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When you ask why they didn’t buy from you, prospective customers or clients often say that your prices are too high. And it could be true.

However, it usually isn’t. Here’s what you need to know to overcome price/fee resistance.

Let’s start with some far more likely reasons for their decision.

What makes them say you’re too expensive?

• Your marketing could be suffering from Toxic Complexity. This is dangerous and extremely common.
• You might be marketing to the wrong people.
• You could be contacting them at the lowest point of their cash flow cycle.
• You could be asking people to make a decision before they have all the information they need.
• Your marketing could be failing to clearly demonstrate enough value, making your price seem higher than they expected.
• Your marketing promises could be too similar to those offered by your lower priced competitors.
• Your payment terms may not be flexible enough for them.
• Your branding could be positioning you as a lower priced provider than you actually are.
• You could be responding to enquiries too slowly.

And there are lots of other reasons. None of which have much to do with your prices or fees, and more to do with your marketing and how you sell your products or services.

Solve the problem. Win big!

Lowering your prices can be tempting. It’s a quick and extremely easy way to make your products or services seem better value. But it’s a trap. A trap you need to avoid. A trap that can put your business in a dangerous race to the bottom. You do not want to be in a race to the bottom!

A far better alternative is to find out what’s actually causing people to think you’re too expensive. And to massively improve in those key areas. The least expensive way, the fastest way and the clearest way, is this way. 

If you’re not sure where to start looking for answers, the brief list above is a useful place to begin. Try to look at each item on that list from the perspective of a potential client. Remember, most prospects will have done at least some research. So check your competitors to see how your; services, marketing, payment terms, promises, guarantees, branding and response times, etc., stack up against theirs.

And make lowering your prices the very last thing you consider.

Image: Martin Martz

Ever wondered why I never write about how or where to spend your marketing money?

Well, today I spill the beans. And it can save you, and make you, a fortune.

There are a lot of ways you can spend money on marketing. Advertising and promotion is available via thousands of providers. It’s so easy.

• You pay them your money.
• They say they’ll get your message in front of X number of prospective clients or customers.
• Hopefully, a percentage of these will contact you.
• And a percentage of that percentage, could spend money with you.

So far so good, right?

It would be, if your competitors didn’t have the exact same options.

But they do.

Buying attention is overrated

Obviously, your competitors advertise to the same people as you… otherwise they wouldn’t be your competitors.

This means your ads are always competing against their ads.

Whoever spends most money, gets the most attention. This is equally true when you advertise on different platforms to your competitors: because digital advertising reaches the same target groups regardless of where they are.

This makes buying attention extremely precarious! Your ad reach will always depend on the marketing money your competitors choose to spend. It’s out of your control. It’s also impossible to plan the future growth of your business with confidence.

Why?

A well-funded competitor can quickly and easily, wipe your visibility out before you even know what’s happening.

Thankfully there’s an effective alternative.

Marketing creativity over marketing money

Advertising is the price you pay, for lousy marketing. I’ve said this for decades. It’s even more true today.

That’s why I have always chosen to focus 100% on a very different marketing model. It’s a model that is impossible for your competitors to copy, as they can’t see what you’re doing, unlike paid ads.

• They’ll know that you suddenly get talked about a lot more often.
• They’ll know there’s a real buzz around your products or services.
• They’ll certainly notice their existing clients or customers switching to you.

BUT they won’t know why.

That’s because the marketing model I use with my clients businesses, and with my own business, is entirely based around creativity, not money.

And it’s exceptionally effective. In fact, The Wall Street Journal came to me for an example of how I achieve massive marketing success for my small business clients, using creative marketing strategies, and NOT A PENNY spent on advertising or promotion.

In short, I don’t write about how to buy attention because it’s a risky, expensive, unpredictable and exceptionally limited way to grow your business.

So, now you know.

Photo by David McElwee

When a prospective client or customer decides not to hire us or buy from us, how can we turn their no into a yes? And how can we do this, even when they’ve had their objections or concerns fully answered and they still say ‘no’?

Faced with that kind of rejection, there are 3 broad ways we can choose to respond.

1. We could just leave it. They’ve made their decision. End of story.
2. We could reply and let them know why they’re wrong and make sure they know they’ve made a big mistake. If we know the competitor who won, we could also include all the bad stuff we know about the lousy dirt-bag.
3. Or we could contact them and be more positive and helpful to them, than if we had won the contract!

Yes, it’s number 3 I’m going to focus on. Because it’s exceptionally effective.

Turning a prospect’s no into a yes

Imagine how the following might work, as a massively more effective way to respond to a prospect’s ‘no’.

• You contact the prospect and thank them for the time they spent with you or with your proposal.
• You also let them know, up-front, that you respect their decision. This is important. It shows you’re not doubting their ability as a decision maker.
• You add that as a result of their decision, you’re working to improve your proposal or presentation.
• You then find something generous to say about the competitor who won, so long as it’s true. Nothing sarcastic or tongue-in-cheek, but truly gracious.
• And finally, you let them know that if they ever need anything, you’re there for them and happy to help.

Here’s what we know for absolute certain. Very, very few people respond with that type of good-natured, yet professional strategy. But when they do, they get remembered for the very best of reasons. It’s exceptionally powerful.

Here’s what can happen.

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From rejection to selection

Here are just some of the outcomes this can generate for people, who were originally rejected.

In many cases, the prospect who rejected them suddenly wonders if they made the wrong decision, in choosing the other provider. I’ve seen this result in immediate change of mind, with the rejected provider winning the deal. 

Much more commonly, I’ve seen the rejected provider given the contract, as soon as the winning provider screws up!

It’s as if the prospect is unconsciously looking for their original choice to fail, after becoming fully aware what a wonderful provider they rejected. By respecting the prospect’s decision and leaving the door wide open to them, the rejected provider makes it extremely easy for the prospect to contact them. 

But that’s not all!

Ask anyone who uses this approach and they’ll confirm that it also results in referrals, from the prospects who didn’t change their mind about hiring the rejected provider.

I’ve used this strategy for years and seen amazing results. My clients have, too. So give it a try. You literally have nothing to lose and everything to gain.