Make Money Mediating Podcast 507: What Are You Worth? Understanding Pricing for Dispute Resolution Professionals

Navigating Your Worth: Setting Prices as a Dispute Resolution Professional

In this episode of the Make Money Mediating podcast, host Susan Guthrie provides an in-depth guide on how dispute resolution professionals can set their fees. She emphasizes the importance of constantly reevaluating one’s pricing strategy and dives into various factors and considerations that impact fee setting. These factors include one’s services list, experience, market demand, geographic location, client base, operational costs, and competition. Susan discusses different pricing models such as hourly rates, flat fees, modified flat fees, retainer models, subscription-based models, and packaged services. She highlights the significance of choosing a pricing model that reflects the true value of a professional’s expertise and fosters long-term client relationships built on trust, value, and mutual respect. Susan encourages professionals to be open to adjusting their pricing models as their practices evolve.

In this episode:

00:00 Introduction to Pricing Strategies in Mediation
00:37 Understanding the Importance of Pricing
01:06 Developing a Comprehensive Pricing Strategy
01:38 Expanding Your Service Offerings
03:43 Factors to Consider When Setting Your Fees
06:49 Understanding Your Market and Client Base
09:00 The Impact of Geographic Location on Pricing
13:11 The Importance of Understanding Your Costs
15:15 Considering Your Competition
16:52 Understanding the Value You Provide
19:21 Exploring Different Pricing Models
20:07 The Pros and Cons of Hourly Billing
23:13 The Appeal of Flat Fees and Modified Flat Fees
28:58 The Potential of Subscription-Based Fee Models
32:04 The Benefits of Offering Packages
33:04 Conclusion: The Importance of Reflecting Your True Value

Susan Guthrie

Immediate Past Chair of the ABA Section of Dispute Resolution, Susan E. Guthrie is a nationally recognized leader at the intersection of legal innovation, dispute resolution, and entrepreneurial practice-building. With over three decades of experience as an attorney and mediator, Susan now dedicates her work to helping professionals build future-proof,… MORE