Podcast Summary: The Kate Show
Episode: How to Raise Your Prices without Losing Income
Host: Kate (Socialite Agency)
Guest: Jennifer Koch (Next Wave Business Coaching)
Release Date: July 8, 2024

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode of The Kate Show aims to demystify the challenge of raising your prices as a service-based creative entrepreneur—especially for interior designers, home stagers, professional organizers, and window treatment specialists. Kate interviews veteran business coach Jennifer Koch, who shares practical, mindset-driven strategies for adjusting your pricing, securing healthy profit margins, and establishing long-term sustainability without fearing client loss or feeling stressed.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Jennifer Koch’s Entrepreneurial Origin Story

• Jennifer’s Leap to Entrepreneurship
  • Left corporate sales/marketing at Kraft due to constant relocations and desire for family stability ([06:29])
  • Bought a Cookies by Design franchise, despite not being a baker, seeing a niche market ([06:29] – [08:50])
  • Opened doors two days after giving birth; “My maternity leave was in the back of a cookie store.” ([08:50])
  • Early period was chaotic and emotional—Jennifer openly admits “I fell apart,” but her “why” (family, freedom) pulled her through ([09:11])
• Takeaway: Entrepreneurship often starts naively; resilience relies on a strong, personal “why.”

2. The Emotional Challenge of Raising Prices

• The Fear Factor

  • Anxiety over losing clients or being seen as greedy is common ([12:19])
  • “If you don’t take a price increase for five years and all of a sudden you jack it up five times, you probably are going to have some pushback.” ([12:19])
  • Jennifer established an annual practice of reviewing and increasing prices each January to minimize resistance and stress ([12:19] – [13:53])

• Surprisingly Minimal Pushback

  • In 20 years, Jennifer cannot recall any truly uncomfortable price increase conversation ([13:53])
  • Memorable moment: “Honestly, in the 20 years I owned that business, I can’t recall one conversation that was so uncomfortable about my price increases.” (Jennifer, [13:53])

3. Knowing (and Charging) Your Worth

• On Women’s Reluctance to Charge Appropriately

  • “As women, we’re natural nurturers, natural givers, natural fixers, and we have a hard time charging—especially in the service-based industry. But you give money to good people, they’re going to go on to do great things.” ([15:00])
  • Addressing the common belief that charging more is ‘greedy’; Jennifer asserts it is “okay to be profitable, it’s okay to make a good living.” ([16:11])

• Profit Margins Demystified

  • Aim for at least a 40% gross profit margin; 50% is ideal for interior design ([17:09])
  • Emphasizes replacing yourself in pricing: “Take yourself out of the equation. What would you charge if you had to hire somebody to do the work you’re doing?” ([18:11])
  • Don’t forget to factor in ALL your time—not just the visible labor ([17:09] – [19:00])
  • Quote: “You should be charging so that you’re hitting at least a 40% profit margin.” (Jennifer Koch, [18:29])

4. Handling Business Valuation & Exit

• Business Valuation Is Emotional & Complex
  • Involve accountants, bankers, and legal counsel; don’t self-assess blindly ([20:41])
  • Prepare for exit while you still enjoy running your business—not when you’re burned out ([20:41])
  • Selling her business took about a year for the transaction, but 3 years from initial approach to full handover ([22:40] – [24:00])
  • Keep the exit flexible and plan ahead.

5. Practical First Steps for Undercharging Business Owners

• Step One:
  • Pause and scrutinize your project pricing down to time spent ([27:16])
  • Begin tracking your actual hours to reveal underestimation ([27:16])
  • Normalize the learning curve—nearly all business owners start out underpricing ([27:16] – [28:37])
  • “Try to bring home a paycheck once a month...even if it’s just $500, because it makes you feel good.” (Jennifer Koch, [28:13])

6. How to Actually Raise Prices With Clients

• Use Your Numbers to Tell the Story
  • Check if gross profit margins are healthy; if not, find out why before raising rates ([29:27])
  • Start with new clients; then incrementally increase for current clients
  • Key Strategy: Position yourself as an expert with a defined niche to command higher rates, attract referrals, and simplify marketing ([29:27], [31:13])
  • “When you become the expert, people start to refer business to you.” (Jennifer Koch, [30:44])

