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Have you ever wondered where money comes from? I don’t mean where it’s printed or the economics of it. If it isn’t obvious already, there is a deeply ‘woo’ side of me while at the same time I love to geek out on cold hard facts, so I’m talking about the energetic exchange of money and how this exchange works.

I’m going to get into how value creates money and ways that we can increase the value and perceived value of what we’re selling. I’ve also got something that’s going to help you with understanding what value you bring to the table and how to set intentional pricing so make sure you listen right through to the end. Ok let’s get started.

Money is a neutral substance

First, let’s establish a fundamental truth right out of the gate, which is that money is a neutral substance. It’s neither good nor bad; it just is. Money, in itself, has no intrinsic value. I like to compare it to a hammer. If I asked you, is a hammer good or bad, what would you say? The answer is neither – a hammer can be used to build or destroy, it depends on whose hands it is in.

Think about it, money is a piece of paper or a coin with a number printed on it, which is almost comical when you think about it – considering that it can start wars, end marriages, rupture friendships, etc.

It’s value is derived from the worth we assign to it and the meaning we give to it.

Money can be an emotional, loaded topic because of this meaning we assign to it. We make it mean so much, but it’s simply a tool. And being a neutral tool, when we have it, or have alot of it, it simply makes us more of who we already are.

Money is an amplifier of who we already are

If we’re a generous and giving person in our hearts even when we have a little money, then when we have a whole lot more, we’ll be more generous and giving. While a person who is penny pinching or fearful of losing money will be even more so when they have alot of it. Someone who is very intentional with their money and great at managing it, saving it and investing it when they have a small amount is going to be really good at doing the same when they have alot. On the other hand, someone who is frivolous and wasteful with money when they have a little, will be even more wasteful when they have more. 

The way that we manage money and the way that we price our services actually has alot to do with our relationship to money and our beliefs about money. I’m not going to go too far down that rabbit hole today, because our relationship with money and beliefs about it has alot to do with our past experiences with money and what was modeled to us as a child. All that I want you to consider about that today is that people tend to project their own beliefs about money onto their clients.

For example, if you are afraid to charge a certain amount, to raise your prices perhaps or to tell a client when you’re speaking with them, if you find yourself feeling nervous or terrified to say the number or even to email it then you my friend are projecting your beliefs about money onto your clients.

Who is to say that what you consider to be expensive is what anyone else considers expensive. Your pricing should be very intentionally calculated based on your marketplace, what it costs you to run your business, to carry out the job in your unique way and of course to include a healthy profit margin.

When you price intentionally in this way, your pricing is not good or bad, it’s not expensive or cheap, no matter what anyone thinks because all of that is relative. Your pricing simply is. It is your job to present it and to show the value you bring in exchange, and it is your clients job to decide if you and your services align with them. If you have people telling you that you’re too expensive, it doesn’t mean you need to lower your pricing, it just means they’re not for you. So you can stop projecting your beliefs about money onto your clients right now and start setting intentional pricing. 

Value your time

The other thing we tend to do when we set our pricing, and I was so guilty of this when I was a newer photographer, is that we don’t value our time enough. We often don’t really know how long it takes us to do certain tasks, like editing.

Can you say with absolute certainty how long it takes you on average to edit a wedding? I know that a lot of us are using AI these days to help us with our editing and that’s fantastic but there is still time involved in that. Or, we don’t properly factor in how much travel we do for a job and how long it takes us to do that travel.

What we’re really saying when we don’t factor this time into our pricing is that we don’t value our own time. And that’s a huge mistake because time is the most valuable currency there is.

If we don’t value our own time, if we don’t charge for all of the time that we give to a job, then we can’t expect anyone else to value our time. It starts with how WE value our time.

Ok, I know I’m jumping around quite a bit today but there are a few points that I’m wanting to make here about value, time and pricing, because it’s all connected. But now I want to come back to the title of this episode which is that value creates money, and you’re probably wondering what exactly I mean by that. Well, when we give value to others through our time, knowledge and expertise, and our services and products, we’re meeting their needs, wants and desires. We’re exchanging one thing of value for another – money. In essence, money is a byproduct of the value that we offer.

For photographers, most of us probably think that the value we offer simply comes from capturing stunning photos and important memories for people. That goes without saying, but there are other ways that we can increase the value or perceived value of our services. Value is also created by providing an exceptional experience, it’s created through every single touch point that a client has with us, it’s created through our brand, through our pricing, and through attention to detail. Perceived value is influenced by all of these things. 

If we want to create more money in our business, then we need to create more value for people. The more value we give someone, the more we can charge. Simply put, value creates money.

How photographers can create more value:

1. Master your craft

The first is the most obvious and is probably not what you want to hear but I’m going to say it anyway because that’s what I’m here for. The quality of your work matters, the quality of your photos and your editing 100% matters. This one is a no brainer so that’s all I’m saying about it. If you’re not actively doing something about continuously improving your craft then none of the others matter.

