How to charge premium (without changing your offer)
Part 1 of a $1,000,000 Framework
This is Part 1 of a two-part breakdown on how businesses actually grow.
There are four stages every business passes through:
Build a reputation—a roster of real successes.
New: you do lots of work cheap (or free) just to get proof.
Medium: you start charging, but not yet market rate.
Market rate: you’ve proven you’re as good as anyone else.
Premium: you’re the leader now, and you can charge whatever you want.
Amplify that reputation so people outside your first circle know about it.
Execute deliverables with excellence.
Reach the gravity stage—where clients pull toward you instead of you chasing them.
Today we’re talking about the first two: building your reputation and amplifying it. (Execution and gravity come in Part 2.)
To get to that premium pricing level, you need to do this first:
Amplify proof, not price.
Explanation:
Your reputation is nothing more than a stack of wins people can see.
If nobody knows you, don’t overthink it—take work for cheap or free. It might bruise your ego, but it builds your record. A new photographer can shoot three weddings at cost to create a portfolio. A new consultant can take two discounted pilot clients for 30 days and produce case studies.
When I opened my HOTWORX studio in Tulsa, corporate ran ads offering a free workout.
Sounds good on paper, right? But here’s the problem—people showed up expecting “cheap” and left shocked by premium pricing. The ad amplified price, not proof.
We flipped it by highlighting member before/afters and clear results (“burn more calories in 15 minutes than 60 minutes elsewhere”). Suddenly, the conversation wasn’t about a freebie—it was about outcomes. And that shift attracted the right members willing to pay full price.
That’s the difference between amplifying noise and amplifying proof.
Most business owners make the same mistake: they shout about price (“20% off,” “free trial”) instead of value. That stuff may get clicks, but it doesn’t earn trust.
If your amplification doesn’t show proof (results, transformations, testimonials), you’re not amplifying reputation, you’re just amplifying noise. And noise attracts bargain-hunters who walk away when they see your real rates.
Social media and Google are two different games.
Google is intent-driven because people are already searching. Social is interruption-driven, where you have to earn their attention mid-scroll.
In both cases, proof is what makes them lean in. Before/after images. Specific results. A clear process that shows “this works.”
Get this right, and suddenly amplification isn’t burning cash but multiplying proof.
Application:
Here’s how to start amplifying the right way today.
1. List your proof.
Open a doc and write down five specific client wins. Use this format: [Client] → [Result] in [Timeframe]. Add a photo, screenshot, or testimonial if you’ve got it.
2. Turn it into a one-page “proof pack.”
Headline: “Invest in [Outcome]—Get [Result] in [Timeframe].” Then lay out three short bullets with your client wins, followed by a simple call-to-action: “Book a 15-minute call.” Keep it simple.
3. Run one ad this week.
Creative: one before/after image. Copy: “Real people. Real results. [Result] in [Timeframe]. See how it works.” Link straight to your proof pack.
Do those three things, and by next week you’ll stop yelling about “deals” and start amplifying proof.
That’s how you climb from reputation… to amplification… and get closer to gravity (more on that next week).
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