As you almost certainly know already (even if it’s only a suspicion you hold), there’s no “single right answer” to internet marketing.

So often, it really depends on what grabs you because then you’ll put your energy behind it and make it work, even if almost everyone else can’t.

One of the things that’s been bothering me about internet marketing for some time now is the seemingly relentless downhill spiral on pricing.

A few years ago, the “normal” price of a product would have been between $47 and $97. Product launches of $997 and even $4,997 weren’t uncommon.

Then the regular price dropped to around $27 as a starting price, and then $17 became the norm.

And now even $17 seems expensive.

Below $10 is becoming the normal price for a product. Even one that’s quite big. I recently got hold of a video marketing product that was priced at under $5 and contained 60 detailed how-to videos on the download page. That’s a lot of product for about the price of a cup of coffee.

And there are a lot of new offerings (albeit with upsells) that start at zero.

And a lot of people who claim that using things like solo ads to get freebie seekers on your list will eventually make you money. Quietly ignoring the steep learning curve you have to go through and the dog-eat-dog world that is so often solo ads.

Which begs the question, where next?

How can you get a reliable income when the per sale value is ever decreasing?

What this really means is that the internet is fast catching up with a lot of the real world models.

Supermarkets make next to nothing on any particular product you buy. After all, a can of beans or a ready to eat meal isn’t expensive in the first place and the product has to be manufactured, stored, shipped and placed on a shelf before someone hopefully buys it.

Supermarkets make their money from what the crumbs left on the table after the cake is cut (that’s roughly the line that was used in the movie Wall Street).

Like it or not, I think internet marketing is going that way.

Prices and margins are dropping.

Sure, there are exceptions. But they’re usually just that – exceptions.

Which means all of us need to address that if we’re going to stay in business.

There is an argument that making a high priced sale (let’s say $100) doesn’t take ten times the effort of (let’s say) making a lower priced $10 sale.

That’s maybe true, maybe not.

And maybe it’s only true if you believe it’s true. But that’s another discussion completely!

Higher priced sales generally need more trust.

If you buy something for $5 or $10 and it doesn’t work out, it’s not a big deal.

If you buy something for ten or a hundred times that price, that’s a different matter entirely.

And at the higher price we’re into what’s known as a considered purchase. Chances are you won’t just nip out, do a bit of window shopping and buy yourself a Rolls Royce.

It usually takes time to build up to a higher priced purchase whereas cheaper prices are essentially impulse buys.

They’re pocket money.

Small change.

Over time, you may well spend the same amount of money.

For instance, if you’re a fairly typical buyer of internet marketing products there’s a good chance you’re spending $50 or $100 or more on a regular basis.

Just not all at once or with the same person.

One of the best ways to deal with this is to flip the problem through 180 degrees.

Turn it on it’s head.

I don’t think many (if any) of us are going to turn the tide of ever decreasing prices any time soon.

So how can you benefit from it?

Probably by changing your business model.

That could be in a number of ways:

• Change market – either one that has more buyers of what you’re currently selling or a new market entirely (for instance, selling physical products on Amazon)
• Change model – shift higher or lower up the food chain in your niche. So maybe corner the market in low price products or maybe set up your follow up process better or maybe position yourself differently. A Rolex tells you the time but costs a lot more than a Casio watch that does exactly the same or probably has more functions.
• Change position. That can take more effort but can be well worth doing. Maybe you could become the person who puts honest reviews above profit. I’m doing something a bit like that on one of my niche sites where the number 1 product I’m recommending is actually the lowest price, lowest margin. But it’s selling very nicely and making me a higher overall commission than I’d get from selling a much lower quantity of the other options.

Take a step back.

Ask yourself what you could do differently.

And then do it!

Feel free to join in this thought process by sharing this page or adding a comment below.