By Simon Severino, founder of Strategy Sprints, where 2,400+ B2B founders have gone through our programs. Updated November 2026.

Raise your B2B prices in this order: new clients first, then a review call with each existing client, then written notice tied to a result they named themselves. Your price then sits next to their number, so you never have to defend it. A few price-only clients may still leave. Clients who can see what your work is worth have a reason to stay. 🐬

What changes for you: no apology letter, no sleepless week before you hit send. Picture the review call ending with your client already talking about June, and the new fee a line in the notes. You led that conversation, so nobody had to beg or defend.

Why do price increases lose clients?

Usually it's the way they arrive, more than the number.

The old way: an email lands one month before renewal. "Due to rising costs, our rates will increase." Read that from the client's side. Your costs are your problem, and now you've made them theirs. The only thing left for them to do is check what the other firms charge.

It also sounds like an apology, and an apology invites a negotiation. It leaves a bad taste on both sides. 🐯

The usual advice is to "communicate value". True, and useless until you know whose words carry that value. Yours don't. Theirs do.

Who should get the new price first?

New clients. Starting with your next three proposals.

This does two jobs. It's a live test with no existing relationship at risk. And it gives you the proof you'll need in your own head when you talk to existing clients. Once three new buyers have said yes to the new number, it stops feeling like a risk.

If those three balk, don't drop the price yet. Check the order first. Did each buyer name the cost of doing nothing before they heard your number? If not, you tested the old sequence, not the new price. Here's why that order is the source of pricing power: https://www.strategysprints.com/blog/what-is-pricing-power-and-how-do-i-get-it-b2b-founder-answer

How do I decide how much to raise?

Stop looking at market averages. They don't know what your work is worth to this client.

Look at the number the client gave you. An illustrative example, with made-up numbers: a client told you a stalled pipeline costs them $200,000 a year. You charge $60,000. Moving to $72,000 is an easy conversation, because the price still sits far below their cost.

If you've never asked a client that question, this is why your price feels hard to raise. There's nothing for it to sit next to. Start asking, and in one quarter you'll have the numbers. 🌴

How do I tell existing clients about a price increase?

Run the call before you send the letter. Items 4 to 8 come straight from our 8 Steps of the Repeatable Sale:

1. Sort first. List your clients. Who got a clear result? Who only ever talks about price? Start with the first group.
2. Book a review call, not a pricing call. Well ahead of renewal. 60 to 90 days gives them time to plan.
3. Ask what changed. "Since we started, what's different for you?" Let them say it.
4. Ask Step 4 Cost of Inaction. "If we stopped next quarter, what would that cost you?" Then stay quiet.
5. Ask Step 5 Deliverables. "What do you want from the next 12 months?"
6. Then Step 6 Investment. "To deliver that, the fee moves to $X."
7. Step 7 Starting Date. "From which date do we run the new plan?" A date, not "at renewal sometime".
8. Step 8 Statement of Work. Confirm it in writing, in their words, the same day.

Say the number once, then stop talking. The silence after it feels long to you. It isn't long to them.

What do I write in the email?

Short, specific, no apology. An example with a made-up client:

"Anna, thanks for today. You said a stop next quarter would cost you around $200,000 and put the new hires back to zero. You want the team closing without you by June. To deliver that, our fee moves to $6,000 a month from March 1. Reply yes and I'll send the updated Statement of Work."

Their number. Their goal. One date. One move. Nobody could read that as a form letter. 🐬

What if a client pushes back on the new price?

Keep the price and change the scope.

"I hear you. I can't do the same work at the old fee. I can take out the monthly workshop and keep the fee where it is. Which works better for you?"

A lower price for the same work tells the client your new number was never real. A smaller scope keeps your number honest and gives them a real choice. More on that here: https://www.strategysprints.com/blog/how-do-i-stop-discounting-in-b2b-sales-fix-the-order-not-the-price

You can also offer a real deadline: renew before the date and keep the current fee for one more term. Time-limited, and only if the date is true. Never as a permanent exception.

And if a client who only ever bought on price leaves? It stings for a day. Then look at what that frees up: hours for the clients who name results, and a fresh slot for your next deal.

Should I raise prices before I hire salespeople?

Yes, if you can. A new hire learns your price as the truth. Hand them a low number and they'll defend it, discount from it, and bring in deals too small to pay for their own seat.

So raise first, close a few deals yourself at the new number, then write down exactly how you did it. Your hire starts with a price that's already been proven, and a sequence they can run without you on the call.

Your one move this week: pick your best client and book the review call. Ask what would happen if you stopped next quarter. Write down their exact words. 🐯

FAQ

How much notice should I give B2B clients before a price increase? Long enough to plan, usually 60 to 90 days before renewal. Have the review call first, so the written notice confirms a conversation you've already had.

Should I keep old clients on their old price? Not forever. Give them one more term if they renew by a real date. Permanent old prices turn your best clients into your least profitable ones.

Should I blame rising costs? No. Your costs are your problem. Tie the new fee to the result the client named and what they want next.

What if I lose a client over the increase? Check who left. If it was a client who only ever bought on price, you've freed up time for better work. If it was a client with real results, review the order of your conversation before you touch the number.

Should I raise prices for new clients and existing clients at the same time? New clients first. Once a few have said yes, you'll walk into the existing client calls with proof, and it will show in your voice.

Want the tools, AI skills and a community of founders practicing this every week? Join Sprint Club, 7 days free: https://www.strategysprints.com

Ready to accelerate now? Book a Discovery Call: https://calendly.com/strategysprint/discovery-call

Happy hunting.

Simon & The Sprinters 🐬⚡️🐆