5 Reasons To Increase Your Prices
So this one is for the decal sellers, or Etsy shop owners or small business bosses that are working super hard and deserve to be earning a bit more, and might just need a little push to remind them of their worth and that they deserve to be making a good living for themselves!
I just thought this was an important video and post to make, because I’ve had times where I felt like I would lose customers if I raised my prices, or questioned whether my decals were even good enough to charge more for, even though I work so hard on them. So even if this just reminds one person that they’re doing an amazing job and that they deserve to be paid fairly for what they make then it’s definitely worth it!
Watch the video here…
The below content contains affiliate links and we may earn a commission if you shop through them, however this won't cost you anything, it just helps us to keep the site running for free. For more information on affiliate links, see the disclosure here.
…or check out the post below…
First of all, if you’re not even sure you’re charging the right amount to begin with, please do consider having a look at my course! It’s free for 2 weeks on Skillshare and can help you figure out everything you need to think about when you’re setting your prices for your items! It is aimed at vinyl decal sellers but pretty much anyone with a product-based business should be able to find lots of helpful tips for pricing their items.
But if you’ve already set your prices, and you are making a profit, but perhaps not much of a profit, then these are just 5 reasons why you may want to increase your prices…
You’re not paying yourself a living wage
So even if you’re making a profit, you might not necessarily be paying yourself enough for the amount of time that you’re spending on your business. And it’s really easy to forget about it when your head is in the business and you’re not taking a step back, but if you think about all of the time you’re spending on social media, and answering customer messages, and maybe going to the post office, creating new products etc etc, are you definitely paying yourself enough? Again do check out my course if you’re not sure as there is some guidance on how to figure that out!
2. You’re much cheaper than your competitors
I don’t really suggest you do a lot of stalking your competitors, as it’s too easy to compare yourself, or unconsciously copy something, BUT… you don’t want to be underselling yourself or undercutting competition as it’s not a good look, and also doesn’t send the best message to your customers either. They may assume that your products are not as good quality as others, when I’m sure that is not the case.
And I’m only talking about noticeabley cheaper here, if you’re just a tiny percentage cheaper then that’s totally fine, you may have cheaper suppliers or something. But anything that makes a customer question why you are so much cheaper could potentially be a problem and make them go elsewhere.
Photo by Liza Summer from Pexels
3. Any of your costs have went up
The suppliers that you buy from may have put their prices up slightly, or you may have started buying better quality materials, or shipping costs may be a bit more. But also, have you had to start paying for new design software, or scheduling software to keep up with your social media posting, or have your Etsy fees increased because of the offsite ads…
All of these things may only seem like a small amount, but over time they can add up and can eat into your profits, especially if there are lots of small incremental changes from various different suppliers, so you need to be adding them into the cost of what you’re selling.
Photo by Teona Swift from Pexels
This also applies if you are hiring anyone, buying more machines, moving into premises etc, although you probably want to be charging enough before you make any of those commitments, to make sure your customers are definitely happy to keep paying you first.
4. You are making so many sales that you can’t keep up.
This is purely because it’s better to be making less sales for more money, than more sales for less money. And obviously if you’re that busy, then whatever you’re selling must be amazing!
Just obviously be aware that if you raise prices significantly then you may need to think about some extra value you can add, which may not then make it worth it in the long run. But it could be something to think about anyway.
5. Your prices have been the same for a long time.
Inflation basically means you’re effectively paying yourself less every year unless you raise your prices. So if no other reason has spoken to you, then let this one be the one!
And I can’t go into much more detail than that, because I know very little about inflation.
Photo by Austin Chan on Unsplash
So if nothing else, hopefully, that was a reminder for you to just double-check every now and again that you’re paying yourself enough, even if you don’t put your prices up yet.
And also it goes without saying that you don’t want to outprice yourself either, and there is probably a limit to how much you can charge without adding a lot of extra value.
You also always get some people that complain, because those people just love a reason to whinge, but if you can justify your prices then there shouldn’t be anything to stop you. And I’m sure you can!
I hope you found that helpful, let me know in the comments if you will be raising your prices soon!