Results based pricing for professionals

I have just read an article from November of 2013 (Managing Partner, published in New Zealand) about pricing for professionals. When surveyed about how they charge, most professionals shrug and admit that they charge what everyone else charges. It has reminded me to put value and choice at the very top of the list of how to devise winning pricing strategy that will increase profits.

Pricing professional services is a big problem for lawyers, accountants and anyone selling services. Professionals deal in results, but they charge for effort. The easy route is to charge by the hour but that makes it easy for a potential client to compare apples to apples. AB charges $125 per hour. BC charges $250 per hour. Therefore, AB is the best buy. But is that true?

So, would you buy a house based solely on price? House F is small, rundown, needs a roof and is in the middle of a rough neighborhood. It is listed for $229,000. House G is much larger and in a nice neighbourhood. It is occupancy ready and most importantly, your wife likes it. But its list price is $400,000. Which house has value?

In order to place value on a service for hire, the trick is to comprehend that the customer does not care about the amount of time, effort and sweat you expend. They want results. And what is the result they want? Do you ever ask? Where will the customer place the most value? Speed of service? Accuracy? No jail time? Or will they respect the weekends you spent on their file, the late nights and the cost of years of schooling?

So we establish, state and then highlight the value on the table, first, right? But now what?

In order to get your price, though, you must offer choice. Like Goldilocks, the choices must be few - not too high, not too low and just right. Choice in pricing will allow you to take clients and customers with all kinds of budgets and thickness of wallet, without discounting. The platinum package will have the largest assortment of bells and whistles. The gold package has fewer bells and only one whistle but has a lower price tag. The workmanship is still present, but the results are fewer. The bronze package is the budget offering with the lowest price and the fewest bells and no whistles at all.

Want to be more profitable? Be brave and get a better pricing strategy.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.