Raise My Prices
= 2012 Special Report =
The 3 steps to earn more,
drive incoming opportunities &
raise your personal “market value.”
by
Michelle Villalobos
Jessica Kizorek
&
Founders, Make Them BEG
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
@ 2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. All rights reserved.
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neither is there a guarantee that you will create the same kind of financial success that any of the case studies have.
Your success will rely on the degree to which you train yourself in the necessary skill sets and mindset. We stand behind what’s
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©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
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©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Table of Contents
1.
Who are Michelle & Jessica?
2.
Why is Pricing So Important?
3.
What is Price?
4.
What is the Relationship Between Price & Perceived Value?
5.
The 3 Steps to Dramatically Increasing Your Prices
6.
Case Studies (& How YOU Can Do It Too)
7.
Next Steps
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
1. Who Are Michelle & Jessica?
Congratulations, you have just taken the first step towards increasing your prices! Before we get started, perhaps you’re
wondering who we ARE and what gives us the expertise to teach you about pricing strategy. Well...
MICHELLE VILLALOBOS has developed thirteen business training programs that have collectively been delivered – either
virtually or in person – to over 80,000 people. She teaches, trains and speaks professionally about personality marketing and
personal branding, particularly how combining them can lead to more referrals and incoming leads, as well as higher prices.
Michelle also founded and runs Miami’s largest 2-day conference for women: The Women’s Success Summit.
In 2011, The Miami Herald named Michelle one of Miami’s Most Influential People in their annual “Top 20 Under 40” list, and
local, national and global media outlets regularly bring her in to give advice about how people – particularly women – can get
ahead in business. Michelle has appeared on Lifetime TV, Univision, Telemundo, NBC, and CNN en Español, among others.
Michelle holds an undergraduate degree in Psychology (modified with Mathematics) and an MBA from University Of Miami.
Her client roster features names you’ll recognize. She’s facilitated executive roundtables, delivered workshops for or been hired
to speak by: American Express, Burger King Corporation, Gibraltar Private Bank & Trust, Frito-Lay, Lexis-Nexis and Audi Latin
America, among others.
JESSICA KIZOREK Jessica Kizorek is the founder of BadassBusinessWomen.org and the Personal Branding Institute. Having
lectured at academic institutions ranging from Princeton to The Miami Ad School, Jessica is first-and-foremost a teacher. She
delights in speaking to large entrepreneurial audiences - especially women - about personal branding, online video marketing,
and virtual storytelling.
Jessica is a classic type A over-acheiver with enormous energy and passion for inspiring people. She's written 6 books, traveled
to 62 countries on all seven continents, and produced over 30 short films for NGOs operating around the globe. She's worked
with Bacardi, Hyatt and MAC Cosmetics, and her work has been featured by CNN, Fox News, NBC, and the New York Times.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
2. Why is Pricing So Important?
Or rather...Why is RAISING prices so important?
It’s simple. Every dollar you can raise your prices is a dollar that you can add right to the bottom line (once you’ve covered
expenses, of course). If you’re barely breaking even, or if you just want to stop having to work so hard for every dollar you earn,
then you’re in the right place.
Who is this guide for?
While the information we’re going to share can help ANY professional, we’ve found that the ones who really “get” it, apply it, and
see the best results tend to be small business owners, solopreneurs, freelancers, ambitious employees, and those who compete in
highly commoditized service businesses where at the end of the day, what they’re selling is THEM.
If what you are selling involves YOU in any way - your ideas, your stories, your analysis, your expertise,
your intellectual property, or your intellectual capital - then get ready for a big wakeup call... the next few
pages should fundamentally shift the way you think about pricing.
In a nutshell...
If the above description sounds like you, then you need to get clear:
You are NOT selling hours.
You are NOT selling products.
You are NOT selling services.
You are selling YOU.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
And perhaps the biggest roadblock in raising your prices will likely be your own internal beliefs about your worth as a
professional. Consider this quote:
“The greatest danger is not that our aim is too high and we miss it but that
our aim is too low and we reach it.” - Michelangelo
Before you can charge a premium price, you have to believe, internally, that we’re worth it. If you don’t believe it, no one else
will either.
Only by understanding your value and knowing how to sell that value to the right audience will you dramatically increase the
prices you can command.
It all boils down to BRANDING yourself – and doing so in a way that capitalizes on the uniqueness of YOU: of your story, your
philosophy, your personality, your particular approach to what you do... Whatever it is that YOU bring to the table that makes you
special.
