Great discussion here. I’m with Pool Scholars in Nashville, Tennessee. We focus on high-end LSI-based water chemistry and wellness asset preservation. Regarding the "Online Estimates" filter: We leaned into this early. After a decade in this industry, I realized the old-school mentality of hiding prices is archaic. It’s a sales-centric tactic designed to trap a lead. Today’s climate is customer-centric, and if you want to play in the luxury market, you have to build a relationship based on transparency from the first second. We use our online pricing to open the conversation so we can ADVISE and CONSULT, not sell. By listing "Starting At" ranges for our Clinical Biofilm Flushes and Estate Maintenance, we handle the elephant in the room—Price—immediately. This move alone shifted our leads from "cheap above-ground cleans" to $600 specialized sauna restorations with high-margin wood-sealing add-ons. To thathandymanvanpoint about "Click-Bait": Your ethics and values as a leader don't have to be compromised by a starting price. Advertising has to start somewhere. We explain to the client that while we start at a base rate, we offer a "custom fit" for their specific needs and budget. Here is the nugget: You can’t be a consultant until you’ve made a friend, and you can't make a friend while you're hiding information. If your QAR (Question-Answer-Response) flow is right, the client will tell you exactly what they want. Price is ultimately the only objection in life—so get the budget on the table up front. It filters out the noise and lets you focus on the people who actually value your expertise. If you act like an advisor, they stop treating you like a commodity.
