Hamming It Up
Avoid “hamming it up”: seasonal ham companies offer a cautionary example on price integrity and to coaches and other professional services providers.
The Price and Value Journey is presented by John Ray and produced by the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX®.
TRANSCRIPT
John Ray: [00:00:00] Hello, I’m John Ray on The Price and Value Journey. It’s estimated that Americans consume over 300 million pounds of ham during the holiday season. Our family did our part as well. And in the coming days, we’ll be consuming a few ham sandwiches from the leftovers ourselves.
John Ray: [00:00:21] Unless you’re in a hurry or you’re a last minute shopper, you know that there’s no reason to pay full price for a ham if you’re buying from one of the seasonal ham companies. Coupons and so-called special offers abound year after year so that you’re conditioned to wait to get a discount. You know that full price is a fiction.
John Ray: [00:00:45] Professional services providers, if you feel you must, there’s nothing wrong with an occasional special on your course or your coaching group. But if you’re talking to me, I will try to talk you out of it. But if you must, go ahead. But when in post after post and one email newsletter or notice after another, you’re promoting limited time offers and “just a few seats remaining,” you’re becoming increasingly like the holiday ham companies.
John Ray: [00:01:20] Your audience knows that there’s always going to be more seats available because you will just make more. There’s always going to be a discount. There’s always going to be another coaching group that you’re starting up. You see, when you do it all the time, there’s no such thing as limited time or full price. And it damages perceived value and your pricing credibility. You’re selling yourself and your expertise as if you’re a glazed ham.
John Ray: [00:01:55] I’m John Ray on The Price and Value Journey. Past episodes of this series can be found at pricevaluejourney.com and also on your favorite podcast app. And I’d be grateful if you subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast app. And you’re welcome to email me directly, john@johnray.co is my email address. Also, big news for 2023, I’ve got a new book coming out. If you’d like more information on that, connect with me through email or on LinkedIn. Thanks for joining me.
About The Price and Value Journey
The title of this show describes the journey all professional services providers are on: building a services practice by seeking to convince the world of the value we offer, helping clients achieve the outcomes they desire, and trying to do all that at pricing which reflects the value we deliver.
If you feel like you’re working too hard for too little money in your solo or small firm practice, this show is for you. Even if you’re reasonably happy with your practice, you’ll hear ways to improve both your bottom line as well as the mindset you bring to your business.
The show is produced by the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® and can be found on all the major podcast apps. The complete show archive is here.
John Ray, Host of The Price and Value Journey
John Ray is the host of The Price and Value Journey.
John owns Ray Business Advisors, a business advisory practice. John’s services include advising solopreneur and small professional services firms on their pricing. John is passionate about the power of pricing for business owners, as changing pricing is the fastest way to change the profitability of a business. His clients are professionals who are selling their “grey matter,” such as attorneys, CPAs, accountants and bookkeepers, consultants, marketing professionals, and other professional services practitioners.
In his other business, John is a Studio Owner, Producer, and Show Host with Business RadioX®, and works with business owners who want to do their own podcast. As a veteran B2B services provider, John’s special sauce is coaching B2B professionals to use a podcast to build relationships in a non-salesy way which translate into revenue.
John is the host of North Fulton Business Radio, Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Radio, Alpharetta Tech Talk, and Business Leaders Radio. house shows which feature a wide range of business leaders and companies. John has hosted and/or produced over 1,700 podcast episodes.
Coming in 2023: A New Book!
John’s working on a book that will be released in 2023. The book covers topics like value and adopting a mindset of value, pricing your services more effectively, proposals, and essential elements of growing your business. For more information, contact John below.
