Should you raise your prices or launch a new offer?
Raising prices and launching a premium offer solve the same growth signal differently — one captures more value from every client, the other only from those willing to pay more. The right lever depends on how much of your client base has a fixed budget versus room to pay extra, not a fixed percentage rule.
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Why isn't there a one-size-fits-all answer?
Sophie is a freelance graphic designer, fully booked for three months with a two-client waitlist. A single AI answer suggests raising rates by 15-20% — reasonable, but it completely ignores the new-offer option, which could be the better fit depending on the makeup of her client base.
What's the useful disagreement between the models?
Run through Cove Fight, Sophie's situation surfaces a real debate. One model argues for a direct rate increase: a waitlist is one of the clearest market signals there is, and not raising prices means subsidizing demand with her own time. Another argues for a new premium offer instead, since raising the base rate risks losing loyal clients who carry value beyond price — referrals, reviews, consistency — while a premium tier captures the extra demand without touching the existing base. A third flags something the first two miss: a waitlist of just two clients is too small a sample to base a pricing decision on, and the demand should be checked for whether it's structural before acting on it.
What would change the recommendation?
If the waitlist grows over several consecutive months rather than staying a one-off spike, the rate increase becomes more clearly justified. If a significant share of current clients has a fixed, non-extendable budget, a premium offer protects the relationship while still capturing solvent demand. And if Sophie wants fewer clients rather than more, a direct rate increase serves both goals at once.
What's the next thing to check?
Before deciding: look at 6 months of demand data, not just the current month, and mentally split current clients between those who'd accept a price increase without blinking and those for whom it would be a breaking point.
FAQ
Can you do both at the same time?
Yes, and it's often underused: a modest base-rate increase combined with a premium offer captures both client segments instead of betting everything on a single lever.
How do you announce a price increase without losing your best clients?
Give reasonable notice (1 to 3 months), explain the reason without over-justifying, and consider grandfathering your very first loyal clients at a preserved rate.
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