Insights

UP. It takes you down.

UnderPromising.

Friend of the list, AI and Data Science expert, Genevieve Hayes replied to yesterday’s email on OD-ing (bold mine).

“Reading this email after yesterday’s email made me realise that underpromising/overdelivering and setting your price low to begin with are actually just two variations of the same thing. They are both risk management strategies caused by a lack of self-confidence in your own abilities, but both are bad in that they create a psychological anchor in the minds of your clients, which is very difficult to shift.”

She’s SOOOOO right.

We (over)compensate for our lack of confidence on our competence.

We tell ourselves:

“What if our clients don’t see our work as that valuable?

We have to do more.

We have to prove that we go beyond the expected.

Because that’s how we can get great work and referrals, right?“

So we underpromise. And doing so holds —and drives— your profitability down.

This is how UP becomes OD.

The underpromise

The probable promise in your head: A

What you tell the client you’ll do (leveraging their ignorance/lack of expertise in the field): B = A-1

The actual promise in the eyes of the client: B

The overdelivery

The delivered promise (your overdelivery): B+1 = A

Normal client expectation for further work: A

Normal price expectation for further work: B = A-1

Next time they’ll ask more of you and they’ll know you’ll do even more.

Maybe, even unconsciously, they know you’re underpromising. The natural response is to ask for more because they know you’ll comply.

The work you do: A

The work you charge for: A-1

Don’t fool yourself

Your way out

Guarantee your work. It’ll de-risk your client’s buying decision, will enable you charging a premium and will help you stay focus on them being delighted.

And if you want to know how to, here’s this serendipitous episode Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton launched today: How To Design Guarantees For Your Work + Products.

Remember, YAFA. ????

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