, does the price feel right to you? If yes, go for it, if not amend.

It all comes down to fairness for me. I think my pricing is pretty competitive, some competitors might think it is too low. But it has to just sit right with YOU. You can always ask other businesses their pricing too to get a feel for it.

Whatever you do, do it confidently!

Pitching and Pricing – Questions to Ask Yourself