No one can afford it. No one can ever afford the price the first time it comes up. No matter what the price, it usually costs too much, more than the prospect expected to pay. More often than not, this is either because the prospect had no idea going in what it would cost or he has not budgeted for it.
Not long ago, we were promoting a two-day, weekend seminar. From the stage, I said, “This seminar is only fourninety-five per person.” Many people went immediately to the back of the room or phoned us later and said they wanted to go to the seminar that was only $4.95 for the weekend, all inclusive. Instead of 495 dollars, they thought that we were talking about four dollars and ninety-five cents. And even then, they asked for a discount. They had no idea how much it cost to put on a two-day seminar in a first-class hotel or convention center, and as a result, they were shocked when they heard the real price. This is quite common.
The fact is that the amount of money that anyone has is limited. When you give a price, this amount represents all of the other things that the prospect could buy with the same amount of money. This is called the principle of the excluded alternative. Every choice implies the exclusion of something else. For everything you buy, there is something else that you cannot buy.
Each person values the freedom of choice very highly. When you buy something, you give up a certain amount of choice. You limit your options because you reduce the amount of money that you have available. This is why, when price comes up, no matter what it is, people automatically say, “I can’t afford it.”
When you first tell your prospect what the product is going to cost, he will be surprised. This is why you must spend a good deal of time building the value of your product or service before you ever mention price for the first time.