Hannah McNamara

One of the most difficult things for many coaches is talking about their prices.

Somehow, it just feels too much like "sales", or it is difficult to express the value of your services in a way that potential clients understand.

As difficult as it may be, talking confidently about your pricing structure is a necessary part of your financial success. What's more, it is a valuable opportunity to demonstrate your professionalism and knowledge. Clients want to feel confident about contracting for your services, so imagine how reassuring it is to them when you reinforce their decision-making by demonstrating polish and self-confidence.

Here are a few suggestions for building up your confidence when the discussion turns to prices:

• Prepare yourself in advance with talking points to emphasize the value of your services. Focus on linking your services to specific, measurable business benchmarks.
• Quantify the value of your services as much as possible. For instance, let's say you can demonstrate that clients achieve an average 15% increase in sales because of your services. Share that information with your prospective client, emphasizing the specific monetery increase he or she might expect.
• Match the key value points of your services to the client's specific needs. Talk about each need in turn, emphasizing exactly how your services will address each need. If the benefits of your services extend beyond just those needs, by all means, share that with your client.
• Maintain a list of testimonials and current references, and provide this information as a standard part of your pricing bids. Whenever possible, match the testimonials and references to the client's own industry. This makes it much easier for the client to visualize exactly how your services relate to his or her business needs.
• Anticipate potential concerns and objections, and prepare yourself ahead of time to address those issues. Loop back to key points from earlier in the discussion, emphasizing them again. Listen carefully to what the client is really saying, and check for understanding along the way.
• Enlist the help of a trusted friend, relative, or colleague to role-play and practice your general pricing presentation. Once you are comfortable with that, it is relatively easy to make small adjustments as needed to customize the general presentation for specific clients.

Price can be a difficult subject to address, because of course you are most focused on providing outstanding coaching services. When you take time to prepare in advance and develop a thoughtful approach to the discussion, however, you will find yourself with a much increased comfort level.

© Copyright Hannah McNamara