Hi my dear friend. It’s November. Time to raise your rates.

Your 2023 rates should be higher than your rates today.

Why?

Inflation! OMG I can’t get out of the grocery store for under $100 and there’s just two of us living in this house! Your pay needs to keep up.

The latest inflation rate was 8.2%. If you give yourself an 8.2% raise, you’ll only actually be making the same.

Which means if you don’t raise your rates at all, you’ll be making less in 2023 than in 2022 even if you have the same amount of work.

But also – you’ve learned a bunch in the last year. You’ve got more experience under your belt. You deserve an actual raise.

And now is the time to set those 2023 prices.

If you haven’t already done so.

You need to schedule the time to consider and implement your price hike when you expect to be getting requests for work in the coming year.

Did that even make sense? LOL. Let me explain.

My schedule books 4-6 months in advance. Which means in July I have to start telling potential clients that I can start work with them in January. So, for me, I have to schedule my thinking time to review and recalculate my rates in July each year.

If you’ve already got some folks on your 2023 calendar, don’t panic.

Just raise your rates right now.

Now is about the time for many people in the consulting worlds where requests for gigs start slowing down. November and December are usually quiet.

As soon as the second week of January hits, you’ll have a flood of emails from folks looking to work with you. And you’ll be ready with your new rates.

Those of you who have a busy season in November and December might not have the quiet gap where you can introduce a new rate and that’s ok, too. Just put up a sign that says “Heads up, lovely customers. Our 2023 prices have increased.” You can do this.

Here’s how my massage therapist announces her new rates:

She just posts a sign with the new prices, well in advance of when they’ll take effect.

It can feel really scary to raise your prices, as if you’ll turn off potential clients. I’ve felt that way 13 times (for 13 years of business). Guess what? Clients just keep coming.

To help you get over this hurdle, here’s what you’ll do.

Write this out in a google doc: My 2023 rates are ______. (You fill in the blank.)

Then you’ll just copy/paste that into a email for 2023 work. Much easier than having to type it out. The rate is already committed in writing.

In fact, let’s get over the first hurdle together. Email me with your 2023 rate sentence. I can promise I won’t freak out or have sticker stock. And that’ll make the second time you copy/paste that much easier.