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Price Tags
How to effectively price your work
Jaime Solis
11 Jul
Sponsored by
⏰ 5-Second Summary
The Red Thread — Why price is math, but value is story.
The Unlock — 4 ways to charge confidently and show the worth behind your work.
Creative Edge — Don’t drop your prices, clarify your value instead.
Prompt Playground — AI prompts to define and communicate what makes your work valuable.
Industry Pulse — Disney’s storytelling tips, AI’s impact on language, Fat Wreck Chords’ sale, and more.
Creator Tools — Tools for AI eBooks, smarter email, instant videos, and no-code app building.
Open Opportunities — New roles at SiriusXM and Virgin Music, plus job boards for music and podcasting careers.
⏳Read time: ~4 minutes
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“Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.”
— Warren Buffett
The Red Thread This Week
Price vs. Value
Every creator I know wrestles with the same question:
How much should I charge?
We obsess over price tags. Tweak our rates. Worry we'll scare people off.
But we're asking the wrong question.
The real question isn't about price. It's about value.
People with endless cash are not the ONLY people who buy $3k custom guitars or $100k “go-fast” boats.
They’re bought by people who see 10X of value in them. The craftsmanship, artistry, identity; the purchase becomes a story, not just an object.
People don't buy solely because of what something costs.
They buy because of what it means to them, how it makes them feel, and their perception of value – their belief of what that thing actually is.
This week's Red Thread is for anyone afraid to charge what they're worth.
Because delivering work that matters isn't about price.
It's about understanding how to raise the value of your work in the minds of the people you seek to serve.
Let's dive in.
~ Jaime
🔑 The Unlock
How to Charge for Value
Two roads diverge for every creator:
Be the cheapest. Fight a race to the bottom where every dollar feels like a battle.
Be the best value. Create something people believe is worth far more than the price.
Here's how to choose the second road:
1️⃣ Raise Perceived Value
Price is just a number. Value is a story.
Try this: Stop describing your work as "content" or "services." Frame it as transformation, insight, connection. Don't sell objects or billable hours—sell outcomes.
2️⃣ Offer Scalable Options
Not everyone can pay premium prices. That doesn't mean you work for free.
Try this: Create scalable assets like courses, templates, group sessions. Shake Shack didn't replace Danny Meyer's fine dining. It made his magic accessible to millions.
3️⃣ Speak Your Customers' Language
People rarely brag about the cheapest option. They rave about what was worth it.
Try this: Collect testimonials that speak to results, experiences, emotion—not just price. Let your customers tell their story to add even more trust to your value story.
4️⃣ Stop Feeling Guilty
If your audience could clearly see and understand the full value of what you’re offering—your experience, skills, care–would they pay what you’re asking? If yes, your price is fair.
📌 Remember: The goal isn't to charge the least. It's to deliver value that feels priceless.
AI Notetakers Are Quietly Leaking Risk. Audit Yours With This Checklist.
AI notetakers are becoming standard issue in meetings, but most teams haven’t vetted them properly.
✔️ Is AI trained on your data?
✔️ Where is the data stored?
✔️ Can admins control what gets recorded and shared?
This checklist from Fellow lays out the non-negotiables for secure AI in the workplace.
If your vendor can’t check all the boxes, you need to ask why.
💡 Creative Edge
Worth Every Penny
Here's the tricky part: price is visible. Value is invisible.
Anyone can see $500 on a price tag. Fewer can see the years of practice, sleepless nights, or insight behind the work.
Price is math. Value is story.
So next time you feel tempted to drop your price to "be affordable," ask yourself:
Am I lowering my price… or just failing to communicate my value?
True confidence as a creator comes not from charging the most, but from knowing you're worth what you charge.
📌 Mindset shift: People don't pay for your time. They pay for what your time makes possible for them.
🎲 Prompt Playground
Discover Your Value
Use AI as your strategic partner to uncover the unique value you deliver and how to communicate it with confidence.
Copy + paste the prompt below into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or Perplexity, fill in the blanks, and see what happens!
Prompt:
You are my business strategist and brand coach. I want to define the unique value I bring so I can price my work confidently.
My context:
What I create: [describe your work]
Who I serve: [your audience or clients]
Results I deliver: [transformation, benefits, outcomes]
Where I feel unsure: [specific situations]
Help me:
Articulate my value in a way that connects emotionally
Identify 3 reasons people would pay a premium for my work
Write a short pitch explaining why my price is worth it
Keep it practical, authentic, and tailored for [your genre or category of work].
✅ Bonus Prompt:
"Given my audience and offerings, what scalable products could I create for people who can't afford my premium services, but still deliver meaningful value?"
📡 Industry Pulse
10 Essential Storytelling Tips from a Decade at Disney
more ›AI is Changing the Way We Speak, Study Finds
more ›Hopeless Records Acquires Catalog of Iconic Punk Label Fat Wreck Chords
more ›YouTube Cracks Down on Repetitive, Non-Original Content
more ›Why Your Host-Read Podcast Ads Might Be Falling Flat
more ›From Startup to a $80M Exit in 6mo. How this Solopreneur bootstrapped his Startup to make it happen more ›
🛠️ Creator Tools
Automateed – All-in-one AI powered eBook generator.
Harmony AI – Get to inbox zero with this AI powered Email Voice Assistant.
Videnly – Create and publish AI videos in just a few clicks.
Base44 – Build fully-functional apps in minutes with just your words. No coding necessary.
💼 Open Opportunities
Manager, Business Development – Podcasts – SiriusXM (Nashville, TN) View Role →
Senior International Marketing Manager – Virgin Music Group (London, UK) View Role →
Your next move in Music
Explore the MBW Job Board →
Crack into Podcasting
Check out the Sounds Profitable Job Board →
📌 Know someone looking? Forward this to them!
⚡ Your Next Bold Move
Get 1:1 Support from Me: Need a thought partner to help shape what's next for your project or team? Let’s talk!
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And thank you for spending time with Red Threads this week.
I’m glad you’re here :)
~ Jaime
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