Key Equation:
Existing Product/Service + YOU = More money
Think of it this way:
“Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in,
all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own
companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be
head marketer for the brand called You.” – Tom Peters, The Brand Called YOU 1997
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
3. What is Price?
PRICE: The Real Definition
The first thing we need to do, is agree on what, exactly, price is.
If you’ve ever taken a business course, then you know that PRICE is one of the “4 P’s of marketing” – but what you may not have
realized is that it’s the ONLY P that GENERATES revenues rather than depletes revenues (the others are Promotion, Placement
and Product – all of which COST money).
To REALLY understand pricing, it’s often helpful to discuss what price ISN’T...
Price ISN’T:
• What the competition is charging
• Your cost plus the return you’d like to make
• How many hours it takes you to complete a project, job or task
• What you feel price should be
• How much you spent advertising it
• What other people who are NOT your ideal target audience (like your mother!) say it should be
Price IS: Simply and only THE AMOUNT of MONEY (or other goods) that someone is willing to GIVE UP to OBTAIN what
they WANT/NEED/DESIRE. Price boils down to just what something is WORTH to the buyer. What they are willing to pay in
exchange for something they VALUE.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Supply & Demand
Price is tightly related to supply and demand. The higher demand is, the higher price goes. The lower demand is, the more price
drops. Just think about items that have become scarce and skyrocketed in price because there’s a limited amount to go around
(our favorite example is what happened during the Cabbage Patch craze back in Christmas of 1983).
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
As a general rule, as prices go up, the amount that the market will buy goes down, but the amount that a supplier would like to
sell, goes up (of course, they would make more money). Supply and demand curves cross at an “equilibrium” that optimizes the
price and quantity.
But setting price at an equilibrium – or any fixed point for that matter – leaves consumer surplus dollars on the table. Consumer
surplus is that extra amount that some of your buyers would have paid for what you offer.
To use the Cabbage Patch example, Cabbage Patch dolls at one point were going for hundreds of dollars on the secondary
market... yet Coleco would deliver the toys to the stores at a set wholesale price, and the stores would in turn sell to the
consumers at set retail prices. Who profited most from the high demand? Those who could buy in bulk and sell at the REAL
market value (i.e., my friend’s dad who had an inside connection and was able to buy 10 dolls and sell them for a huge profit at
my grammar school!)
This is a great example of price strategy gone horribly WRONG. Setting price too low leads to lots of consumer surplus AND it
also leads to shortages and lack of capacity. Pricing too high leads to lack of business, excess capacity.
If you’ve got shortages in your business (i.e., you sell out, you can’t fill any more orders or your week of appointments is booked
solid), then you’re prices are likely too low.
And if you have excess capacity or you’re not selling enough, then either you’re pricing too high OR (and this is important!!) you
haven’t done a good enough job of branding yourself or your offerings.
In either case, this conversation applies to you because EVERYONE can benefit from raising prices.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
4. What’s the Relationship Between
Price & Percieved Value?
High Perceived Value = Higher Price
If you’ve ever purchased movie popcorn, then you’ve experienced “value-based
pricing” - people are paying for the EXPERIENCE, not the popcorn.
If you’ve ever bought designer jeans, then you of all people know that people
are willing to pay more for something with a high perceived value.
Most products and services out there have
become commodities, which mean that there is
little differentiation among them, save price.
When something is a commodity, it competes
very heavily on price.
Let’s use an example: coffee. Coffee is a commodity. It’s bought, sold and traded all around the world
and most coffee is all the same. Then there’s Starbucks, which is able to charge a LOT more for
coffee than the coffee is actually worth. Why? Branding.
Another example: rice. Rice is another commodity, most people don’t think too much about what
rice they’re buying. How can you increase the perceived value of rice? One way is by making it
organic. Organic rice generally sells for a lot more than regular rice - even though you can’t really see the difference offhand.
People who value health and the environment might pay more for organic rice just because of where it’s sold (Placement), and
how it’s positioned (Promotion).
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
So commodities can become premium products through positioning and promotion. YOUR offerings can also become premium
with the right positioning and promotion. And if what you’re selling is YOU, then THAT’S what you need to start positioning and
promoting!
Here’s how YOU can position yourself as a premium brand, commanding premium prices: start moving up the “specialization
pyramid.” That’s up next...
5. The 3-Step Formula For
Dramatically Increasing Your Prices
When you look at all the premium brands out there - from organic rice, to expensive cars, to designer jeans... and everything in
between... you’ll see that pricing is less determined by COST or COMPETITION than it is by DEMAND and REPUTATION. In
other words, PERCEIVED VALUE.
