Are Your Boats Too Expensive? If So, Here's How to Reduce The Price Without Having to Lower It!
Let me start by asking you 2 questions:
Which table is longer?
Which one is wider?
Now, I’m sure that you thought the longest one was the one on the left and the widest one was the one on the right.
Well, wrong answer!
They both have the exact same length and width.
We all fall into the same trap and believe that one is longer or wider than the other.
One of the reasons for this phenomenon is because we judge and interpret everything around us based on our environment. So, if you artificially change the environment, you can change the way you interpret and perceive things.
Your customers already know how to subjectively inflate or deflate the size and value of their boats…
They Might Tell Attractive Women That They Own a Yacht, But On The Other Hand, They Tell The IRS They Own A Dinghy!
What about you?
Do you know which visual or psychological techniques that’ll reduce the perception of your boats’ price?
You see, perception determines reality in our lives. It can easily be influenced if you know how to do it. I am going to reveal to you a few of the most simple and efficient techniques to do so. There is a huge mismatch between what science knows and what businesses do. My goal is to help you reduce this gap by sharing with you the best studies, research and techniques to boost your sales and grow your business.
So, let’s get right into it and review… here are 5 simple psychological triggers that reduce price:
#1 Change The Font On Your Quote Or Price List
Font has a huge impact on value and price perception. Dr.Hyunjin Song and Norbert Schwarz conducted research involving a sushi recipe. Subjects who saw the instruction in Arial font estimated that preparation would take 4 to 5 minutes, while those who saw the instructions in Mistral, a more complicated font, expected it to take 9 to 10 minutes. Their perception of value (here time to prepare the meal) was up 50% with a different font.
Have you noticed that in fancy restaurants the menu is often written in a fancy font? This is simply because fonts can increase the perception of value and customers will be willing to pay more.
For instance, in which restaurant would you rather eat and be willing to pay more:
You see, font has a huge influence on our perception of value and price, so use it to your advantage.
#2 Remove The Dollar Sign
A study done by Cornell University reported that restaurant guests were more likely to overspend when the dollar sign was not shown next to the prices on the menu.
This principle doesn’t only apply to restaurants. A lot of luxury websites do not show the dollar sign on their product: Neiman Marcus, Valentina, etc.
*Source drawing: www.blog-growth.com
#3 Make The Numbers Physically Smaller
Another academic study found that a sale price is more palatable when it is written in a smaller typeface. A price that is physically larger creates a perception of being “more.” After all, things that are big are big; things that are small are small. Big prices should be big; small prices should be small.
#4 Change The Color Of The Price
I keep reading fascinating studies about the colour red. A recent neuroscience study reported that waitresses wearing red tops were tipped, on average, 16 to 24% more by male customers. Did you know as well that subjects with red clothing on dating sites have a much higher response rate than others?
Researchers in the UK and the US found that the colour red has a huge influence on value perception.
You can read more in a study titled: Are men seduced by red? The effect of red versus black prices on price perceptions.
You can make your prices seem lower without actually lowering them. Red still has an influence on women, but not as much as on men. The perceived savings is twice as high as when printed in black.
#5 Use The Proper Words
What differentiates a one-dollar bill from a hundred-dollar bill?
The message.
And it’s the same for words.
Some words are worth $1 and others are worth $100.
I came across this great example while reading the book Brainfluence. The author was presenting an example of the Panera menu. Which one of the following sandwiches sounds more appealing to you?
Sandwich One: Ham, egg and cheese on wheat bread sandwich.
Or…
Sandwich Two: Our breakfast Power Sandwich starts with lean hardwood smoked ham in a freshly cracked egg. Then we add Vermont white cheddar for his tangy sharpness. Finally, we grill everything on our freshly baked wholegrain bread to bring out the grains’ nutty smooth flavour.
You can see that compelling, emotionally rich adjectives can greatly increase interest for your product. Adjectives that can turn an average sandwich into a mouthwatering, tantalising sales magnet.
These Small Changes Will Make A Big Difference In The Perception Of Your Boat's Value
Now, you don’t need to implement huge changes to see results in your business and success is always closer than you think.
One of my favourite principles in life is the Law of Winning Edge. This is probably one of the most important laws in life and very few people know about it.
The Law of Winning Edge states: A small difference in effort will end up in a huge difference in result.
Here’s the thing: we often imagine successful people in our field as being extremely superior to us, when in reality we are so close to them.
Let’s use the example of a horse race:
Horse #1 might be 0.01% faster than horse #2 but will win 50 times more. Horse #1 will be 0.05% faster than the horse #4 and will win 1000 times more.
This applies in boat sales as well. The difference between losing a boat buyer to the competition is pretty small but the difference in numbers will be huge.
There is no reward for second place in sales, so every little effort will count.
I hope that you enjoyed those few tips about pricing. Remember that prices are completely made up, subjective and can easily be inflated or deflated depending on the environment you present them to your prospects.
Did You Find These 5 Pricing Techniques Helpful? If So, I've Got An Entire “Toolkit” Of...
… proven techniques and strategies that I’ve used to grow numerous boat broker businesses.
But this “toolkit” is reserved for my private clients only.
However, if you’re interested in becoming one of them, I would personally work with you 1-on-1 in your brokerage business to help you double your revenue over the next 3 months (and beyond).
But first, we should talk.
So, if you feel this is for you, shoot me an email, schedule a call, or WhatsApp me.
To your success!
— Vincent Finetti
Founder & Instructor
Yacht Sales Academy
P.S. Try a listing strategy from my FREE Listing ebook here.
P.P.S. I’m doing an exclusive virtual Listings & Sales Workshop with a small group next month to go deep in applying my best strategies to your brokerage business.
Would you like to join us? If so, go here and enter your name and email for more details!
P.P.P.S Check out my client results here.
