A friend said to me a while ago that she wished she had my lifestyle – the freedom from the 9 to 5.
I said “then do it, start your own business.” Along with some fierce giggling, she retorted “what and earn what I earn?” (with the tone of – you’re a ridiculous person and that’s not possible Joelle – duhhhh!)
I replied “yes why not? And, if you do it right; You can double it, double it again, and make more money than you’ve ever imagined. Fancy a few zeros on your annual salary? Completely doable. What you earn annually right now, you could earn in a month…” Learning how to price your product or service properly can help you achieve this!
Cue open mouthed amazement and big-excitable-arm-flailing-conversations!
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How is this possible?
As an employee your income (and my friends) is capped. It doesn’t matter how long you work, there are only so many hours in the day. It doesn’t matter how many sales you make; you can only make so many in the hours available to you.
It’s the age old exchange of time for money.
The glass ceiling (as I like to refer to it) that we’re all desperately pressed against – we can see the other side – the dreams, aspirations, freedom – but we have no idea how to break through and get there.
You now understand that as an employee, no matter how hard you work, you’ll get the same outcome, the same wage, the same value. Which is great if you’re planning on spinning on your chair all day whiling away the hours.
But not great if you have drive, passion and ambition for more.
So, you go out, and start your own business but soon hit the first hurdle.
How to price your product or service.
Because, when you run your own business with multiple, passive and semi-passive income streams (like the sensible, wise entrepreneur that you are) and you no longer exchange your (massively valuable) time for money, the hours in the day have no bearing on how much you earn.
Because you’re not waiting for a wage at the end of each month that is completely reliant on someone else telling you what you’re worth – you get stuck.
You end up asking yourself ridiculous questions like: what am I worth?
Telling yourself things like: I’m not an expert.
Convincing yourself that you’re not worth charging for.
Stop… (hammer time) … Let’s fix it.
The Price Is Right
Increasing your prices seems like a no-brainer if you want to increase your bottom line and see real cash in your hand. But many women get stuck with this and it can become a real obstacle. So I’m going to show you how to price your product or service.
Many female entrepreneurs have serious issues with charging what they’re actually worth. They struggle with imposter syndrome, comparison-itus and the opinions of other people. And that shouldn’t be the case.
Your pricing should be reflective of your time and your target market. This should all come into play when you’re actually thinking about how much to charge for your beautiful products or well-invested service time.
No matter how you came to your current pricing I strongly suggest that you go back and take a closer look at what your customers and clients are actually getting from you.
If it’s a service that you provide, are you considering:
- the time to reach your office space (if you have one)
- the overheads
- time researching before or doing paperwork after the actual time slot?
- The impact you actually have on your clients! The transformation?
If you make a physical item, have you considered:
- the time you actually spend creating the product – how much do you charge per hour for your skill?
- the materials you use
- the tools that are required and their maintenance
- the design times
- the overheads
- The impact you actually have on your customers! How well do you solve their problem? (I’m guessing it’s a pretty big impact!)
The list goes on. So, tell me, are you really charging what you’re worth?
Money Blocks?
If you feel uncomfortable with looking deeply at your pricing structure, you may need to go back and look at why you feel that way. Perhaps try increasing your prices by just 10% and see how that sits with you? How does it feel to say you charge that amount per hour? Per item? Say it out loud and sit with it for a moment.
If this brings up lots of issues for you, then I highly recommend that you also take some time to work on your money mindset. This is HUGE for many female entrepreneurs. You may want to pick up Get Rich Lucky Bitch by Denise Duffield Thomas or her more recent release, Chillpreneur. These have been key in helping me to change the way I really look at myself, my worth and my business; and I know it will help you too!
Multiple Income Streams
This process becomes even easier when you add multiple income streams into your business, because it allows you to charge premium prices for any one to one time that clients and customers receive. By creating multiple income streams customers are able to access your brain power or skill from a distance by buying a more passive product like a pre-recorded course or eBook – which means you don’t need to be involved in the process at all. However, if they want your actual time, one on one, it should be costing a hell of a lot more because you’re more exclusive; you’re premium.
I hope that helps, knowing how to price your product or service can be a big leg up. If you’re ready to learn more and EARN more, come and join us over in the Perfectly Passive Profit Academy.
