Good, better, best: pricing options in a proposal

Send a client one price and they ask themselves one question: yes or no? Send them three and the question changes to: which one? That shift is the whole idea behind good, better, best pricing. The client compares your options with each other instead of comparing you with the cheapest quote they found, and they choose the level of investment that fits them.

This guide covers how to design the three options, how to add extras, plans and deals around them, and the mistakes that make options backfire.

Why options work

A single price leaves the client with two moves: accept or push back. Options give them a third: choose. Choosing feels like being in control, and a client who feels in control is less likely to ask for a discount or to go and collect more quotes.

Options also tell you something. A client who picks the top tier was ready to spend more than you would have asked. A client who picks the entry tier, but asks about one feature of the middle one, has told you exactly what to sell next.

And options protect your margin. When a client says "that is more than we planned", you do not have to cut your rate. You point at the option with less in it.

Designing the three tiers

Start with the version of the project you would recommend. That is your middle option, the one you expect most clients to pick. Then build one below and one above it. Price each tier from the same rate; if you have not worked yours out yet, start with setting a day rate that covers your costs.

A few rules make this work:

• The middle option is your recommendation. Say so, in one line: "Most clients like you choose Growth." Mark it visually too.
• Every step up adds something the client can feel. More templates, more feedback, copy they do not have to write. "Priority support" and "premium quality" are not reasons to pay more.
• The entry option is real. It is smaller, not broken. If you would be embarrassed to deliver it, do not offer it.
• The top option is something you can deliver and would be glad to sell. It is not just a decoy to make the middle look cheap. Some clients will choose it.
• Keep the differences few and clear. If the client needs a spreadsheet to compare your tiers, there are too many rows.

One project with extras: the other way to offer options

Tiers suit work you sell often, where you know the common shapes. For more bespoke work, a single recommended project with optional extras is often clearer:

The client starts from your recommendation and adds what they want. Decide in advance which extras are ticked when they first see the page. A pre-ticked extra is a recommendation; an unticked one is an invitation. Be careful with pre-ticking too much: the first total the client sees becomes their reference point.

You can also combine the approaches: three tiers, plus two or three extras that work with any of them.

Recurring work: a plan choice

When there is monthly work after the project (hosting, care, support, content), offer it as a choice between two or three plans, one of which is required:

A required choice is different from an optional extra. The client is not deciding whether to have care, only which level. That framing alone makes the care plan feel like part of the project rather than an add-on to cut. When the monthly work is the whole engagement rather than a follow-on to a project, the guide on writing a proposal for a monthly retainer covers the terms it needs: unused hours, extra work and notice.

Keep one-off and recurring prices visibly separate. "€14,500 once, then €150 or €350 a month" is easier to approve than a blended first-year figure.

Deals: rewards for how they pay and commit

A deal changes the price because of how the client pays or how long they commit, not because they pushed for a discount. Two kinds work well in proposals.

Payment plans for the one-off project:

• Pay upfront and save 5%: Growth at €14,500 becomes €13,775, a saving of €725. You get the cash before the work starts.
• Spread it over three months: €4,833.33 a month. Easier for the client's budget, still a fixed total for you.

Commitments for the recurring work:

• Month to month at the normal price.
• Commit for 12 months and save 10%: Care Plus at €315 instead of €350, which is €420 less over the year.

Make sure each deal only touches the items it is meant for. A commitment discount on the care plan should not reduce the one-off project, and a pay-upfront discount on the project should not reduce the monthly plan.

Rules: a reason to choose the bigger option

A rule gives something back when a condition is met. It is a good way to nudge clients towards the option you recommend without lowering your prices across the board. For example:

• The SEO audit (€1,200) is free with Care Plus.
• Choose Complete and the first month of care is free.
• Add the brand refresh and get an extra feedback round.

Tell the client what they would save: "Choose Care Plus and save €1,200 on the SEO audit." A specific euro amount next to the choice is more persuasive than a general "special offer". Every rule should be one you are happy to apply to every client in the same situation; then whoever on your team sends the proposal, the offer is the same.

Presenting the options

• Put the options after the value. The client should read the challenge, your approach and your cases before they see any number.
• Show totals that update. If the client can tick extras and pick plans, show the new total straight away, split into one-off and monthly, with VAT.
• Name the tiers after outcomes or sizes, not after metals. "Essential, Growth, Complete" says more than "Bronze, Silver, Gold".
• Use the same structure in every proposal. Clients who compare your proposal with others will find yours easier to read, and your team will price consistently.

There is more on structuring the rest of the document in how to write a web design proposal that gets signed, and on getting to the numbers in how to price a website project.

Mistakes that make options backfire

• Too many choices. Three tiers with four extras and three plans is a configurator, not a proposal. If in doubt, remove one.
• Tiers that differ in ways the client does not care about. If the only difference is "number of revisions", most clients pick the cheapest.
• A crippled entry option. It makes you look like you are playing games.
• Discounting the options when asked. Point to the smaller option or a payment deal instead. Once you cut a price under pressure, the client knows prices are negotiable.
• No default. Without a recommended option, some clients freeze. Recommend one.

When a client comes back with "can you do it for less", options give you a calm answer: here is what changes at a lower price. Our guide to following up on a proposal covers that conversation.

How Propozit helps

This is what Propozit's pricing slide is built for, and you can try it in the live demo: a fixed-price project with optional extras, a required choice between two monthly care plans, VAT added on top at 21%, and totals that update live. It has two payment-plan deals (pay upfront and save 5%, or spread over 3 months), two commitment deals for the care plan, and one rule, an SEO audit free with Care Plus, with a nudge beside the totals that names the gift. See interactive pricing.

Choice groups, options, deals and the rules you write yourself are in the Propozit pricing view today, and so are payment plans the client picks, with the payment slide following their pick. Propozit is in early access and free to start.