It wasn’t until a year into running Scalable that I realized I had been massively underpricing our services.

I knew that our quotes needed to better align with the quality and scope of our work, but I was nervous.

What if raising prices—even gradually—will drive away our best clients?

How do I approach these price changes as delicately as possible?

These were just some of the questions that came to mind.

While I was pleasantly surprised at clients’ willingness to pay more when the increase landed, pricing at a premium has only worked because I’ve learned 7 massive lessons about client retention at the same time.

They are:

1. Target the ideal client

2. Set clear expectations

3. Embrace your positioning

4. Do what you say

5. Deliver quick results

6. Report back often

7. Have a process

Alright, let’s get into it.

Target the Ideal Client

Better yet, work only with your ideal client once you can afford to do that.

There are a few reasons for this.

First, your ideal client will be the easiest to work with and to get results for. Perhaps more importantly, they’ll have the most potential to scale services for in the future.

I can’t overstate how important this is.

Set Clear Expectations

The key to practicing this is to align your client’s expectations with yours from the beginning. Resist the urge to oversell yourself when prospecting.

If you know your client’s goals and have a realistic plan to achieve them, there’s no reason for them to churn.

Embrace Your Positioning

I work with clients doing $2m to $50m.

That said, many business owners want to hire a full-time CFO at $25m or $50m.

If I do my job well, they will transition from me to a full-time CFO rather seamlessly. By making this transition point clear and easy, clients stay longer.

Do What You Say

Whatever you commit to, do it.

Trust is the key to any long-term relationship, and you can only trust people who do what they say they will. Clients are no different.

Deliver Quick Results

When onboarding new clients, make them a priority. Score a few quick wins to start the engagement off strong.

The more value you can add upfront, the longer they will stay with you.

What you’re really doing here is aiming to reduce any buyer’s remorse on an expensive service by overdelivering in the first few months.

Report Back Often

At least once a month, report back to clients in a consistent format to let them know how the work is going.

Don’t attempt to hide errors or negative feedback either. Instead, lay it all out.

Doing so requires a bit of courage, but it’ll make solving real problems far easier. This is also a great way to quickly earn the trust of your clients.

Have a Process

People love structure, and they especially love to see you tracking toward their goals.

Offering clients a streamlined process for onboarding, working together, and revisiting goals will make them stay longer. The reason that this is so effective is that a structured engagement connects the dots for them. At the same time, you’ll come off as a professional.

Need help scaling your business or just want to ask some finance questions?

Hit reply or DM me. As always, I’m happy to help.

Putting It All Together

Here are your top takeaways from this week’s post.

1. Price increases don’t have to drive your best clients away.

2. You can easily charge a 20-30% premium for your services without churning by doing the following: targeting the ideal client, setting clear expectations, embracing your positioning, doing what you say, delivering quick results, reporting back often, and having a process behind every stage of the engagement.

3. These 7 steps work by communicating your value to clients, delivering on every promise, and ensuring that the service more than pays for itself.

4. Reporting back often and providing structure at every step of the engagement inspire confidence that you are tracking their goals and sharing their priorities.

Hungry for More?

1. Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn for daily content to take your business to the next level.

2. Book a call to learn how Scalable can transform your SMB.

3. Shoot me an email with your questions or requests for what you’d like me to write about next.

‘Til Next Time,

Connor