Why pricing is such an underrated lever
When I was General Counsel for a theme park company, our management team brought in a pricing expert who had spent much of her career at Disney.
If anyone understands the psychology of pricing, it’s Disney.
She helped us see pricing in a whole new light — as:
– A trust builder
– A signal of confidence (no squishiness)
– A way to guide behavior (higher price for front-of-line access or quick response)
She introduced language I hadn’t heard applied in law, but should be:
– The value of certainty
– The premium experience
– The invisible cost of discounting (this one hit hard — discounting erodes pricing integrity and trust)
As I became more fascinated by pricing as a business strategy, this stat stood out:
👉 A 1% improvement in price delivers, on average, an 11% boost in profit.
(Harvard + McKinsey)
✅ Not by working harder
✅ Not by adding hours
✅ Just by pricing smarter
One of the best unintended benefits of the ADVOS model is removing hours as the obstacle allows for:
– Deeper conversations
– More meaningful feedback
– Stronger partnerships with high-growth entrepreneurs also committed determined to changing the world
Along those lines, during a recent alignment meeting, understanding our business model, a client shared a great book recommendation:
📖 Confessions of a Pricing Man (a bit dated, but the fundamentals of value and pricing psychology still ring true)
So much fantastic data-driven analysis and stories, but this one stood out as insightful for the law:
In the early 1990s, Germany’s railway (Deutsche Bahn) was struggling.
– People were driving instead—train tickets cost about twice as much as gas.
– They launched the BahnCard:
– Pay a flat fee upfront, get 50% off future tickets
What happened?
✔️ Usage went up
✔️ Satisfaction went up ⬅️ critical for lawyers who want raving fans as clients
✔️ Total spend went up
👉 When people feel good about the price, it becomes a yes—not a maybe.
👉 A relationship — not a transaction.
We hadn’t studied the science of pricing as we built what we built, but similarly, here is what happened at ADVOS:
✔️ Predictable income — no more waiting to see who pays what
✔️ No more awkward invoice conversations — pricing communicated consistently
✔️ No more writing down invoices — clients stay in control
💡 This is the power of pricing done right.
Exactly what we’re teaching in The ADVance Bootcamp: Pricing Ed.
Not just new fees — a new foundation for your firm.
📅 30 days — starts July 9
If you want to hear more – comment below. It is our passion to help build models that serve our clients—and ourselves as professionals—really well.
-Gwen
(Photo is of other books we treasure in our office – #booknerds)