Competing on unit pricing is a losing game. Because someone, somewhere, will always be willing to offer a better price than you.
A better approach is to offer your services as a bundle, shifting the focus to value and outcome and away from unit prices.
In other words, quote bundles and packages rather than offering “by the drink” pricing.
And put the emphasis on the experience and outcomes rather than the individual deliverables.
But sometimes, as much as you try to bundle your services at a flat fee, some clients will do their best to pick them apart.
You put together a bundle of three blog posts, a lead magnet, and social media management every month … and then they ask how much do just one blog post. Or they ask how much it would cost without social media.
What are you supposed to do when that happens?
Offer Customized Bundles
While it’s good practice to put some bundle pricing on your website, it’s rare that a client will want the precise bundles you offer.
In response, you can offer to make up a custom bundled based on what the client DOES want.
But then, if they come back and try to pick apart the bundle you built just for them, your first response should be to defend the importance of all the items in the bundle, given what they’ve told you about their needs.
Offer Swaps, Not Discounts
If a client still insists on picking apart the custom bundle you built for them because they don’t see the value in one or two of the items you’ve included, ask what they would want instead.
That’s much better than offering a discount to remove those items.
Because when you get into conversations like, “Okay, I’ll remove this and drop the price $800 …” you’re training the client to keep on picking and choosing.
And eventually, the whole thing falls apart.
Stand Firm on Your Bundled Services
When clients try to pick apart your bundles, don’t be afraid to stand firm. After all, bundled services offered at a flat rate are nothing new. We accept them without question in other parts of our lives.
Recently, for example, my family and I ordered delivery from Chipotle. The kid’s meal (read: bundle) comes with a drink. You have a choice of a juice box, white milk, or chocolate milk.
My kid (believe it or not) doesn’t like any of those. He’d prefer water. But Chipotle doesn’t have “no drink” as an option.
Did I ask to remove the drink and get the meal at a discounted price? No. Why? Because the meal was offered as a bundle for a set price. And we all understood that.
So, yes, bundling is common practice in many parts of our lives. People accept it. And so will your clients.
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