User:Mark Silver
From the 4chan wiki
Should You Publish Your Prices?
My clients often ask me: “I am unsure if it’s a good idea to include my fees in my brochure and on my website, what should I do?” Good question: do you or don’t you include your price? If you don’t include pricing, are you being coy and deceptive? Or, if you include your pricing, will someone who’s interested say “No” before they even have a chance to consider? What happens when someone sees your price. Well, what happens when you see a price? The price brings the whole idea of whatever the offer is into concrete, grounded here-and-now-ness. You see the price and all the dreams of what it will be like to have whatever the offer is, suddenly become real. The price represents a choice point. When you are reading a website, brochure, or what-have-you, you may not be ready to make a choice. And so when the price pops up, it’s reminding you that the choice is waiting. Remember that the moment of purchase is a sacred moment- it’s a moment of great intimacy. Someone is giving to you, and you will be giving to them. Instead of them receiving your marketing, perhaps anonymously, suddenly it becomes a two-way relationship. That’s increased intimacy. When someone is considering increased intimacy, they tend to have a lot of questions, and they want those questions answered before saying ‘Yes.’ Sounds like a great argument for hiding your prices? Except it’s not. You see, if someone isn’t ready to make a choice, they’ll just glance at your price, take it in, and file it away for when they’re ready. But, if someone IS ready to make a choice, or even just moderately close to ready, and your prices are hiding, there is no choice point. No here-and-now-ness to your offer. Your reader will begin to wonder: “What are they hiding? Can I afford it? Are they just trying to get me to call so they can do the hard-sell on the phone?” The price is actually a lightening rod. So, what happens in a prospective client is they have questions pop up while they are reading about your offer. Then, if those questions aren’t answered in your writing, the pressure builds. And builds. And when the price pops up, all of that energy jumps, just like a bolt of lightening. For instance, I may have a question about looking foolish in an art class. But, do I want to admit I’m worried about looking foolish? Maybe not. And, if not, then it’s much easier to say: “Well, heck, I ain’t payin’ that much for an art class.” When, that’s not actually true at all- I may well pay that, or more, for an art class, if I know I don’t have to look foolish. It’s another one of those ‘both-and’ situations. Yes, publish your prices. AND make sure you’re answering as many questions as possible.
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