The Circle of Price – why you need to charge what you’re worth when growing a bookkeeping business.

I was mentoring a bookkeeper who was complaining that her clients didn’t value her so I asked her what she was charging. She said old clients were $40 per hour and new clients $50. There were two problems. Firstly she is a Registered BAS Agent, has the required PI Insurance, undertakes ongoing professional development and provides her clients with reliable information so obviously wasn’t charging what she was worth.  And secondly, we’d had this discussion about a year ago but she didn’t put up her prices then! You’ve heard me harp on about getting paid what you’re worth and by the end of our chat I think the message finally got through to her.

If you need convincing that you should get paid what you’re worth you might be interested to hear what Dr Greg Chapman, MBA and Director of Empower Business Solutions calls “The Circle of Price”.

I love his simple explanation:

1. The more you charge, the more you are respected.
2. The more you are respected, the more your clients comply with your recommendations.
3. The more they comply, the better the results they get.
4. The more results they get, the more clients you get.
5. The more clients you get, the more you charge.
6. The more you charge, the more you are respected.

Perhaps when you first met your client they were a “rescue job” and you used your expertise to tame the bookkeeping monster and they are finally feeling in control and you’re empowering them around their finances by giving them reliable information to enable them to make strategic decisions about their business. You’re providing them with five-star service and an integral part of their team. What value do you think that has for your client? Are you charging enough for it?