Isn’t this one of your absolute favourite questions?
It comes up of and over: how to respond to that sticky question:
“How much will it cost?” or “How much do you charge?””
Whether you are selling a physical product or selling a service how you respond when your potential customer or client asks this question is important.
I believe that often people ask this question because they do not know what else to ask. They have not thought about what other ways to determine the value of the product or service.
It can be especially difficult to respond to the “how much does it cost?” question if the question is asked too early, and asked out of context of any other parameter and it is often asked before you’ve had any real chance to establish a relationship with your potential customer or client; a conversation that helps create the value your service or product provides.
Here are three suggestions of things not to do ….
1. act surprised and say some thing like “what do you mean?”
2. mumble, mutter, stumble as you shuffle your feet and pick some random $$ value
3. act defensive “that’s all anyone ever asks… How Much!!!”
Of course if you sell widgets that cost $10 then you can just say “Our widgets cost $10, thanks”
Each business situation will call for different responses. It’s up to you of course to work out what works best for you and your business. Once you choose what approach will work for your business, practice and get comfortable saying it.
I often suggest to my clients to practice saying the words out loud numerous times, while walking the dog, taking a shower, anywhere really, just practice saying what you’d like to say out loud
The reason “out loud” is important is because just saying it inside your head is not the same as saying it out loud.
Here are a few suggestions that might work for you and an important consideration is the tone of voice you use for each of these responses:
1. You might start with “Great question” and follow that up with “is cost your only consideration?” or “are there other considerations that might be important to you in deciding what to purchase?”
2. “Great question, and I totally understand that price is important. If it’s OK with you, could we please talk price in a moment. May I ask you a few other questions that will help me understand what you are trying to achieve and then I’ll be able to give you a ballpark figure and then you can tell me if we are on track. That way if we are poles apart, we’ll know.How does that sound?”
3. “I love the price question, thanks for asking. It’s helpful for me to ask some questions so that we can establish what you are trying to achieve. Then I can work out some pricing based on that and we can see if the pricing is in your ball park. This helps to get close to what you’re looking for”
4. “A project like you are describing could range in price between $XX and $YY. Some times a little more, rarely less. Is that about what you are expecting to pay?”
5. “At this point in time any amount I say is going to be too high. Could we have a chat about what you are trying to achieve, I have some questions I usually ask and then we can discuss pricing options”
These are just a few suggestions. What do you usually say?
Whatever you say, say it with confidence, look your customer or client in the eye and give them the information they need to make a decision about buying your product or service.
Think about what you are going to say, practice it, think of the various ways to say it depending on the situation.
I personally believe that often when some one asks about price it is because they don’t really know what else to ask, and this is one of the reasons I like the “How much does it cost?” questions. I love the opportunity to help people understand better what I do and how my service can assist what they are trying to achieve.
Our role is to help our customers and clients to make that purchasing decision, helping them understand the value of what we are providing and how that helps them to solve what they are trying to achieve; what problem are they trying to solve and how is your solution the best solution to that problem. Even if they don’t quite understand their problem, our job is to assist with that.
I’ll be interested to hear your thoughts about this.
I’m Ingrid Thompson and thank you for reading this post.
My guess is that you are here because you are curious about what it might be like to start a business?
Perhaps you’ve been wondering if you have what it takes? If your idea will work or even how much it actually costs to build a successful business?
I’ve written a book that can answer pretty much all your questions “So You Want to Start a Business” and you can download the first 20 pages at www.thestartupsteps.com
15 years of experience working with start up businesses are condensed into this book.
It’s your step by step guide to launch your business smarter and faster and I’m so excited to be sharing it with you and can’t wait to hear about your progress.
Are you ready to grab your excerpt? Click here www.thestartupsteps.com
Happy reading!