Value-Based Fees: How to Charge—and Get—What You're Worth: A Guide for Consultants, Second Edition

8.6. IGNORING THE COMPETITION

I've often stated that if you don't know what the competition is charging, you're probably charging too little. But I don't mean to imply that you should peg your fees to those of the competition. The former is merely market intelligence. The latter is simply foolhardy.

Don't allow any buyer to tell you that the competition is charging so much and that you should come in below that. Don't listen to the argument that "this is what we've paid in the past and expect to continue to pay" for consulting services.

The whole point in developing a relationship prior to conceptual agreement is to ferret out these kinds of (sometimes) legitimate expectations and (sometimes) devious devices to depress fees. You are not like past consultants (which is why you're there), and you don't do what the competition does (which is why you're there). Telling a Mercedes dealership that the Buick place down the street charges much less will get you an uncomprehending stare or a firm "So what?" Telling an airline that you're accustomed to paying the amount of tolls on the New Jersey Turnpike to drive from New York to Philadelphia and that you expect an equivalent airfare will get you escorted away. Telling a theater that your budget only permits you to pay $2.50 will not gain you admittance to the show. So why should you listen to similar irrational arguments regarding your services?

Educate your buyer immediately and repeatedly that what's gone before is history and what ...