Hey Floralpreneur®,
Have you ever had a client tell you that you’re not charging enough?
I have. And it was a real eye-opener.
I’m always seeking ways to reach more ideal clients, so I’m familiar with the concept of “turning clients off” by not charging enough…
but it wasn’t until I experienced “pricing too low” up close and personal, that I was able to transform my mindset around always trying to give the “best possible price” (i.e. the lowest possible price) for each line item in a proposal.
In my experience with pricing too low, the mother of the groom was in charge of the wedding flowers and she gave me an estimated budget of about $7,000. When I quoted her a price for centerpieces based on the ideal budget, she came back to me with concerns that the centerpiece pricing seemed low for what we had discussed. And I agreed!
She was right. I didn’t quote what she wanted. I tried to provide a quote within the budget she gave me, but I didn’t actually quote what she wanted.
She told me to up the budget a few hundred dollars per table and I updated her quote for what it would *really* cost to get the look she wanted and she ended up spending quite a bit more. And happily.
It didn’t bother her one bit to come in over budget. She was more than happy to pay to get what she wanted.
I’m very lucky to have met this client.
This gig was a big one for me and she was an ideal client. She was kind, yet particular. She had great taste and was more than willing to pay to get what she wanted (gardenias, peonies, sweet peas, lush floral table runners….you get the picture). She was creative, smart and no-nonsense. (In short, she was my kinda gal.)
I learned a lesson:
If this client was willing to spent this much more than her stated budget, then there must be other ideal clients out there who are willing to spend more than their stated budget, too.
It’s up to me to give customers a proposal that reflects what they actually want!
I cannot be confined by a preconceived notion of budget (whether that notion comes from the client or my own presumption!…You can’t wear your money shoes when presenting proposals to clients…Clients often wear a different shoe-size than you!).
If you’re a skeptic, I understand. I was, too.
Until I truly experienced this tremendous gap between what the client told me and what she was more than happy to spend, I thought all the business gurus who claimed that “low prices are a turn-off” were talking about “other businesses”….not flowers.
Moral of the story….
If a $7,000 budget turned into an $11,000 sale, then surely I can quote $25 or $50 more than the “average centerpiece price” for the clients who want more choice blooms or fuller-than-average pieces, even if it pushes beyond the confines of the budget they initially described.
If clients want elevated pieces, but don’t have the budget, I don’t feel compelled to figure out how to make something grand for $100 or less. I tell them the truth; it’s $350 per table and if that doesn’t work for the budget…if they don’t l-o-v-e this look so much that they’re willing to pay for it… then, we select a different option to suit their budget. Easy. I can work within their budget, but the choice was theirs.
If you want to do beautiful work for years to come, you must set a minimum standard for your work. Click To Tweet
Innovating and making deliberate business moves allows you to set your own standards for the work you choose to do.
AND if you’re really trying your best (i.e. you provide outstanding work so that you may charge more…because you strive to provide quality work and you deserve it!), then you should be making deliberate moves to enhance the value your clients experience.
If you deliver what you promise and your clients get the value they expect, then you’re doing the work of an integrity brand.
Keep doing beautiful work!
Thanks for taking the time to read my blog!….and please share it with a floralpreneur® you know and love.
xo. -Alison
More Pricing Resources:
Read more on the Blog Here: Is floristry an art of a commodity?
You’ll find my biggest collection of pricing resources inside The Vault. (It’s just $13 and includes 7 pricing lessons with 11 videos, including Industry Standard Markups and Why the design fee is calculated as a percentage, plus a new bonus I just added to my course, Flower Math. click here to see what’s included in The Vault.)
Remember:
If you want to do beautiful work for years to come,
you must set a minimum standard for your work…
And if you’re truly doing your best work,
then it should be worthy of a higher price.
If you struggle with pricing your work with confidence, check out my online course, Flower Math, The Florist’s Guide To Pricing & Profitability.
Learn to keep more of the money you’re already making! get all the details here. (SAVE $100 OFF RETAIL.)