There are 4 stages to increasing your prices, as illustrated by traveling UP this pyramid on the next page.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Step #1: Specialize in a niche offering or niche market to go from “Commodity” to “Specialist”
Step #2: Spread the word, raise your profile and differentiate yourself to go from “Specialist” to “Master Specialist”
Step #3: Limit capacity, create buzz and add “scarcity” to go from “Master Specialist” to “Celebrity” (in your niche)
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Step #1
Specialize in a NICHE to move from
“Commodity” to “Specialist”
If what you’re selling is YOU, then right off the bat we’re dealing with a situation where there’s scarcity, which means that there is
limited YOU to go around. If you’re competing on price, then you’re in a situation where you need VOLUME in order to make
decent money.
Relying on volume is one sure way to a) not be very profitable, and b) quickly become exhausted.
“The Riches Are In The Niches”
The most profitable brands and businesses are the ones who can hone in on a niche and sell to them at a higher price... So the
first thing to determine is what NICHE you’re going after. Having a strong niche (i.e., specializing in something) will not only
raise your value to the end user, it will also help you generate referrals because it’s a LOT easier to be “top-of-mind” for
something specific than for something general.
Here are some examples:
The difference between a general practitioner (general) and a spine surgeon (niche).
The difference between jeans (general) and designer jeans that make you’re backside look awesome.
The difference between a massage therapist (general) and a specialist in chronic neck pain (niche).
The difference between an esthetician (general) and a specialist in teenage acne (niche).
In all of the above cases, the specialist (assuming they are truly excellent) will be able to CHARGE more (because the stakes are
higher and the need more specific) and they will get a lot more word-of-mouth, referral business (because it is FAR easier to be
top-of-mind for something specific than for something general).
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
How do you choose a niche?
Here are some ideas:
•
•
•
•
Analyze your existing book of business to identify any niche audiences for whom your service has high value.
Ask your existing clients why they come back to you.
Ask friends and family what they have you “top-of-mind” for.
Do some homework on any referrals you’ve gotten or get, to find out how they were referred to you (what did the referrer say
about you?)
For example, most massage therapists never specialize and end up competing on price because there are a LOT of people who
can provide massages. But only a small percentage specialize in any one thing - but as anyone with chronic, severe neck pain can
tell you: they would pay more for someone who could get them better results - it’s worth the extra investment.
On the execution or operational side, having a specialty also allows you to go narrow and deep and really hone your craft so
you’re delivering at the highest level – another surefire way to develop a loyal clientele and lots of great referrals. Not to mention,
it feels really good to get GREAT results!
Step #1 mission orders are: CHOOSE A NICHE!!
Step #1 Checklist:
Choose a niche (to consider: niche audiences or unique, specialty products/services, geographic area, area of expertise)
Focus your marketing efforts on that niche (i.e., through networking, branding, email marketing, etc.)
“Own Your Name” online - make sure that when people Google your name, they can find you AND that what they find is
consistent with your niche positioning.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Step #2
Differentiate from other specialists
to become a “Master Specialist”
Once you’ve chosen a niche, the next step is to brand yourself as a MASTER in that niche. We call that becoming a “Master
Specialist.” A Master Specialist is someone who has developed a reputation and a brand within his or her niche. They have
shown the world that they provide great results, and as such can charge more for their services. Master Specialists generate a
steady stream of incoming business that is not as price sensitive as the average consumer.
In order to position yourself as a Master Specialist, you need to 1) Increase your perceived value, 2) Spread the word, and 3)
Increase your prices.
Step #2 Checklist:
You have to let the world know why you’re great! Here are some easy low-cost or no-cost ways to do that:
Gather testimonials and case studies of your successes, post them on your website
Gather testimonials on LinkedIn
Start publishing a blog
Own your name online
Raise the LEVEL of your services to be top-notch within your niche, and spread the word among your target audience.
Gather stories that demonstrate your experience and RESULTS (rather than rattling off qualifications to prospects)
Write down all the stuff you already do that you’re clients don’t realize you do and start to incorporate that into your
marketing
Showcase awards, accreditations and media appearances
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Invest in executing at the HIGHEST level, so you can charge more
Now is the time to spread the word and create buzz:
Start marketing to your database (we highly recommend email marketing - but not spammy, promotional stuff, deliver
VALUE, VALUE, VALUE in order to position yourself as an expert in your field).
Launch something new - a new product, service or package
Put this all up on your Facebook, Blog, Website, YouTube, and email signature!