7. The Power — and Fear — of Niching Down

• Overcoming Lies & Imposter Syndrome

  • Generalists get forgotten; specialists are remembered ([33:26])
  • Imposter syndrome often hinders people from claiming expertise
  • Focusing your brand or niche does NOT mean you cannot take other types of work ([32:26] – [33:26])
  • Kate: “Say you’re a specialist and you might just rise to the occasion and become a specialist and you might surprise yourself.” ([33:53])

• Methods to Find Your Niche

  • Analyze your happiest clients, favorite project types, or recurring work ([35:14])
  • Jennifer’s three-part process:
    1. Ideal client persona
    2. Industry/project specialty
    3. Thought leadership positioning ([36:13])

• Thought Leadership

  • Use your unique viewpoint or expertise (e.g., sustainability) to stand out ([37:08])
  • “There’s only one you. You have your own unique perspective, your own history, and people need you.” ([37:34])
  • Test niche or message for 90 days before shifting ([40:49])

8. Confidence, Referrals, and Sustainable Growth

• Visibility and Profitability Boost Confidence

  • “When you feel confident in your pricing and you know your profit margin is good, that really raises your confidence. And that comes across when you’re presenting your bid to your client.” ([42:43])

• Referrals & The “Face Test”

  • Your niche should make it easy for others to picture and refer you
  • “Does your business pass the face test?”—if no one pops into their mind when you describe what you do, your message is too broad ([45:38])
  • Example: “I help first-time homebuyers”—instantly makes you referable compared to “I sell real estate.” ([45:46])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “My maternity leave was in the back of a cookie store.”
  — Jennifer Koch, [08:50]

• “You give money to good people, they’re going to go on to do great things. ... It’s okay to be profitable, it’s okay to make a good living.”
  — Jennifer Koch, [16:11]

• “If you don’t take a price increase for five years and all of a sudden you jack it up five times, you probably are going to have some pushback.”
  — Jennifer Koch, [12:19]

• “Take yourself out of the equation. What would you charge if you had to hire somebody to do the work you’re doing?”
  — Jennifer Koch, [18:11]

• “Try to bring home a paycheck once a month...even if it’s just $500, because it makes you feel good.”
  — Jennifer Koch, [28:13]

• “When you become the expert, people start to refer business to you.”
  — Jennifer Koch, [30:44]

• “There’s only one you...people need you because there are other people out there that want to work with somebody like you.”
  — Jennifer Koch, [37:34]

• “Does your business pass the face test?”
  — Jennifer Koch, [45:38]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Jennifer’s business origin/birth story: [06:29]–[11:10]
• The mindset of pricing and weathering recessions: [12:19]–[13:53]
• Profit margin benchmarks explained: [17:09]
• How to price your own labor: [18:11]
• Valuing and selling a business: [20:41]–[24:00]
• First step for undercharging entrepreneurs: [27:16]
• How to raise prices with clients: [29:27]
• Benefits and fears of niching down: [31:13]–[33:53]
• Jennifer’s three-part framework for niching: [36:13]
• Building confidence for pricing, referrals, and marketing: [42:43]–[45:38]

Resources & Recommendations

• Jennifer’s Free Guide on Referrals:
  Get the guide at Next Wave Business Coaching (pop-up or LinkedIn DM @Jennifer Owenscoke)—“Three Steps to Getting Referrals” ([44:36])
• Contact Jennifer: Primarily by LinkedIn or website

Conclusion

Jennifer Koch and Kate candidly tackle the practicalities, emotions, and strategies behind raising your prices as a creative service business owner. This episode is packed with no-nonsense advice and approachable steps for tracking your numbers, setting profitable rates, and building a business that not only supports your own life but also becomes transferable value down the line. The recurring wisdom: Know your numbers, embrace your niche, communicate your value, and don’t let fear or underconfidence set your rates.

“If you believe in what you do, then it really doesn’t matter what happens, you’re going to keep pushing through it.”
— Kate, [10:36]