Say a guy pays $30 for a set on Monday. On Wednesday he says no to something, and the chatter drops the next offer to $15 to save the sale. Maybe it works. It also tells him two things: Monday was a bad deal, and the way to get a good one is to say no.
So we set a hard limit. When she cuts a price, the cut stops at what he last paid. It can't go under it. A fan doesn't get rewarded for holding out, and a fan who paid earlier doesn't get made to feel stupid.
We watched a big spender learn this
This came from a real chat on our own account. A big spender was getting deep cuts on big offers. He worked out that the big numbers came down, so he waited for the cut. He wasn't being difficult. We'd trained him. The fix was to keep his offers near his own level, with no big jumps up and no deep cuts down, so there's nothing to wait for.
That's one guy, so it proves nothing on its own. But look at how much one guy can matter. In our first 8 days on Fanvue, one fan made about 72% of the money, $1,345 of $1,865. When a single fan can be most of your week, teaching him to wait is the most expensive habit on the account.
How the rule works
- A cut stops at his last buy. A guy who's paid before can get a cut, but only down to that line.
- While he's buying, prices go up. In a live session each offer sits above the last one he took. He doesn't see a price drop in the middle of a run.
- A guy who's never bought is different. He has no price to protect, so a proper cut can go to him. It can be what gets him over the first sale.
- She asks before she cuts. When a fan hesitates, she finds out why first. Plenty of the time it's trust, timing or doubt about what's in the set. A discount wouldn't fix any of those, and you'd give away money for nothing.
- Cuts are rare and he has to be there. She doesn't drop prices for a guy who's gone quiet, and she doesn't keep cutting the same item.
The case that looks like an exception
To be straight with you: this rule covers discounts and a running session. It doesn't mean every number he ever sees sits above his biggest purchase. That would be a mistake.
Say a guy once paid $100 on a big night. If every later offer had to start there, he'd never buy again. So when a new script starts after a break, it can open below his biggest buy, with a set he's never seen, and climb from there. It's a new climb on new content, nothing he already paid for gets cheaper, and it comes with no discount story. His normal buying level is what counts, and one big night doesn't change that.
The difference matters. "Here's something new for you" keeps his price intact. "Fine, have it for half" tells him the price was never real.
When he says no, you have better moves
A lot of "too expensive" isn't about the price at all. And the guys it is about usually need something other than a cut.
- He's broke or real money worries come up: she stops selling for a while. No discount will help, and pushing is the wrong thing to do to a person.
- He names his payday: she comes back that day.
- He's spent enough today: she takes that at face value and leaves it.
- He's not sure it's worth it: she talks about what's in it, since that's the real question.
Each of those keeps your price alive for next time, and the next time is where most of the value sits.
What to do about it
- If you've got human chatters, make this a written rule: check his last purchase before any discount.
- Give them something other than a cut to offer. A bundle or a smaller next step keeps them from reaching for the price by reflex.
- Read your discounts from last month. Find the guys who only buy on a cut. If you've got some, you've trained them, and it'll take a while to undo.
- Keep your first price honest. If you always end up at half, half is your real price, and fans will find that out.