2. Elevate your brand

Does your brand say ‘I‘m a professional’ in both your photos and also in the way you show up online and in person to jobs? Do you have a professional, highly curated website or are you just putting anything and everything out there? Are you showcasing work that your ideal client could see themselves in? Are your client guides and any marketing materials that you share beautiful and professional looking? Are you speaking to your clients in a professional way? Are you behaving in a professional way at your jobs? And that doesn’t mean stiff and boring by the way, it doesn’t mean professional in a corporate sense. Do you waltz up to the food table at jobs and help yourself to whatever you feel like and start munching away with the guests? Personally I don’t think that screams professional. Do you dress professionally at your jobs? Remember that you are your brand.

Your professionalism at jobs, the way you behave and dress, your online persona, and yes also your logo’s and colour palette, your messaging, and your photos, all of those things make up your brand and your brand influences how you’re perceived in the eyes of your potential clients. 

3. set strategic Pricing

How you price yourself affects the perceived value of your work. If I ask you to think of a Rolex watch vs an Apple watch, most of you won’t know anything about the technology or mechanics of how either of these watches actually work and you might even prefer the aesthetics of the Apple watch. That said, you still PERCEIVE the Rolex to hold more value because of its price point and its brand presence.

A higher price point can absolutely create the perception of higher value. That’s why they say pricing is branding. That doesn’t mean though that we can just go out there and double our prices for all of our services and call it a day. It doesn’t work like that, we have to actually demonstrate that value to our audience. 

4. show Social proof

Are you regularly making a point to share positive reviews and testimonials from satisfied clients on your website and social media? This will significantly increase your credibility and the perceived value of what you offer. Do you have a system in place for getting those testimonials and reviews after every job? Have you noticed a pattern, a repeated comment from your happiest clients? If you have that should give you a massive clue as to what your unique selling point is which you can leverage in your messaging. 

5. go the extra mile for your clients

For example if you’re a family, portrait, engagement or branding photographer – are you making it super easy for them to show up for the shoot feeling and looking their best? Are you offering the option for your clients to include hair and makeup when they book you? Are you sharing moodboards and wardrobe advice with them so that they look amazing in their photos? Not only are they going to feel like a rockstar and have the best experience when you do this, but your photos are going to be incredible too. When you go the extra mile like this, it sets you and your clients up for success and it also elevates the experience of working with you and the perception of your brand.

This is all part of the client experience which is how we create more value.

There are other ways that you can elevate the experience too. It’s all in the details from the moment that they enquire with you to completion of the job. How responsive are you, how good at communicating with them are you. How helpful and enthusiastic are you? For wedding photographers, do you thank them for their booking with a gift? Do you send a surprise print to them after the wedding day? And yes all of that would be factored into your pricing.

If you do an audit of your entire process of working with a client from the moment they enquire, I guarantee that you will find ways to elevate the experience that don’t necessarily have to cost you anything but your time.   

How to 10x your value

I learned a really cool exercise from my very clever mentor James Wedmore. He talks about doing this exercise in a slightly different context for online entrepreneurs but I’m adapting it here for you because it’s so relevant.

Write down the number that you’d like to charge for something – whatever the ideal price is that you’d like to charge for your favourite package for example. Then, you add a zero to the end of it. Now, that number will probably scare you but what you do next is write down absolutely every single thing you can think of that would make what you’re selling worth that number.

This is going to really get the creative juices flowing, start writing everything that comes to mind until you are satisfied that you’ve found new ways to increase the value of what you’re offering. What steps can you add to your process from enquiry through to delivery of the photo’s and even beyond that, that would make it worth this number?

Then, here comes the clincher, when you’re finished doing that and you’ve thought of absolutely every possible thing you can do to raise the value of your offering, you take away the zero. And there you have it, you’ve just found more ways to increase the value of what you’re selling. Now you can go out there and charge more for your services and attract more money into your life through the incredible value that you give to others.

This is an incredibly eye opening exercise to go through but there is one caveat to this – before you set any number as your final price, you must still know what it costs you to do business, what it costs you to carry out a job, and you need to know your profit margin on every package and every product that you offer. 

the Profit Planner

If you are someone who hasn’t done that yet, if you don’t know where to start and numbers feel overwhelming or even if you just want some help with setting your pricing, then you’ll absolutely want to check out my Profit Planner. This template will guide you through the entire process of strategically calculating your pricing. It will show you step by step how to set pricing in a way that guarantees more profit from every single job. It will also show you what services will help you hit your desired revenue goals. My promise to you if you use the Profit Planner is that you will never doubt your pricing ever again.

Thank you for having me in your ears today on the Good with Money podcast. Remember, keep creating and putting out value, get intentional with your pricing and watch how the abundance flows to you.