The Helicopter Option

I heard this from Jonathan Stark at Ditching Hourly - and it explains pricing brilliantly.

He said that, after speaking at conferences, he often ends up at an airport about 50 miles away from his house. This gives him a number of options for getting home.

The cheapest - walk home. It’s free

Take a bus - they’re only every hour and they’re often crowded, but a ticket is only about $12.

Take a taxi - warm, no sharing and door-to-door service - from the airport to his house, it’s about $250.

Take a helicopter - get home in no time at all, but it costs $2000 minimum.

When you think about your own pricing you always have a tendency to think that people are only going to go for the cheapest option. But look at that list above - are you really going to walk 50 miles? There are many reasons that people choose the price points they do - the helicopter pilot may not get many customers but they do get some.

Take Action: Are you assuming that your customers will always want the cheapest option? What can you add that will push them up a price level?

Photo by Philipe Cavalcante on Unsplash