TIL raising my rates by 20% actually got me more clients instead of losing them

I was scared to bump from $50 to $60 an hour on Upwork last month but the first three people who messaged me all said they assumed I was too cheap before and now they trust me more, anyone else seen this happen?

3 comments

3 Comments

brian_smith61mo ago

Made a similar jump from $25 to $35 and got way fewer time wasters, the serious clients actually paid faster too. It's like when a restaurant raises prices and suddenly more people want to eat there because it must be good. Helps filter out the bargain hunters who were never going to be repeat customers anyway.

lucasschmidt1mo agoTop Commenter

Pricing psychology is real, but let's not act like jumping from $25 to $35 is some major life upgrade. The whole "bargain hunter filter" thing sounds like a nice story, but it could just be that the clients you got were random luck or the market picked up. Seems like people are overthinking a relatively small price bump.

gavinwells1mo ago

That "restaurant raising prices" comparison is actually spot on about signaling but there's another angle - higher rates make you treat the work differently and clients can sense that confidence.