Display your value digitally to people are impressed by your experience and such.
Raise your prices by increasing value and commitment to your best customers.
Do a “Pareto Analysis” of your clients or customers. Analyze your existing client list and organize by revenues, from
greatest to least. Take the bottom 50% and fire them or double their prices. If they walk away, know that they were
likely delivering less than 10% to your bottom line.
Avoid charging by the hour – sell packages of SOLUTIONS or OUTCOMES instead
Try bundling together products and services to increase perceived value and justify higher prices
Understand that some clients will not come back - but the ones who truly value your services WILL
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Step #3
Become a “Celebrity” in your Industry
Once you’ve become a Master Specialist, you are MUCH more profitable than before, and you can easily take some of your
additional profits to develop new product lines, hire and train people to support you, and even take time off - thus LIMITING
your availability even more (and perhaps even increasing your prices yet again.)
A “Celebrity” specialist understands the value of his or her time, and says “no” to opportunities that are not aligned with their
brand. They also say “no” when people ask for discounts because they know that more opportunities lie around the corner, and
there is no need to jump at every offer.
The Celebrity realizes that they now have enough brand equity or perceived value to develop and launch product or product
lines that rest on their name - even if they’re not delivering the product or service themselves. Think of the Martha Stewart brand
of linens, or Tony Robins’ coaching programs - only a handful of which are actually delivered by him personally.
At the “Celebrity” stage, now is a good idea to start generating a BIGGER buzz among a BROADER audience. Use your stellar
reputation to increase your prices until you’re saying “no” more than “yes”, at which point you can leverage and scale into new
products and services that generate additional (ideally automated) revenue, and allow you the freedom not to be working 24/7
Here are some activities to consider investing in, now that profitability and time management are not so challenging:
Invest in PR - hire a PR professional to “shop” you around to trade publications, and if appropriate, national publications.
Develop your message for the media and for a broader audience - STAND for something!
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
6. Case Studies
Case Study #1
It’s all well and good to see the THEORY behind how to increase your prices by increasing your perceived value through
personal branding. However, seeing it in ACTION really makes it clear. So here are two case studies to help you understand how
to APPLY the concepts in this article.
Adam Cronin
Founder, Primal Roots Center for Activation
Situation:
“I charge $125/hour (if I can get it)”
Adam is a physical trainer - he helps people get in shape. Though Adam has a
STELLAR background (working with Olympic athletes, celebrities and other VIPS),
Adam was struggling to earn $150/hour - even though some of his less accomplished
counterparts easily charged $250 or $300/hour.
Adam’s biggest challenge was getting people to stick with training beyond the first
couple of weeks. And since he charged per session, he made it very tempting for
people to drop out of his program.
We had to turn around his entire sales process to focus on the desire and pleasure at
the outset, garner commitment and pre-payment, and then keep people accountable.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
What We Did:
1. We honed in on Adam’s ideal target niche - which was forward-thinking, upscale, lots-of-money-to-invest individuals who
REALLY cared about how they look and want BIG results.
2. We developed Adam’s personal brand - online and off - by positioning him as the superstar he really is, and creating a
sense of demand and scarcity (yes, we did encourage him to name-drop some of his celebrity and VIP clients, where
allowable).
3. We restructured his sales process by letting people know that they’d have to pay $250 JUST to talk to Adam and get a
personal assessment. And, by the way, he’s booked solid at the moment (unless it comes through referral).
4. Adam sent letters to his existing clients, informing them of the shifts in his business (we’ve attached a sample letter
below - feel free to steal/swipe for your own purposes!) and encouraging them to sign up for his packages instead of
session by session.
5. We created OUTCOME ORIENTED packages focused on transformation, and priced them accordingly. There is a 3month package for $5,000 and a $9,000 package for 6-months. Both require an upfront commitment. We even developed
the no-holds-barred, celebrity package for a whopping $36,500! This is a little strategic trick called a “slack adjustor” - by
contrasting the other programs to high price point, they feel more affordable. Plus, people usually choose the middlepriced option when given choices.
Outcome:
Based on creative packaging, Adam is charging his existing and new clients more (per hour) than he’s ever charged. This allows
Adam to take his time with each client, and become more highly active and invested in each clients progress. His clients are
fascinated by the new approach and excited by the changes in the way he’s structuring business. Price sensitive clients are now
standing out like a sore thumb, allowing Adam to fire the “bad” clients to free up more space for the “perfect” ones.
