Raising your prices can be one of the scariest things you do as a business owner.
This is probably because of the fearful thoughts that run through our heads of, “What if people don’t pay for my new prices?”
Well, I am here to tell you that raising your prices doesn’t have to be a hard or scary thing; there are PLENTY of people who are more than willing to pay the new prices for your services!
Here are three simple ways that will help you ease into raising your prices without losing clients along the way!
- Don’t publicly announce that you are raising your prices.
I know this is the exact opposite of what you feel you might need to do when raising your prices, but trust me, it’s for the best! When you announce a change in prices, people typically have two reactions: they will try to get you to compromise on your price because they know it was just recently changed, or they will just look elsewhere because they know there would be a higher price tag attached to your services. Obviously neither of these reactions are good and the result could lead to your inquiries slowing down for a period of time!
Now, there IS a way you announce your pricing increase in a way that will create a sense of urgency in your clients and lead them to book their sessions quickly!
Let’s say that it’s December. You know that your prices will be going up in the new year and you have a number of inquiries that you’re hoping to book. If I was in this situation, here’s what I would do…
For each open or new inquiry that I receive in December, I let that person know that the price I first quoted will be changing come the first of January, so this is their LAST chance to book at that amazing price! This then creates a sense of urgency for fear of missing out—one of the best motivators when it comes to getting someone to book quickly! The best part though is that you aren’t wasting your time telling this to people who don’t have any interest in booking a session at that time—you have a very small, interested audience that you are speaking to!
2) NEVER drastically raise your prices!
Raising your prices is intimidating and needs to be done in a way that makes you feel confident in the new numbers! If you raise your prices by $1,000, you are far more likely to back down when someone starts asking for a “deal.” Once the door to that negotiating is open, we all know it can go down hill quickly! I always raise my prices about $200-$300 at a time for weddings and $50 for portrait sessions. It’s an easy transition for me, plus it won’t scare anyone off who could be a referral from a bride who JUST booked me for her wedding at a lower price.
Plus, you can ALWAYS raise your prices again and again if you increase and are still booking without any hesitation from your clients. There’s no set time you have to wait between raising prices!
Typically, the three times I raise my prices are:
- After booking 3-4 weddings at one price point!
- If I invest in my business in a big way with education!
- If my cost of shooting/delivering the images go up!
3) Update your portfolio!
I have a list of priorities that I go through before raising prices, and two of those priorities BEFORE I raise my prices are: to update my portfolio and up my social media game!
Always be sure to update your website by selecting your newest and best images and putting them throughout your website! Also, if you haven’t updated your website bio or about me page recently, go back through it and re-introduce yourself. Add in a new headshot or some new fun facts—just give it a little facelift! This allows everything on your site to have a fresh, intentional, and updated look that will show potential clients that your services are worth the higher pricing!
Once you update your website, use those new favorite images to also up-level your social media accounts! Leading up to my pricing change and for a few weeks after, I am much more active on social media and working hard to reach my ideal brides! I use these new images, share reviews from past brides, tag vendors in my posts, and use strategic local wedding hashtags. This allows me to make sure I am getting good content out that will attract brides and keep inquiries coming in so I don’t get nervous and back down from my new pricing!
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