September 15, 2018
Big vs Expensive
There is a difference between a big problem and an expensive problem.
A big problem is one that affects a large number of people and has severe consequences. An expensive problem is one someone will pay a lot of money to solve.
There can be overlap between the two, but not always. Some problems are both big and expensive, some are big but not expensive, and some are expensive but not big.
For example:
- Curing cancer—Big and expensive. It affects a large number of people, has severe consequences, and people are paying lots of money to solve it.
- Distracted driving—Big but not expensive. It affects a large number of people, has severe consequences, but (as far as I know) nobody is paying a lot of money to solve it. (I could be wrong about this... more tomorrow)
- Website downtime—Not big but expensive. It rarely affects a large number of people, it rarely has severe consequences, but plenty of people pay a lot of money to prevent it.
From a value pricing standpoint, you probably want to be looking for problems in the third category. Almost by definition, you won’t read about them in the news.
So how do you find them? By listening. Really listen to what people are saying when you speak with them.
If you hear emotionally charged language like “I hate it when...” or “I’d love it if...” or “It drives me crazy when...” or “I really wish...” then it’s time to start investigating. You might have stumbled onto an expensive problem.
Yours,
—J
P.S. This first week of The Pricing Seminar is all about finding expensive problems that clients will happily pay you to address. It’s not too late for you to join over 100 peers from all types of professions who are tired of not being paid what they’re worth. Registration closes Monday Sept 17 at midnight ET. Learn more »