When I tried to get his number...

Welcome to Week 34 of my adventure as a member of the Marketing Plan Group. In my posts, I talk about my voyage down the road of self-employment as a website copywriter, my achievements and roadblocks along the way, and what I’m learning from my group experience.

With some prospects, we talk about a price range ahead of time, and then they accept my quote for that price.

With other clients, it’s all a negotiation.

I just got a new job from a former client – and for our last job together – he wouldn’t give in to my persistent questions about budgets or “comfort levels” with price ranges.

When I gave him my estimate, he told me his budget was slightly lower, so I met him there. I felt I had quoted on the high side.

For this project, there was another negotiation. But I half went into the estimate expecting it.

I quoted a number, he suggested that he was more comfortable with another number, and ultimately we met in the middle. I enjoyed the back and forth of it, and when done properly, everyone feels like they get what they want. Works for him, works for me, everybody wins.

One question that arose in my head was this: Would his “budget” have been different depending on my quote. Would his “budget” have been 25% lower than any reasonable number I presented to him?

I also wonder… are we like flea market vendors or antique fair sellers? Should we assume that our first price will be “bargained down” by our prospects?

And how can we spot the negotiators? Are they the ones who simply won’t clue us into their budget beforehand?

Do you have different rates for the “negotiators” than you do for the “accepters”? Should we?

 

Comments

[Rahti Gorfien]

A friend of mine once said 'whomever talks money first loses.' This works well for me, especially when hiring someone. When I'm the one 'selling', at the point it comes time to close the sale, I've found it best to have rates that roll easily off my tongue, and then stop talking. Takes a lot of breathing. But usually, when you give people time to have their first reaction, They'll either buy, or say they can't afford my service, at which point I offer other prepared options, so that I never feel I've sacrificed a fiscal boundary. Prep is key for me.

[Diannah V.]

Deidre - if you care to - could you expand a bit on the situation with this guy? Are there any serious pluses to working with him?

I mean, you know what the job is worth. If you know he's only going to be happy if he appears to get at 25% discount, don't you almost have to start 25% higher? Especially since this man won't share price with you in advance?

(If you enjoy the back & forth - good for you. If not, perhaps this is a client you want to train to behave differently ... i.e., talk $$$ up-front. Or let him play his games with someone else. Or play his silly game and start your price 100% higher!)

[Alan Kravitz]

Deidre,

This process is quite familiar to me. Most of my clients love to negotiate, and they're very good at it. So, if I know I have a negotiator on my hands and I'm the first one to name a price, then it usually is higher than what I normally charge. I build this in, because I know they are going to negotiate down. I find that if I'm patient and I keep things professional, we can normally agree on an estimate that's okay for both of us.

[Dianne Rohkohl]

I run into this a lot and think your reference to a flea market vendor is a good one because that's what it feels like after a while. I am wondering if Rahti Gorfien can elaborate on prepared options. I would love to have a few of those in my back pocket.

[Rachel Simeone]

I think it is important to realize that we can't know the reason that a person wants to negotiate. Is it because they love to negotiate? Is it because they feel that they are doing a "good job" for their company if they negotiate? Or is is because they assume that the service provider is quoting a price and expecting to negotiate?

We can't know the reason. All we can know is what we think is a fair price for our work.

After I work with a client once or twice, I accommodate to their preferred style.

So when I work with negotiators, I figure out what is a fair price and then quote a price that gives them room to negotiate. For everyone else I just give the price that is fair for the work.