Hey Reader,
A founder I'm working with was terrified of asking for money for her early-stage B2B product.
Her reasoning?
"I would never pay for a raw solution that I'm also helping to develop," she told me, implying that first customers will act as design partners.
It's a common assumption. And it's the single biggest reason why most B2B founders wait far too long to charge for their product, burning through cash while looking for validation they could be getting from paying customers.
I told her she was thinking about it all wrong. She needed to reframe the entire conversation.
You are not asking a B2B client to pay for an incomplete tool.
You are offering them an incredible opportunity: a custom development team on outsource.
Think about it from their perspective. By becoming your paid design partner, the client gets:
A solution built specifically for their unique, painful workflow.
The ability to influence the product roadmap to solve their exact needs.
A dedicated engineering team (yours) focused on their problem, without the massive expense of hiring their own.
You are giving them a custom-built solution for the price of an off-the-shelf product. This isn't a burden for them; it's an incredible value proposition.
So stop thinking you're selling a broken product.
Reframe the conversation. You're offering early clients the invaluable opportunity to get a custom solution built for them, by you, for a fraction of the real cost.
Speak soon, — Dmitry