There are few dynamics as powerful for shaping your brand’s perceived value as the relationship between your messaging and your pricing. These two elements are literally your sales power couple – the Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds of your brand, if you will!
When you’re looking to position your business in front of top tier clients, communicate your value and build a genuine connection with your customers, you have to make sure your messaging and pricing are pulling the weight equally! I promise – after eight years of working with small businesses – if you think you have a pricing problem, chances are you also have a messaging problem.
Pricing is a Main Character in Your Story
“Pricing is my favorite part of owning a business,” said no business owner ever. The truth is that what you charge and how you run promotions create a story about their value. Think about when you see a handbag with a price tag of $499 compared to one that cost $49.99. Right away, your brain subconsciously starts telling you a story about each bag. The expensive one might make you take in the buttery leather, stitching details, silk lining and see it as the luxury item from a designer store. Whereas, the less expensive one may be the more practical, cute, everyday purse you grab at Target while simultaneously shopping for cereal and eyeliner.
Your pricing is only one part of your offer’s story. The question is, does the rest of your story support it? For instance, if you’re aspiring to be a luxury spa, but your pricing screams “budget massage from a shady franchise,” your audience will feel that disconnect. If you want to serve budget-conscious moms, but your prices say “private chef and nanny included,” you’re pushing them away instead of pulling them in.
Messaging Sets the Stage for Your Value
Your messaging should be so specifically powerful for the customers you want to reach that they are already internally screaming “take my money” before they see the cost. Your job is to paint a clear picture of why your offer is one they can’t live without. Try not to spend too much time sharing concrete features of your products and offers but really diving into the details of what you sell. What transformation does your product or service provide? Why are you a go-to expert at what you do? What do you do differently than others in your industry?
For example, if you’re a life coach, you wouldn’t just say I help my clients grow to new heights. It’s too vanilla and ambiguous. But, you could share before and after client stories who felt lost and overwhelmed when they hired you and are now in a career they love, traveling the world living their best life after.
Craft Your Own Power Couple Strategy
Here are simple steps to include if you’re ready to position your products or services to become an instant “add to cart” decision for your top tier customers!
- Know Your People: Who are they? What is the problem they need solved? What will they pay for the value of what you offer? Get crystal clear.
- Position Like a Pro: Identify where you want to fall in the market. Make sure your messaging and pricing align to build the right brand perception.
- Hone In on Your Story: What message does your customer really care about and need to hear? Be clear and compelling, and test your story out in different ways.
- Refine. Refine. Refine.: Don’t “set it and forget it!” Trial and error is your BFF! Try different approaches until you find what works.
Hustle & Heart Challenge
This month, look at your pricing and offers through the lens of your customer. Think of the brand you want people to like, trust and connect with and ask yourself if your current messaging and pricing are giving off the perceived value you want the world to see. Where do you see room for improvements? Pricing or messaging or both?
