Secrets to Pricing Programs that Sell

You’ve created a truly transformational coaching program that inspires clients to lasting change. But have you priced your program so it sells well? In this article, learn my top 7 secrets for choosing the right price for all your coaching programs.

I call them “secrets” for a good reason. They are very effective but not well known. And once you use them, I know you’ll love them as much as my clients do.

Secret #1 – Start with the Price

There are several essential steps for creating a great coaching program, and common sense might lead you to believe that pricing is decided at the end. After all, how can you price a program if you don’t yet know what will be included in it? But the first secret to successfully pricing programs is to turn that belief upside down.

Start by considering how much income you want to earn. Choose the minimum amount you want to earn now, the amount of income you would like to make in 12-18 months, and then another amount in between as an intermediate goal.

Next, decide on the amount you are considering for your program. Divide your income goal by the price for the program. That will give you the number of sales or clients that you need.

Ask yourself if that number is realistic for you? What would you have to do to make that many sales or get that many clients? Do you need to adjust your price?

For example, if you need a minimum income of $3,000/month and want to offer a $47 program, you would need to make 64 sales a month. Unless you have a huge list of prospects waiting for your programs, that may not be realistic. On the other hand, if you were to offer a program for $797, you would only need 4 new clients a month. That is a more realistic goal.

Now that you have an idea of your pricing, you can create a program that delivers the value. Which leads us to secret #2.

Secret #2 – Price Based on Value

It’s important that you do NOT price your program based on an hourly rate for your time or what the competition is charging. Instead, determine your program’s value by looking at the results your clients get and how that impacts every area of their lives.

Make a list of how your program will affect their finances, relationships, energy level, health, and their future. How will your program make them feel: secure, confident, loved, sexy, or important? What is all that worth to them?

What will be the cost in their lives if they continue the way they are now and don’t buy your program? That is the value.

Next, you can boost that value with bonuses. Include items your clients will love that don’t cost you anything, like done-for-you checklist or templates. You can also increase the value with incentives for fast action takers or early-bird savings.

For more ideas on increasing the value of your programs, see my article, “3 Ways to Double Your Health Coaching Income… Without Working Harder.” 

Secret #3 – Differentiate High-end from Low-end Offers

In the previous section, I mentioned that you don’t want to price your programs based on an hourly rate for your time. However, you do want to price your programs based on the amount of one-on-one time you spend with a client because that exponentially increases the value.

It’s very important that you differentiate your programs by more than price. Otherwise, it gets confusing to the buyer and they end up choosing one program over another based solely on price, rather than results.

Offer your one-on-one time exclusively with high-end programs and price them accordingly. Your low-end programs will be more affordable and include much of the same information, but they will limit the amount of time you spend with a client.

For example, your high-end program may include private coaching calls, and your low-end program may include only group Q&A calls or a Facebook group.

Secret #4 – Don’t Offer Paid Programs for Free

If you want clients to get results, it’s critical that they have a vested interest in the program. This is non-negotiable! People won’t make the necessary lifestyle changes or do the work needed if they don’t “have skin in the game.” A financial investment is important to their success and yours.

You’ll still offer free workshops, reports, and other training to the public. Free stuff is a great marketing strategy to get people interested in your programs. And I’m a big fan of giving away valuable information, like this article.

Just remember to clearly identify free vs. paid programs and don’t confuse the two.

Secret #5 – Know Your Numbers

If you want to price your programs to sell successfully, you need to know your analytics. You learned about the most important number in secret #1: your income goals.

Here are some of the analytics to know when pricing your programs:

· Your income goals: monthly and yearly

· Email list size – either yours or the person who is promoting you

· Response rate of your email list. For example, if you invite people to a free training, what % is likely to attend?

· Response rate on personal invitations. For example, if you personally called and invited 10 people to a free workshop, how many would actually attend?

· Your sales closing rate.

How do these numbers help you in pricing? Here’s an example from one of my clients who did not have an email list to start with.

