The principle. "It's too expensive" rarely means "the number is wrong." It means "I don't see enough value to justify the number."
The 3-move price response.
- Isolate. "If price weren't an issue, would you move forward today?" If no — price is a smokescreen. If yes — now you can negotiate.
- Re-anchor value. Walk back through the 2–3 things they said matter most in discovery. "You said [pain]. This solves it for [outcome]. The cost of doing nothing is [number]."
- Hold the silence. After re-anchoring, stop talking. Let them respond. The first person to break loses.
Three things never to do on price.
- Apologize for the price.
- Drop the price within 30 seconds of the objection.
- Justify with extra features. Features = "I'm trying to convince you." Re-anchoring outcomes = "I'm reminding you what you said."
Key takeaway. Price is the buyer's question about value. Answer the value, not the price.