When Alan Weiss’s book Million Dollar Consulting appeared in the 1990s, his call for consultants to charge fees based on value, rather than metrics such as time, seemed disruptive. Today, many consultants charge value-based fees, yet still don’t maximize their potential profits. Weiss shows you how to set higher fees while protecting your most valuable resource – your time. Create better outcomes for yourself and buyers, says Weiss, by properly respecting your value.
Charging high value-based fees ensures better outcomes for businesses and buyers.
Rather than charge by the hour, charge people for the value you offer. Shift your mind-set from that of a vendor fixated on financial survival to one of abundance: Tell yourself you offer something so valuable that clients or buyers will want to partner with you to work toward shared success. Failing to charge value-based fees is akin to burning money you can never recover.
When you set higher fees, people assume your product is higher quality. When people pay more for something, they feel personally invested and demonstrate high levels of buyer commitment, as opposed to only compliance, which leads to better outcomes for both buyer and seller.
For example, if you offer your consultancy services to someone at a discounted rate, they may appear “compliant” and amenable to your recommendations, but then reveal dissatisfaction toward the end of the project and create problems. Buyers who are simply compliant often fail to put in the effort to properly advocate for their needs and communicate their desired...
Alan Weiss’s firm Summit Consulting Group, Inc.’s clients include Merck, GE, Hewlett-Packard and Mercedes-Benz. His over 60 books include the bestseller, Million Dollar Consulting.
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