Our guest blogger, Terri Taylor, has 32 years of experience in interior design and construction. Besides running her award-winning design studio, Terri is an interior design business coach, supporting entrepreneurial design business professionals with a unique mix of proven design business systems and inspirational tools to create meaningful success (www.designbizblueprint.com). This week she discusses how to overcome a “Pricing Panic” and how to present your fees with grace and ease. Terri will be sharing her wisdom in CEU-accredited presentations in select Robert Allen | Beacon Hill showrooms this fall; visit the Robert Allen Facebook page for more information. 

Terri Taylor

Do you get in a panic over quoting your fees or presenting the cost of a project that is way more expensive than you have ever done before? Don’t worry; you are not alone in this feeling, it is a very common problem.

“Pricing Panic” has happened to all of us, at one time or another. A little case of the nerves is not a problem, but when you are so terrified that you start avoiding talking about your fees you begin to damage your business.

Sometimes the cost of project is so high that we sabotage our success by our inner voice telling us “oh, this room costs more than my house. This is crazy, my client isn’t going to go for this.” So we diminish the job, make it less, so that we are more comfortable. Never mind that it used to be exactly what the client asked us for.

You do not have to be stuck here; there are ways to solve this problem.

Here are 3 great tips to help you conquer a case of “Pricing Panic” and learn how to present your fees and pricing with grace and ease.

Tip #1: Practice saying the “big number” out loud, over and over again until you can say it with conviction and comfort. Practice while you are driving your car, while you are in the shower, anywhere you can you can speak out loud and people won’t think you are crazy.

Practice until you take yourself seriously. Remember if you don’t take your self seriously you can’t expect your clients to.

Tip #2: Try to remember to keep your own values and history about money out of your clients’ design job. Our clients are often very wealthy and their ideas of value and price may be very different from ours.

For example, just because we would not ever consider spending $400.00 per foot for tile doesn’t mean that the client feels that way. If they are asking you for something special, exclusive and expensive, let them have it!

They will be happy with the purchase and you will be happy with the profit.

Tip #3: When you are speaking to a potential client emphasize the value of what you have to offer rather than the process that you use

Take the time to understand  the real design problem that they are trying to solve. Remember, they would not have called you if they could fix it themselves and affluent people are used to spending money to fix a problem. When you become the valuable solution to resolving this problem, you become the hero.

Remember, the more you talk with your clients about the value you bring to a design job on a regular basis, the more you begin to realize what you are really worth.