EA219: Pricing Creativity with Author Blair Enns [Podcast]

Pricing Creativity What is it that we sell as small firm architects? Is it a pile of paper? A bunch of technical services? A legal process required to obtain a building permit? What we sell is a desired future state. Whether we’re working with commercial, institutional or residential clients, they have an idea in their minds about how they’d like their lives to be in the future. We’ve all experienced the moment at the end of the project when our clients finally get it and understand the value we provide. We need them to understand the value of what we do before we do it. This week at EntreArchitect Podcast, Pricing Creativity with Author Blair Enns. Background Blair Enns is the sand in the free pitching machine. Through his sales training program for creative professionals, Win Without Pitching, he is on a mission to change the way creative services are bought and sold the world over. He is the author of The Win Without Pitching Manifesto and Pricing Creativity: A Guide to Profit Beyond The Billable Hour. Blair lives with his family in the remote mountain village of Kaslo, British Columbia, Canada. Origin Story Blair lives in a small mountain village in British Columbia, Canada. He grew up in the center of Canada, in business side of the advertising and design professions. He began as an account manager and moved into new business roles as his strengths developed. He started Win Without Pitching as a consulting practice and a way to earn a living so that he could drop out of the advertising profession. One day, he realized his limitations in the business were going to take him out if he didn’t change them. He began to scale out and build a training organization in early 2013. Do you see a lot of creative and profit difference in your circles? When people start their own small firms as artists, you’re doing it for fun. Sometimes we delude ourselves to think the money will come one day, or that it’s not about the money. One day, you realize you’re tired of having fun and ready to make money. What do you do if you’re a creative professional who loves design and wants to make money? If you’re going into business for yourself, the business part is more important than the art. Get a business education. Instead of just being inspired and only focusing on the art; you’ll burn yourself out and be unable to find success. It’s about value creation for your clients. Learn how to select and shape good clients and good engagements, and your best engagements will allow you to bring your artistic skills to the table – always to the ultimate goal of delivering value to the client.  You have something you want to do with every client you have, but it’s not just about you. Your focus is on your client and their different values. What is price discrimination?  Different people are willing to pay different amounts for the same thing and your job is to let them. The reason they’ll pay different amounts is because the value to them is different. You have the license to charge as much as you want to. You may evaluate something as valued one way, where your client thinks it’s worth half that. What do you do in that situation? Offer options. If your client asks for a proposal, what you put forward should have options. Delivering one proposal puts your...

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