It’s true that some buyers are willing to pay more than others for the same product or service. But it’s also true it’s seldom in the self-interest of a buyer to admit he or she is willing to pay more than others.
But there is a way you can get some buyers to voluntarily raise their hands and say “I am willing to pay you more!” The way is this: offer buyers two different prices for your product.
I know what you’re thinking. “If I offer buyers two different prices for my product, what buyer in his or her right mind would ever pick the higher price over the lower one?” You’re right! Phrased liked that, no buyer would.
So there’s an important condition to making this work: you must make buyers better off paying more and worse off paying less
Here are just a few of the ways you can charge some buyers more than others for the same, or nearly the same, product.
You can offer different prices for different levels of quality. Buyers who pay more get more of a product’s attribute than buyers who pay less.
You can offer different prices for different purchase quantities. Buyers who purchase a larger quantity pay a lower average price than buyers who purchase less.
You can offer different prices for different purchase, delivery, or use times. Buyers who pay more get a more desirable time than buyers who pay less.
In all of these examples, buyers have to sacrifice something in order to get a lower price. Not every buyer will be willing to make this sacrifice. Thus, some buyers will voluntarily pay you more than others and be happy to do so. But only if you make them better off paying more and worse off paying less.