Why “Cheap” or “Expensive” May Be Costing You Money
How often do you say something is “cheap” or “expensive” when talking about price?
We’ve all been in a situation where the price comes up and you might blurt out, “This is the expensive or cheaper option” without even thinking twice about it.
It feels like we’re coming from a place of understanding one another and what the expectations are. It feels factual because afterall, it is the more expensive or cheaper option that you’re sharing about, right?
What if using those two words could be costing you a lot of money?
Here are 3 reasons why I recommend eliminating “cheap” and “expensive” from your sales vocabulary:
Neither word is factual. Both words are actually opinionated based on how you perceive the value of something to be. By using them, you’re showing your own bias towards what is “expensive” and what is “cheap.”
Everyone perceives value differently. What may be “cheap” to you may be “expensive” to someone else and vice versa. Money is relative to the situation. When I first started in sales, I had told a client that something was “cheap” and they had fallen in love with it! By telling them this, I actually ended up offending them and they walked. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how we perceive something, it only matters how they do.
You end up telling them how to feel about a price. If they didn’t originally perceive something as “expensive” and you tell them it is, then you end up influencing how they feel about it. Imagine if you told someone that this was the “expensive” option, they might wonder why that one costs so much and could potentially question whether or not something is worth the price you’re asking for.
Instead of using “cheap” or “expensive,” I recommend using the words “this one costs more/less” and then explain why. This keeps it factual, because one does cost more than the other, and lets you lead with the value and allowing the client to decide what it is worth.
Next time you’re discussing price, try this little trick! And if you do, please share with me. I’d love to hear your thoughts.