What do you say when clients ask for a discount?

“Why?” is the perfect response to a discount request

Before you respond to a request for a discount, find out why the customer is asking for it

Many small business owners, professional service providers, and even a lot of professional salespeople find it difficult to deal with customers who want to haggle over price.

In the past when quoting my professional fees to someone who wanted to negotiate, my usual practice was to say that I could only reduce my fee if I reduced the services.

That sounds good in theory and it might work in some circumstances, but it never really worked for me. I always ended up doing the same amount, or more, of work and was usually ticked off at myself and the client for agreeing to work for less than what I deserved.

So I just started saying no to discount requests. Sometimes I would soften it by pointing out that if I were willing to reduce the price it would mean that I was intentionally overcharging to begin with, but I would stand firm.

Then I discovered a great way to deal with clients who want you to lower your price.

Ask them why.

Whether you sell a product or service, when you quote a price and the customer asks you to reduce it, ask them why they feel they’re entitled to a discount.

Be polite but toss the request back to the customer. Gently force them to consider and explain what they’re asking.

Don’t justify your price. Ask them to justify why they should pay less.

Sometimes their request is valid, sometimes it isn’t. And sometimes the simple act of asking the question will prompt the customer to withdraw the request.

I’ve had clients include the “why” when they ask for the discount.

Sometimes they say they can’t afford my fee. In that case, I refer them to sources where they might be able to find writers who charge less. Or, if they’re looking for someone to help them publish a book, I suggest they check out my book, The Simple Facts About Self-Publishing.

Sometimes the discount can be justified by volume, such as when a client wants to buy 50, 100 or more copies of one of my books to use as a gift to their employees or customers. In that case, I’m happy to reduce the per copy price; I’ll still make a profit and that many more people will have the opportunity to be exposed to my work.

And I’ve even had a few people say they just don’t want to pay what I’m asking, even though they can afford it. That’s fine. I don’t want those clients.

I’ve learned over the years that my best clients — and the ones I work hardest for — are the ones who pay my fees without quibbling because they trust me and respect me as a professional. My best customers are the ones who buy my books at full retail price and thank me for them because what I wrote enriched their lives.

But instead of simply saying no, when someone asks for a discount, I ask why. Try it and see what happens.

An earlier version of this article was published on my site at CreateTeachInspire.com. You can reach me there or email me at [email protected]

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