Going forward:
By openly sharing his personal vision and bringing his accomplishments to the forefront, he’s now positioned to be highly
profitable in the service business. He is ALSO planning to launch several products, so the personal brand we created will serve
as the perfect platform to take his product ideas to market.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Sample Script For Introducing Packages (and raising prices)
Dear ______!
Thank-you for being in my life... I’m so happy about working with you and look forward to continuing. There are some BIG things
happening in my business and my life. Here’s a insider’s peek at how I’m evolving my practice:
•
•
•
I’m revamping my coaching methods to provide more support to you outside of our sessions
I’m limiting the clients I take to only those who are committed and willing to completely put themselves in my hands to
transform their bodies and their realities
I’m integrating other disciplines to more fully transform your health and well-being, for example:
- easy-to-follow specific nutrition recommendations tailored to each client
- a grocery shopping “field trip” where I show you what to buy and how
- another field trip to your home kitchen to give you guidance on how to prepare what you’ve got
- workplace ergonomic recommendations
- travel lifestyle workouts/ nutrition on the go
- recovery/regeneration recommendations
- fitting it all into your schedule-comfortably :)
- anything else we need to do to help you feel amazing!
I’ve also got a new process called “Imagine Yourself” during which we would design the body and life of your dreams so that I can
build the plan for achieving it. Sound fun? It is!!
“Imagine Yourself” includes:
• Initial Intake Meeting and Visionary Outcome Planning
• Lifestyle Schedule, Ergonomic, Stress and Awareness Evaluation
• Key Physiological Measures
• Nutritional Evaluation
• Cardiovascular Assessment
• Digital Static and Dynamic Postural Analysis
• Key Joint Biomechanical Function, Strength, Mobility, Stability Measures
• Medical Meet & Greet (with any key medical practioners/advisors regarding injuries, conditions, etc.)
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
New clients will be paying $250 for this service, but because we go way back, I’m going to offer it to you complimentary.
From there, we will create detailed plan to release the best feeling YOU to fit your lifestyle and desired outcomes (included in
the above). My commitment to you is that if you stick with our plan, it will take 3 months to create significant change, 6
months to transform your reality, and one year to start fully realizing your potential. I’ll make sure of it.
After the assessment we’ll continue to train while I keep you on track when you're not with me by teaching you how to keep it
going when you're at home and on-the-go. Although we’ve done a lot of this, I feel I have much more to share to help you feel
your best. Included in the plan will be (but not limited to):
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Easy to follow specific nutrition recommendations
Specific cardio recommendations
Grocery shopping tour
Life/home/kitchen/workplace ergonomic recommendations
Travel lifestyle workouts/ nutrition on the go
Recovery/regeneration recommendations
Fitting it all into your schedule-comfortably:)
Anything else we need to do to help you feel amazing!
So here’s the deal: due to all the increased value I’m providing, my pricing structure is changing. HOWEVER, being the loyal,
awesome client you are, I’m “grandfathering” you in - if you want to continue working with me.
The ONLY difference for you will be in the commitment level you must agree to to move forward. I’m requiring 3, 6 or 12
month commitments from every client. My belief is that if you’re not committed to at least 3 months, then I’m not the right
person to work with. Fair enough?
I’ll be calling you this week to follow up.
Adam
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
6. Case Studies
Case Study #2
Elizabeth Manso
“Your Bookkeeping CPA”
Situation:
Elizabeth owns a bookkeeping/CPA business. She is excellent at
what she does, and a couple of years ago was working HARD – actually, way TOO hard - including nights and weekends. Meanwhile, she was lucky if she earned $65/hour and to top it off, her
clients were demanding, difficult and not generating enough revenue to justify the work.
To top it off, Elizabeth’s staff was mediocre at best, so she was doing much of the heavy lifting herself. Elizabeth was exhausted
and not very profitable. Not to mention she was the lowest paid employee in her firm. She made a small salary, plus what was left
over, which wasn’t much. She also had little time to market or promote her firm, as she was so entrenched in the day to day
operations. Something had to give.
What We Did:
1. Analysis - We analyzed Elizabeth’s client list - starting with Michelle’s “Pareto Analysis” and realized that Elizabeth was
all over the map - no clearly defined client niche, no clearly defined brand, and fees that were all over the place. Paymentwise, we denoted 3 tiers of clients: A, B, C. A clients were the BEST and we wanted to deliver at the HIGHEST level to
them. B clients were “on the fence” and we wanted to either move them UP to A or let them work with someone else.
