Price is a Story

I’m taking Seth’s Godin’s Freelancer’s Workshop right now. It’s awesome, I’m learning so much.

One concept I’m wrestling with is the idea of price as a story.

When I first started freelancing, I decided to undercut the competition, and chose to make low price my selling point. I didn’t have much experience yet, so it seemed like the logical option. One year in I crashed and burned, because low price had driven me to do mediocre work as I juggled too many clients.

In The Freelancer’s Workshop, Seth Godin has us understand that low price is the hiding place of the average creator. When we pitch at a low price, we hide our work behind the low price. “You can’t be that upset, you only spent a few hundred dollars!” That’s the mindset here. When things go wrong, at least people won’t ask for their money back.

Except they do.

When I’ve recounted the projects I’ve executed poorly and the projects I’ve absolutely hit out of the park, the determining factor is price! The times I’ve been most engaged, most inventive, most helpful has been when I have been paid the most. The stakes were so high, I didn’t have time to make excuses or wonder if I should save some generosity. I pulled out all the stops, and the clients were stoked.

It’s ironic that the clients who have spent the least with me have been the least satisfied, and the clients who have spent the most, have been the most satisfied. I think it’s because price is a story.

A great rate makes me extra generous. A great rate makes the client believe in what they’re investing in. The price tells a story about the quality of work and relationship.

I can’t share any videos from The Freelancer’s Workshop here, but check out this video of Seth riffing on some similar ideas: