Carlos and Ben wrap up their Happy Pricing podcast series with a look back on what they’ve learned, and take a moment to think about what’s next.

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What's the first thing you do when a potential customer tells you that they don't want to work with you? Run and hide? Here's how it went…

You've had a great conversation. You've explained to them what you do and how experienced you are. They nodded and smiled and listened to everything you said. They even asked some questions. They then asked you to send them a proposal and a price.

You do that. And then tumbleweed.

A couple of days later you follow up with an email, and a couple of days after that they get back to you saying no. How does that feel? And what do you do?

For most people it feels like a punch in the gut – a painful rejection, particularly when the initial conversation felt so promising. And for most, after hearing such news, they put their tails between their legs and retreat.

But when is no really a no? And if it's really a no, what were the reasons for the no? Who knows?

On today's episode, Ben and Carlos share the things you need to do when you hear a no, so you can either turn it into a yes or find out the real reasons behind it. They also talk about the feelings that being told no can create and how we deal with them.

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When you’re working for yourself or running a small business, navigating challenging times can feel like being a little boat on choppy seas. Your job is to keep the boat float until calmer waters come.

You're feeling nauseous from the continues ups and downs of the waves and at the same time you’re trying to scrabble around grabbing ropes trying to steady the sail and keep on course.

That's a lot to deal with on your own. So what can you do?

For Ben, these three quotes helped:

• "A whole and rich life can be lived in a small village."
• "The most important thing is to know is to know the most important thing."
• "Some of the worst things in my life never even happened."

On today’s episode, Ben and Carlos talk about how these quotes helped Ben in his meditation business and how they could help you.

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How would you sell and price an immersive retreat experience for people in the corporate world?

What would we need to do to be confident and clear about the value and the cost?

There have been similar discussions within the Happy Startup community about pricing services for corporate clients.

In this episode, bioinspired business consultant Lucy (of Work Wild) joins Carlos and Ben to discuss pricing experiences in nature for teams of varying sizes, from small charities to large corporates.

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Carlos was watching a webinar from the "6 figure side hustle" people when he heard them talk about some really interesting pricing principles.

"People aren't logical. They're psychological."

And so there are simple things you can do that can help you increase your prices.

Whilst it may seem like manipulation, it's also about believing in the value you create – and making sure your customers believe in it too.

On this episode, Ben and Carlos discuss options and ordering, framing, and 10xing your price.

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Alexlouise is a money success coach and author of Rock Solid Money Maker. She joins Carlos and Ben to talk about financial freedom. They cover what it means for her and what she believes you need to think and do to achieve it.

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Ben and Carlos reflect on the pricing of the Do Lectures’ latest course, the Secrets of Small Magical Events – a course to help you run events that benefit your business rather than burn you out.

For over 15 years, David and his team at the Do Lectures have iterated towards a model for an events business that works for them, and now they’re sharing it with others.

Both Laurence and Carlos were curious about this course, as this they hosted their own small “magical” event, the Happy Startup Summercamp which is now in its 10th year.

Maybe they could teach a similar course themselves? But how much could they sell it for, and to whom? Well, why not learn from what’s gone before?

Looking through the lens of the Happy Pricing course, Carlos and Ben analyse and reflect on the Do Lectures course and try to understand how they’ve pitched their pricing.

If you’re thinking of selling your own magical events or you’re wondering how to design your own high ticket offer, this episode should help you.

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Recently one of the Happy Startup community members approached Carlos with a challenging situation. They are owed several thousands of pounds for work they’d done for their client but the client said they were unable to pay the whole amount in one go.

While they’ve offered to pay in a set of 3 monthly instalments, the community member is feeling nervous about that proposal – they’re worried they won’t get paid the full amount. However, they were nearly going accept this offer but caught themselves before saying yes.

They’re a compassionate, kind person who is always willing to help. They also know some of the current cashflow challenges that their client has. However, they have their own needs. They’re needing to move home soon and will need money for deposits and removal people. They need the cash too.

So rather than defaulting to meeting someone else’s needs before their own, it was time for them to have some clear conversations about money.

While we need more generous people in the world, if this generosity is actually a mask that hides a need to please or a fear of confrontation then it can also cause harm rather than just good. It can have an impact on your own wellbeing and sustainability.

Asking for money isn’t wrong when you’re owed it… and you’re worth it.

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Tom Nixon is a coach who helps founders create purpose-driven companies. He's also the founder of Maptio, an online tool that helps fast-changing organisations visually map how their teams are organised and evolve.

And he's the author of Work With Source, a modern guide to business building. And he's also a money geek. He sells coaching services, and he sells a software product.

On today's episode, he shares his pricing approach to both.

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If you’re a coach, consultant or agency one way to be able to guarantee some steady income is to work on a retainer basis.

But what does that mean from the client’s perspective? How do you generate the commitment from clients to engage in a longer relationship, particularly if the work you do can be responsive and emergent? How do you set the boundaries and expectations for the work? And how do you come to am acceptable price for the monthly retainer?

This blog post by Tom Nixon is a helpful way to think about selling client-friendly retainers.

He talks about about how sales is consulting, how to sell value and find the right number, and how to cultivate commitment and make it easier for clients to say yes.

On this episode, Ben and Carlos offer their thoughts to help you sell client-friendly retainers that meet your need for focus, stability and to do good work.

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