How much would you pay (or me charge) for this?

[cheaperthanchips]

I'm offering a reduced rate for a service I offer. My clients are professionals who are usually well paid. However, I want to offer a very reduced rate for a limited number as part of 'paying back' (for clients who may be temporarily short of funds.)

If the usual rate was £95, what do you think of the reduced rate:

£10
£15
£20

They'd need 4 bookings as it's a course.
I don't want to do it free as they need to have some skin in the game, even as a nominal fee.

to me it smacks of someone trying to get more work in the absence of much

especially as there would appear to be no expression of any need from the Op’s clients

@cheaperthanchips : "My clients are professionals who are usually well paid. However, I want to offer a very reduced rate for a limited number as part of 'paying back' (for clients who may be temporarily short of funds.)..."

I'd love to know what sort of "professional" forms your client base that they may be temporarily short of funds.

Actors? (If that's a profession...)

I’d offer one free session with 5 booked or a free session if they introduce someone

If you normally charge £95 and you are prepared to drop it down to £10, I would never ever pay the full £95 ever again.

i suspect it’s the op temporality short of funds and this is an idea she’s had for drumming up more business

Keep it simple.

Offer the discount you feel appropriate to the clients that you feel need it and will benefit from it after speaking to them.

You're tying yourself in knots on this thread overcomplicating things. You don't need to advertise the discount, if you do you're setting the expectation for every client.

If you're doing the discount as a public display of paying-it-forward be honest about that (nothing wrong with it) and want to use it for marketing purposes then look at Timpson's as an example of narrowly defining the nature of the discount and the target market so you don't create wider expectations.

🙄

you said the service was irrelevant
clearly it is
offering a reduced rate for low income clients for…. botox? eye lash extensions? Tax accountant? private chef? Chauffeur would be… daft 😆

Having CBT means being 100% honest with the practitioner. If they were lying, I'd soon realise. If I didn't realise 'in time' so what? They would be 'stealing' but I'd have the moral high ground.

You are absolutely deluded if you think your clients are 100% honest with you - and I say that as a practicing therapist. Clients tell you what they want you to know or what they can’t hide in sessions, and that’s as it should be.

Advertise your service for whatever the market rate is in your area. If clients aren’t coming it’s because your fees are too high so have a look at what other services are charging. CBT therapists are ten a penny so you should be able to figure out a market rate.

If you want to offer a discount say so on your website eg for students or people without a wage. You then decide how many discounted places you have available and once those are filled tell prospective clients you don’t have any space left for discounted rates. It’s not unusual to place restrictions on discounted places, eg during working hours, mid week sessions only etc.

If you then want to give an established client a discount you can make that decision on a case by case basis. You then need to have enough clients paying full cost to ensure your practice is worth your while but don’t inflate your full price to cover discounted places. You could offer a discount for a block of sessions if booked and paid for in advance.

There are lots of different models for pricing your service, but don’t lose sight of it being a business that needs to wash its own face - including compensating you for your time and skill.

Having CBT means being 100% honest with the practitioner. I

the naivety makes me wonder how experienced you are op

“having CBT” doesn’t mean being 100% honest
“getting the most from CBT” means being 100% honest

Might well be the case, even if its not it does look a bit like a "clever" marketing technique that may backfire.

If they were lying, I'd soon realise. If I didn't realise 'in time' so what? They would be 'stealing' but I'd have the moral high ground.

the “moral high ground” over your fee paying client who’s conned you? big whoop because that’s going to pay you OP

“clever” not being the word i’d use!

Hence my use of "

If they were lying, I'd soon realise. If I didn't realise 'in time' so what? They would be 'stealing' but I'd have the moral high ground.

Claiming the “moral high ground” over your therapy clients isn’t a great look tbh.

i’m guessing the OP has just qualified and starting her business
because this kind of “oh they won’t lie to me because we need 100% honesty and if they did…. well i can say to the client i’m morally superior to you” is just… farcical really

It matters a lot. Cost v. value is very subjective and depends on service provided. You can’t get good advice without knowing what the service is.

There's a counselling service near me that is a charity and asks for £10 per hour per 10,000 you earn. So if you earn 50k it's £50/hour, if you earn 20k it's £20.

What about using a system like that? With a minimum charge of £20 an hour maybe.

So you'll advertise at £95, then scree the clients, and offer a reduced fee? Trouble is if they haven't got £500 they won't be calling you in the first place for you to screen them.