I’ll get to that grrr-inducing word in a sec.

But first:

A person in a group I’m in posted about a podcast they listened to…

And there was mention of a link between people who are comfortable talking about money… and working with clients who will practically throw cash at them.

Interesting 🤔

So they asked the group:

“Is your dollar value determined by your skills? Or by the perceived value you deliver to the exact client you’re approaching?”

And yours truly… not being one to keep his gob shut when there’s money-talk (or any talk) going on…

Replied with the following (only slightly edited):

Because clients pay for problems to be solved…

It’s not your skills that they’re paying for but the outcome you use your skills to deliver

[***If you remember nothing else from this email, remember this line ☝️☝️☝️. It will pay for itself many times over!***]

That’s why testimonials — and other evidence of previous results — will be more valuable to you than waving a certification in a client’s face.

If a client is looking at ROI [return on investment] — with the “law” at play that you gotta spend money to make money” — it’ll likely be less of a battle being paid “what you’re worth”.

Plus:

I’d probably not talk in terms of “perceived value” but “relative value”.

And that will involve clients evaluating risk. E.g., of taking on a lower-charging newbie vs a higher-charging veteran.

Your job is to sell yourself so you reduce perceived risk in their eyes

Certainly getting comfortable having money conversations…

Which means having sales conversations…

Which means being confident and not needy…

Is going to lead to better pricing outcomes as a freelance writer.

The main skill to develop here is: sales

And I know half of you reading that will be recoiling in pain at the mention of the cursed “S” word.

Ask yourself:

Why?

Then ask:

Am I going to let my current discomfort with sales limit me to a hamster-wheel of order-taking?

And if you’re someone who loves sales… good on you!

Really… sales is about sorting, sifting, and filtering. And helping prospective clients see you as the ideal option to help them.

And I love coaching freelancers who are wanting to build confidence with sales.

Listen. Diagnose. Prescribe. … That’s sales!

Chris “sales ain’t so scary” Milham

P.S. My introductory price for coaching is ending on 29th Feb.

Lock this in for future calls if you contact me before the end of Feb.

Reply if you want help getting “unstuck” in your freelancing business.

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Chris Milham