Where Exactly Does The Value Lie?

Perfection for suppliers would be to ask for and get the maximum each customer is willing to pay, every time.  In the real, imperfect world Service Providers need other ways to determine the value each customer places on their offerings, so they can then set their price accordingly.

In this world it is value, not cost, that drives price.  It might seem like a paradox but cost and value are sometimes inversely related.  It is not uncommon to make the premium product or service the most efficiently produced item and then to deliberately downgrade or delay the top models (and incur more cost) in order to create 'standard' products.

It always has been true, everywhere, that it's the ideas which are more valuable than the act of carrying them out.  In a manufacturing context, the lowest value item in the 'production chain' is often the actual manufacturing of the product.  So we probably shouldn't care if this is done in a low cost part of the world, as this stage is of least value to the customer.

“It's the ideas which are more valuable than the act of
  carrying them out”

It's the 'concept' and the 'after service' which are the most valuable stages, and this notion can be extended to many industries.  When thinking about Professional Services, 'concept' equates to 'diagnosis of value'.  This is a hugely valuable stage in the overall selling process, for both parties.

If you agree with these thoughts and would like to find out more about pricing your services on the value your customers get out of them so you can make sales without selling and get paid what you're worth, visit www.sws3.co.uk to download 30 more free practical ideas you can implement straight away in your business.

Service providers who charge for their time or their materials, or whose prices are influenced by their competitors can find out how to get paid what they're really worth at www.sws3.co.uk