When she personally invites people to a free, small workshop, 75%-100% attend. Her closing rate when offering a free strategy session was also 75%-100%. Her closing rate when offering her paid program was 50%.

Now let’s crunch the numbers…

· Let’s say her income goal is at least $3,000 a month.

· She can do 2 workshops/month with 7-10 attendees each, and her program is $997.

· That’s an average of 17 workshop attendees per month if she issues 20 to 22 invitations. (22 x .75 = 16.5)

· With a 75% closing rate, that’s about 13 strategy sessions a month. (.75 x 17 = 12.75)

· If her sales closing rate is only 50% when doing a strategy session, then 13 sessions = 6 sales. (13 x .5 = 6.5)

· That’s a monthly income of ~ $6,000 with a program price of $997. So that price definitely works for her income goals.

· If she is offering a 3-month program for $997, then she would be working with a maximum of 18 clients a month with a full schedule, at which point she could reduce the amount of time she spends on workshops and marketing.

See how helpful analytics can be? Not boring at all!

What if you’re just starting your health coaching business, and you don’t yet know your numbers? In that case, I have 2 suggestions.

1. Make your best guess and then adjust your prices as needed.

2. Use this list of price points. It works for almost all coaches for everything from info products to service programs. Find the best match and choose a price to start with:

· Under $100 – This is an impulse buy for most people. It’s a great way to get people started working with you, especially for home study programs and membership sites.

• $47 & $97

· Under $500 – Great for home study programs and large group programs with a short time frame.

• $197, $297, $497

· Under $1,000 – Great for high-end or specialized group programs, smaller groups, or short-term personal coaching programs.

• $797, $997

· Under $5,000 – Great for high-end coaching programs or highly specialized workshops and masterminds.

• $1497, $1997, $2997, $4997

Now that you have your numbers, let’s move to something more simple.

Secret #6 – Deliver Your Price with Confidence

Confidence is the key to being irresistible, which translates into more clients, income, and sales. Can you state your program price with confidence?

Hopefully, if you’ve completed the five strategies before this one, you fully understand the value of your program and feel great about the price – both for yourself and your clients.

If you need to, revisit secret #2 and work on listing the value your program delivers until you can feel confident about your price. If you believe in it, others will, too.

Secret #7 – Remain Emotionally Detached from the Price

Here is an important belief about pricing that I recommend you adopt: It’s not up to you to decide what someone can or can’t afford. Price your program based on value then let the customer decide if they want to invest with you or not.

This belief allows you to remain confident about your program, even when you hear “I can’t afford it,” and other similar opposition. I have found that when someone is a good fit for a program, they will find a way to invest in it. But when it’s not a good fit, they often say they can’t afford it.

Summary

One of the things I love about these 7 secrets is that they can be applied to almost any program: individual or group coaching programs, products, membership sites, and home study courses.

Whether you want to price a high-end health coaching program or a low-end group workshop, you’ll be able to find the right price for your programs.

Also, remember that your prices aren’t meant to be static. Ultimately, the market will help you determine the best price. If everyone is saying yes and buying your program, then your price is too low. If no one is investing with you, then the price is too high, and you may need to re-evaluate your marketing and/or pricing.

If you’re not emotionally invested in receiving a certain amount, you’ll have the freedom to raise or lower your prices as needed. I’ve experienced both. A few years ago, I gradually raised the price of a program 200% before my closing rate dropped. In another instance, I had to cut the price 40% to get decent sales.

One was a lot more fun than the other, as you can imagine. But because I wasn’t emotionally invested in the price, I could do so and still feel good about the decision.

Use the strategies listed above to get started with a price. Then let your intuition guide you, and believe that your ideal clients will choose to work with you. Best wishes on successfully pricing your next program.

Please let me know in the comment box below this post which of the strategies has been the biggest insight to help you price your current program. Or ask a question below; I’d love to hear from you.