The Psychology of Price?

What do you mean, you don’t just stick on a price first and then expect people to pay?! LOL. Yes, I totally get that with marketing one needs to show provided value and that value needs to be reflected in pricing for booming business. People want to know what they are paying for. In the Abundance Cubed Coaching Program that I’m in this year, the reading for June has been the book “the psychology of price” by Leigh Caldwell. Right from the gate it pointed out things that were important to me as a healer entrepreneur sharing a method that’s on the cutting edge of neuroscience, yet very different and often unknown. My work provides massive benefits to the customer, but as I said it’s not very well known as of yet. In fact, a recent spelling bee competition one of the final words was Feldenkrais, and still there was confusion. A radio show announcer said it was a form of yoga, which it isn’t. The book points out that when customers first encounter a new service they have only slight idea of what it is worth to them. They may guess the value, but mostly by comparing it to something similar that they’ve done before. Many people have done yoga, or at least know what it is. When someone asks me about my work and I share what it is like they often ask if it is yoga. They are trying to compare it to what they know.

I feel it’s even more important when your product or service is unique or new to paint the picture of the uniqueness of the value…what makes it different and what it will offer to the customer. Otherwise people are likely to miss you and the benefits they would gain by sticking with what they already know. We know that if we keep doing what we’ve always done we will keep getting what we’ve always gotten. My work is on the cutting edge of neuroscience and works directly with the brain to effect change in the body, in a profound way. That is of great value to people who have been stuck in pain, have limitations of motion, or trouble doing what they love. They want something that will sink in (to the brain and therefore body) to provide the results they want.

That is a huge value and taps into the book’s next point about “the benefit matrix”. This is another benchmark in painting the picture of value for a customer. I’ve thought about what people have said after experiencing my work. Basic drivers come down to decreasing pain and increasing pleasure. People report increased confidence and increased ability to do the things they love or do for their livelihood. That can increase joy, satisfaction as well as wealth or proficiency in their ability to perform their specific skills. People may come in thinking they want to increase flexibility, range of motion, or to improve their posture. Then that, they discover their increased confidence and news ways of interacting with the world. All of that possibly even improves their mood. Many people when they are able to get back to what they love to do, or even just to do more than they were…we transform depression and elevate their spirits. When a person has increased ability to do what they need to do, it decreases stress (they aren’t thinking about how they are going to pay their bills because they are working again). That decreased stress can lead back to the improved joy and feel good sensations along with reduction of pain, increased life satisfaction/happiness, increased result/performance, and income. The relaxation that comes with this type of work also increases clarity and creativity which is a huge bonus for people working on creative projects. Again that loops around to increased success, wealth, joy, productiveness. It really is a win-win! I love my work, I love the benefits and I am blessed now to be able to better share the drivers behind the work.

Feldenkrais is so much more than yoga, as it builds body awareness and helps give you strength, balance, greater effiency of movement, and more! It can actually take your yoga practice to a whole new level. Since people know yoga, we can compare it with a session with a local yoga guru: $400. For that increased confidence and decreased depression due to getting back into life physically as well as relating to the world differently we could throw in the cost of years’ worth of psychotherapy, life coaching, different body and brain methods including just a few: massage therapy, reiki, acupuncture, brain wave therapy. Plus, we’d throw in medications and supplements. Total all of this up and we are talking thousands and thousands of dollars! Compared to 10 sessions with me being under $1000. If we want to look individually for these results people are looking for with what they know already: maybe $50 for that psychotherapy session, but I bet you’d need more than one. Life coaching around the same or more depending on the coach. Acupuncture from a good one $150, $90 for a good massage, $60 for reiki, $250 for brain wave therapy. Multiply that by each session. Studying with a zen master $120, Self-help seminar on increasing joy hundreds to thousands depending on the course, a day at the spa $300, natural face cupping for a natural face lift $50.

I really feel my work does all those things and better as I connect to people’s brains which can transform everything. That’s a heck of a tally to add up. Stating my price doesn’t seem high at all, in fact with all the value I see more clearly now, I may just have to increase my prices. Depending on what results a person is looking for I could have a chart of the cost savings they’d potentially be making by exploring my work versus adding up all of the other related services. Some people like to see numbers and I will give them that comparison with a better understanding of the psychology driving forces behind them. We are all here wanting to share our value to the people who are looking for what we have to offer. Bundling individual sessions along with group classes and services is another topic I am eager to explore in this book as well to help me reach and transform more lives, as not all of us have the same amount we can spend, but there are still great ways I can provide value even to those on a tighter budget. Stay tuned for more!