How to make your price seem like a no brainer

So you know how every time you go to Target, the cashier asks if you want to open a Red Card to save 5%. You say, "No thanks" and continue checking out. Because 5% really doesn't sound like much.

The last time I was at Target, the cashier used a different tactic. He said, "In this county, our sales tax rate is 5%. So with the Red Card, it's like taking what you paid Uncle Sam and putting it right back in your pocket." By comparing it to something people know and already understand, he made the benefit of the card so much more tangible.

You can do the same thing in your copy by comparing the price of your offer to something your customers already understand. Make it tangible to make the sale. When you start to re-frame the cost, people can see the value in a different way.

Here’s a few real life examples to show how you could do this:

PIIT28

In February I signed up for this monthlong workout program. The program cost $39, which many people in this particular fitness community saw as expensive. The customers in this community are generally young, including a lot of high school and college students. They’re used to getting workouts for free from this trainer’s YouTube channel, so to them it felt like a lot to spend.

If I was writing the copy for this program, I would compare the price to what the average person spends on fast food in a month. I know when I was in high school and college, I ate out a lot. And while it doesn’t seem expensive to spend $5 here and $8 there, it adds up over the month.

This study shows the average American spends $100/month on fast food. When you look at it that way, all you’d have to do to afford the program is cut back on fast food for a month, which is something you might do anyway if you’re starting a new fitness challenge.

Unf*ckwithable Girlfriends

Another brilliant example of this strategy can be found on the Unf*ckwithable Girlfriends sales page. Ash compares the price of the $25 subscription to taking her out to dinner. Doesn’t that sound delightful? I’d love to buy Ash dinner and dish with her about business.

Just sitting on the page, $25 a month might seem like a lot. But when you compare it to something you’re already spending money on, it’s easier to justify the cost to ourselves. We think about how we would easily spend $25 going out to dinner. By giving it context, it’s easier to see the value.

So how do you do this on your sales page?

This is a great tactic to use on your own sales page, but you don’t want to do it the way everybody else is doing it. I see a lot of people say something along the lines of “just think how much money you’re leaving on the table by not taking this course right now” or “in a year from now, you’ll wish you started today.” Those are weak comparisons. Those aren’t tangible. People can’t imagine the impact from the service, because what it’s being compared to it too generic.

To do this well, you need to understand your audience. You need to think about what they’re already spending money on. If you compare your price to something that’s not on their radar, this tactic won’t work. In the PIIT28 example above, my first thought was to compare it to a class at a gym. But the problem with that is those customers aren’t spending money at the gym. They’re already working out at home with free videos from YouTube. They do spend money on food though.

The more concrete and specific you can be with the comparison, the more impact it will have.

Want to know how to position your high priced services? Check out this post for tips to show off the value of your high end packages.