Pricing your coaching services

“What? 100.000 € per year?” I shouted very surprised when I heard about the retainers some of my North American colleagues use to price their services. This sparked a discussion among SolutionsAcademy graduates and friends on our mailing list. How much to charge is one of the most difficult decisions of a coach. You don’t want to overprice, you don’t want to underprice and then there is this pesky question of “how much am I worth?”

So how can we find the price that is just right? Here are some considerations.

The right price for you:

• How much are you investing in your continuous development?

• How much are you investing in your infrastructure (website, marketing, ….)?

• How much do you need for your daily life?

• How much of a share does coaching have in your income mix?

• How many hours would you like to coach per month?

• Are you open to “sliding scale” or “gift economy” solutions?

The right price for your clients?

• What are clients getting in return?

• What would be the cost of not being coached by you?

• What would other solutions to the client's issue cost them?

• How much is your competition charging?

• How much are similar professions charging in your area?

• How high is the demand for your services?

What am I worth?

Literally, forget that question. If you attach “your worth” to the money you can charge for your services, language has trapped you big time. Your worth as a human being has nothing to do with it. Every human being has value, no matter how smart, ugly, kind, annoying, etc. they may be. The same is true for people who talk about “selling yourself”. No, you are not “selling yourself”. You are providing a service, just like a plumber or hairdresser. You trade in conversation and leading great conversations is your skill and that is what you are selling, not “yourself”. I don’t want to mention the image that comes up when you are using these words.

So be mindful of the language you are using around pricing your services – it is not about you, but about balancing your needs and wishes with market realities and then testing it out. See how many of your clients flinch when you mention your price: If no-one flinches, your services are too cheap. If no-one hires you, you are probably too expensive.

If you want to exchange pricing tips, learn about our courses or just hang out with a bunch of cool people, why not join one of our free meetup and exchange sessions?

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