Ron Baron, former CEO, management coach, entrepreneur and ELP member is the ultimate presenter and travels around the country speaking and consulting. Today, he focused on how we can sell at prices higher than our competition. Everyone should hear this presentation. It will change how you approach pricing your products and services.
· We need to understand that it is O.K. to make money. Most businesses fail or go broke. Those who have longevity in almost every industry are those who charge more. Even though we dicker with the car salesman, we like to spend money on a more expensive car. When we are buying a house, we don’t buy the cheapest house on the market. When your clients say that they have to have a lower price, they are lying.
· We need to create a Mercedes experience for our customers.
· Every customer will tell you that they need a discount. Why? A survey showed that 90% of salespeople will give a discount. We are squeamish about making money.
· Business is a game of margins. It doesn’t matter how many you sell. The reality is that you can’t make it up in volume. Some people keep saying that their competition keeps cutting their price. Your competition doesn’t cut your price. You do! Some customers say that your competitor can get it for them at a cheaper price. Their time is valuable and if they wanted to buy it from your competitor, they wouldn’t be standing in front of you.
· People want to buy from the company that they have a good relationship with and trust. You have to be willing to walk away from the sale. There are a lot of other decisions that we make when deciding whether to buy a product or service. Price is the last thing. Price is always more important in the mind of the seller rather than the mind of the buyer. At times we go through a sales pitch without bringing up the price. Are we afraid of it? Why not begin with the price and then explain the value and benefits of the product.
· Determine your Competitive Edge.
· Price makes a statement – on Quality.
· What if you sell a commodity and you have to sell on price? Companies who sell commodities at higher prices are more successful.
· It is O.K. to sell.
· Service becomes your Competitive Edge and negates a lot of concern about price. The founder of Domino’s understood that he wasn’t in the Pizza business, he was in the transportation business and pioneered Pizza Delivery in 30 minutes or less. Consider the story of Fresh Express. Can you imagine paying 4 – 6 times more for less than half the lettuce, but it’s cut up. They are a billion dollar success story because they came up with a service. Do you remember when water used to be free? Water is a commodity and we pay for it in bottles.
· Sell service instead of price – and even quality. What are clients really looking from you? They are looking for a relationship that you can build with service.
· Don’t be intimidated about price. When someone says, “Thank you! You really helped our company,” they are really saying that they want you to charge more next time.