2. Fired clients - The C clients, we decided to fire because they were once a year, low price points, very price sensitive, not
loyal, and not a “joy” to work with - in fact our analysis also showed they were taking up a significant amount of
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Elizabeth’s time and resources for very little profit. In addition, we identified that owner-operated, service-based
businesses between $500,000 and $5,000,000 in revenues were her “sweet spot” in terms of niche. So she started focusing
on that and letting go of the rest. By focusing on this niche, Elizabeth could really develop a core competence for working
with these types of businesses. Elizabeth began focusing her networking conversations around finding more of these
service-based, owner-run businesses and started to build her brand by writing and emailing out a weekly newsletter with
bookkeeping and tax advice for these kinds of businesses.
3. Fired mediocre staff - by reducing the workload (by getting rid of C and some B clients), Elizabeth was able to let go of
her mediocre employees, and she and her remaining staff were able to focus on their great clients. They focused on
delivering at the highest level to A and B clients for a few months to really create a perception of high value.
4. We created Bookkeeping and Accounting “Packages” (instead of hourly rates, which were a pain to track and made
billing complicated), and upgraded the A clients (who were now more in love with Elizabeth and her team than ever) to
those packages. The packages themselves were value-based “bundles” of services focused on OUTCOMES, not HOURS.
Ultimately Elizabeth was charging more BUT she was also delivering more value and becoming a true partner to her
clients. We revised all client engagement letters to reflect new programs and let go of clients who were not a “fit.”
5. Invested in more great talent. Elizabeth invested the additional profits in her team, which she now says are “superstars.”
Outcome:
On top of becoming WAY more profitable, Elizabeth doubled her own salary (and then some) as well as offloaded much of the
“grunt work” to her staff. Elizabeth started garnering a real reputation locally as a powerhouse bookkeeping and accounting firm
specializing in small, owner-operated, service businesses - and as such, most business comes in through referral. She is able to
take those referrals and leverage her reputation, client satisfaction and status as a “Master Specialist” to really engender trust
and charge higher rates than before – with clients happy to pay for the high quality service. Now she is the real face of her
business - and is not locked away slaving away on doing the work herself. She has delegated everything from writing those
weekly emails to executing the accounting work, and most everything else in between.
Going forward:
“I see great opportunities to continue to modify, improve and “tweak” our pricing and marketing strategy to be even more
profitable AND we’re now in the process of leveraging and scaling our business, now that we have a solid operation with good
profits.”
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
Moral of the Story:
The key to raising your prices will be to
Increase the Value YOU add to your product/service.
The art of doing this is called:
“Personal Branding”
Ready for some more detailed ways to do that?
Awesome... Keep reading.
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
What’s Next?
Look around at some of the most successful people you know: Oprah,
Donald Trump, Martha Stewart. Love ‘em or hate ‘em… you have to
admit, they have strong brands that keep them in business.
Do you think Oprah goes around “looking” for opportunities? Hell no!! Opportunities find Oprah! Why? Because she has a
strong brand that draws the right opportunities to her.
It’s called Personal Branding. And in this day and age – an age in which Google has been called “the new resume”, having a
compelling personal brand, both online and off, is CRUCIAL.
What are YOU doing to build your personal brand? If the answer is “not much” then you are already behind - and it’s only
getting worse as the pace of technology and innovation accelerate.
Want answers? We’ve got them - and an affordable way to get them.
We recently launched a training program through Make Them BEG to educate you, guide you and
jumpstart your progress in implementing the tactical strategies for raising your prices, building your
personal brand, and generating visibility and buzz.
It’s called...
Make Them BEG Monthly.
It’s a monthly curriculum for a community of ambitious professionals like you who want to raise their prices, generate more
incoming business, and live a life they love. Here’s what you get when you sign up:
Every month your will arrive in the mail containing the following:
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“Make Them BEG Monthly” Magazine (filled with research, interviews & more)
“Elevate Yourself” Audio Training CD (for your car)
“Before & After Spotlight” Branding Makeover Case Study (to inspire & challenge you)
Spotlight “Application for Consideration” (so YOU can apply to be a Case Study)
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com
In addition, you’ll receive exclusive access to:
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Monthly “Velocity Implementation” Call with Michelle & Jessica (to implement the strategies from the magazine.
Hush-hush invites to our private relationship building events
Membership in Make Them BEG monthly is just $47/month and you can cancel at any time – so there’s zero risk.
by clicking this link:
www.MakeThemBEG.com/monthly
©2012 Michelle & Jessica, Inc. | www.RaiseMyPrices.com