Should You Ever Give Discounts To People Who Ask For Them?

Here’s a slippery slope:

Josh – do you ever give “one-off” discounts to customers if they as for them? Or just tell them that the full price is the price, but to look out for discounts that pop up from time to time?

My philosophy on one-off discounts is:

Hand up, not a hand out.

Usually when people email to ask for a discount, they’ll give you a sob story that sounds like a country song.

I wrecked my car and lost my job. My girlfriend left and took my dog.

Blah blah blah.

In many of these cases, the person is simply living with the consequences of their own laziness and bad judgment.

By giving them a handout (the discount), you might feel better about yourself for a few minutes, but in reality you’re not helping the person.

Now that’s not to say I never give one-off discounts to people who ask.

Once in a while I’ll get an email from someone that I can tell is working their tail off.

They’ve spent the last 6 months teaching themselves programming from YouTube videos and now they need help to get to the next level.

They’ve put in 80-hour weeks to start their own business and they’re just starting to see some traction.

In cases like these I’m happy to help.

Because I’m confident that this person will not only *appreciate* the break—

They’ll move heaven and earth to wring every last drop of value out of the product.

And that’s a cause I can get behind.

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