Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash
In financial therapy, it’s common for us to talk about how money is emotional. Very emotional. Some would even say that money is 90% emotion, 10% logic. With this in mind, we can lean into what we know about money for our secondary income streams, which includes your ideal consumer’s investment in your trainings, courses, and retreats. Let’s explore three key points of the psychology of money in your therapy practice and offerings below.
1. People like smaller numbers over larger numbers.
Folks love a good sale, and they like to see the value of what they are getting (i.e. on sale for $75, $150 value). However, when it comes to bigger purchases like groups, masterminds, and coaching programs, people prefer to see the breakdown of what it costs per meeting for an ongoing commitment. For example, $40 per one hour meeting for six weeks versus $240 total per person. There’s something approachable about the smaller number that gives us self-permission to invest in a bigger purchase rather than balking at a larger number and having the immediate thought of “I can’t afford that.” It might be the best of both worlds to offer the weekly/monthly breakdown and then an upfront, full cost that saves your ideal consumer some money. This practice is very common with other products we’ve purchased, with an example being $20/month (option #1) or $220 up front, saving the buyer $20 for making the bigger, one-time purchase as option #2.
2. Certain numbers are comforting.
Have you ever experimented with exploring what numbers feel good to people wanting to buy from you? Although this is subject to change as things evolve, folks currently are most comfortable with odd numbers or round numbers when making a purchase because these numbers are familiar. Think about it. From the days of advertising on TV, consumers are comfortable seeing $19.99 or $19.95 over $20. Or $47 over $44. Or $15 over $14. How about $199 compared to $200? In the therapy world, seeing $165 over $162 or $185 over $174? Notice what comes up for you. Every human has a purchase amount that gives them pause, and so setting rates or pricing below that number could be a way for them to find their enthusiastic yes to what you have to offer. For example, does your ideal audience balk at $800 but feel comfortable with $600? Do they like to see $99 instead of $100? This is your invitation to get curious and start experimenting with pricing, which can be helpful tool when launching your secondary income streams.
3. Know your ideal audience.
I may sound like a broken record to some folks in my community for this one, but it continues to be true! Knowing your audience and what they are comfortable paying for is key. What’s the market for offerings similar to yours? Are the entities or other professionals who’ve set the bar on pricing? Are you competing with big mental health entities that set the precedent on prices for trainings, as one example? By doing a little market research, you can do a temperature check on the range of prices that your ideal audience prefers. Take that a step further and ask them to tell you what they’d pay for your offering. It could be an anonymous survey or a poll in a social media group. By asking your ideal audience what they’d pay, you can get a better sense of people’s willingness to invest in what you are passionate about building!
What would you add to the psychology of money and secondary income streams? There are so many other working pieces to consider, but hopefully these three tips give you a place to start when launching secondary income streams in 2025! Happy New Year!
Khara Croswaite Brindle is a Certified Financial Therapist serving other therapists to help them launch secondary income streams as part of burnout prevention.