Should I show my service prices on my website as a dog trainer or animal behaviourist?

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Do you have your service pricing information clearly displayed on your website? If not, it might be time to re-think that decision. In all but a minority of cases, I’d argue that it’s better to display the prices of your animal training and behaviour services clearly on your website.

Let’s think about it from your potential client’s point of view…..

They go to your website to see if you can help them with a problem (or the prevention of a problem). They see that, hallelujah, you seem to have the perfect service for them. They’re keen to sign up but they can’t find the price anywhere. They search all over, feeling frustrated, thinking that they must have missed it somewhere. No, it’s just not there!

Now, they need to decide… do they get in touch with you to ask? Well, this would take time (nobody feels like they have time to spare), they would then have to wait for you to respond (nobody likes waiting) and they risk feeling embarrassed if they then discover that you’re out of their budget (nobody likes feeling embarrassed). You’ve put a barrier in their way – one which potentially makes choosing another option, where the price is clearly displayed, much more appealing. Even if they do get in touch and you end up working with them, it’s probably not the best start to that relationship.

If you’re thinking that all sounds pretty convincing but you’re still not sure, let’s explore why that might be.

Why some people hide their prices

Some people may be hesitant about showing their prices on their website because they want their service to appear as accessible as possible and fear that their price will be a turnoff to some potential clients.

Well, yes, it will.

What?! Surely, the last thing you want is to turn potential clients away!

Well, the truth is that some people simply won’t be in the market for your help right now. But you know what? That’s ok. You can’t be the right choice for everyone (and you’ll end up in a pickle if you try to be!).

Of course, the other things to consider is that, without price information on your website, prospective clients might assume that it’s out of their price range when, in reality, it could actually be affordable.

Being comfortable with your pricing and feeling good about the fact that you can help for free in other ways is a whole other blog post that I’ll save for another time.

The other most common reason that people choose not to share their service pricing on their websites is because they feel that they can do a better job of communicating it over a 1:1 chat with the potential client.

Well, that’s fine if you’re really skilled at this, feel comfortable doing it and get a great conversion rate for your calls. But, honestly, that’s just not the case for the majority of dog trainers and animal behaviourists! It also takes time (yours and the potential client’s), which may not result in a booking. For most of us, time is something that we feel very short of! Finally, having this process as a necessity for booking with you puts a potential barrier in front of people who may have been ready to go ahead and sign up. Whilst this may be helpful if you want to screen potential clients to ensure that they’re a good fit, in many cases, it’s just not necessary. So, if you love to chat to people about how you can help them (and know that it helps to convince those who are ‘on the fence’), you might want to keep offering those calls as an option but to have the pricing visible on your service pages so as to avoid wasting anyone’s time or having any uncomfortable moments on the call!

Ok, so let’s look a bit more closely at the benefits.

The benefits of showing your pricing on your website

There are so many ways that sharing your service costs on your website can help both you and your ideal clients.

Establish Trust and Credibility

One of the most beneficial aspects of including your pricing on your website is that it will help you establish trust and credibility with potential clients. From a customer perspective, they know what they can expect to spend before they even contact you. This helps to establish the relationship between you in a positive and professional manner.

Some customers can worry that, if your pricing is not displayed on your website then you’ll be ‘making it up on the spot’, leaving them to worry that they may be overcharged if they happen to live in an affluent area or if they seem particularly desperate for help. Of course, as an ethical professional, you would never do this but they don’t know that!

Having all of the necessary information available allows people to make considered decisions in their own time, without feeling pressured on a 1:1 call (and then potentially cancelling because they have buyer’s remorse!).

Save everyone’s time

As I’ve already alluded to, including your prices on your website will save time for both you and your prospective clients. A significant time savings can often be gained by cutting out unnecessary calls or email exchanges simply to discuss pricing.

In addition, website visitors may well get frustrated wasting time on your site if they can’t easily find the information that they’re looking for. You will likely know from your own experience buying other goods and services how annoying this can be!

Avoid awkward pricing conversations

Many people feel uncomfortable discussing money. This works both ways.

From your perspective, you may feel awkward sharing your prices with people on a call. This often leads to over-explaining or justifying your price (or getting in a flap and offering a discount for no reason!). Obviously, this isn’t great from a business perspective but prospective clients may also pick up on this, which can make them feel uncomfortable (and possibly doubt whether you’re the answer to their issue) too.

From a potential customer’s point of view, asking how much something costs can feel awkward in itself. And then there’s the risk that the price may be much higher than they were expecting – is an uncomfortable situation and not one that either of you want to be in. Typical advice from ‘business gurus’ has lots of ways to convince someone to go ahead anyway but, quite honestly, that’s a million miles from any discussion I would want to be part of as an ethical animal trainer/ behaviourist!

Show confidence in your services

People are more likely to trust that you can help them if you show confidence in your abilities and your service offerings. Publicly showing your pricing ‘loud and proud’ on your website is actually a surprisingly easy way to convey this. There should be no need to try to hide your prices if you’re confident in what you offer for the money.

Filter out poor-fit clients

Just like your branding, website and messaging, your pricing is a tool for attracting potential clients who are looking for something that matches what you offer. Your price reflects the level of service and expertise that you’re offering – this won’t be a good fit for everyone. No matter what you charge, someone will say that it’s too expensive for them. Once you accept that fact, it becomes easier to worry less about your pricing!

If you want to be accessible to more people, you could have differently priced tiers for various services, offer online videos or downloads, provide recommendations (books, websites etc.) or give free access to resources on your blog.

So, if you’re now convinced to share your training and behaviour service prices online, there’s just one more question…

Where should I display my prices on my website?

Lots of people will add a separate pricing page to their website. This seems like a good idea because it might make it easier for potential clients to quickly see whether you’re within their budget and, from your point of view, it’s a little simpler to update your pricing when you need to, if it’s all in one place.

However, the huge downside to having a stand-alone pricing page on your website is that the price of your service(s) is not being read in the context of your ‘offer’ – it’s just a figure with no real ‘value’ attached to it. This makes it more likely to encourage potential clients to engage in ‘price comparison’ and for price to become a barrier to purchasing.

On your training or behaviour service pages you are (hopefully!) leading your potential customer on a journey which helps them to understand the value that you’re offering them. Therefore, sharing your price in that context is likely to be far more beneficial than if it’s on a separate page.

Not sure what to charge FOR YOUR SERVICES?