Authority In Pricing

There is a terrific local sit-down restaurant in my city: before the current situation, their entrees ran from about $20 to just shy of $40.

During the shutdown, they converted to a takeout/delivery model. They skinnied down their menu and kept their pricing the same other than a weekly special or two.

Thrilled they were staying open, many of us ordered takeout and tipped generously. One would think you’d have to be living under a rock not to understand that local restaurants are struggling and if we want them to succeed, we have to support them.

And yet the owner told me he’d had more than a few requests to discount prices since they weren’t getting “the full experience”.

Instead of caving, he explained that he still has rent to pay, employees to pay and an iffier supply chain. He politely suggested that if a discount was important to them, they go elsewhere.

While fine dining isn’t quite the same as selling authority—there are definitely a few similarities.

We have a choice as to how we position ourselves.

We have a choice to say no to bargain hunters (and make no mistake, they will be out in force as the economy eases).

And we have a choice about who we welcome into our space.

Sure, sticking to premium pricing is easier when you’ve already developed a following—but if you haven’t, now is an excellent time to begin.