If you’ve been stuck hitting plateaus of $20k, $30k, or even $40k a month as a consultant, you’re not alone.

But here’s the good news—you can bust through those ceilings by leveraging a diagnostic, productized service on the front end of your engagements.

Let me explain.

The Risk Factor

You know how good you are. But your clients don’t.

As my friend Robin Robins says:

No one knows how good you are until the sale. Before they buy, they only know how good your marketing is. 

That means you’re a risk to your prospective clients.

Sure, great marketing can help reduce that risk by positioning you as an authority and building some trust—but it won’t eliminate it.

Because no matter how polished your marketing is, there’s still that nagging doubt: Can you actually deliver what you’re promising?

And who can blame them?

We’ve all been burned by service providers who talk a big game, only to underdeliver once they’re paid.

Why Perceived Risk Lowers Your Fees

Here’s the thing: risk is inversely related to price.

The more risky you seem, the less a client is willing to pay.

If you can reduce, or even eliminate that risk, you’ll be able to charge premium rates for your work.

Now, some people try to address this by offering guarantees. And while I’m not against guarantees, they don’t eliminate risk.

Tell a client you offer a money-back guarantee, and they’re still wondering, Will you actually honor it?

Say you’ll work for free until they get results, and they’re thinking, Am I going to be stuck working with you forever?

That’s why guarantees, while useful, don’t fully solve the problem.

The Real Risk Eliminator: A Diagnostic Productized Service

The best way to eliminate risk isn’t through promises—it’s through proof.

And the fastest way to offer proof before they hire you for the big-ticket work?

Start with a low-risk, diagnostic productized service—an audit, assessment, deep dive, or snapshot that delivers value without a long-term commitment.

(Note: this is always a paid offer, and not a cheap ‘lead magnet’ price. Don’t give away deep, strategic expertise for free.)

Here’s how this type of offer works for you:

• Confirms the real problem: Clients often misdiagnose their issues. A diagnostic service lets you verify whether their perceived problem is the actual problem.

• Proves you can solve it: This phase lets you evaluate if you can truly help and if it's a high-probability win for both you and the client.

• Helps you evaluate fit: During this stage, you also get to decide if they’re a good fit for you long-term. Sometimes, even if you can solve their problem, it’s not worth the headache if they’re not the right type of client (think, a-hole clients).

Here’s How It Helps You Earn More

Let’s say you’re offering a 4-week diagnostic audit as your front-end service.

You outline what you’ll assess based on the core problems you solve and create a repeatable process.

Then, after you’ve completed your diagnostic, you sit down with the client for a 60-90 minute meeting to share your findings.

Now, instead of presenting a theoretical sales pitch, you’re showing them real insights and actionable recommendations—a timeline is a bonus—based on what you’ve uncovered.

If you’re good at what you do, you’ve now proven you know what you’re talking about, and likely delivered more value than expected by uncovering issues they weren’t even aware of.

At this point, you’ve positioned yourself to be paid for your expertise—not just fulfillment. And that’s where the real money is.

Because service providers who just do what the client asks are a dime a dozen. Experts who can tell clients what needs to be done? Much rarer.

This sets you up to earn far more than before.

You’ve proven your knowledge, developed institutional insights, and established yourself as the strategist, not just the executor.

When it’s time to quote for a full engagement, you’ll have the leverage to charge more.

Why This Strategy Works

Bolting on a diagnostic productized service at the start of your engagements does 5 key things for your business:

1. Reduces risk, raises prices: You’ve proven your value before the big engagement begins, eliminating the doubts that stop clients from paying premium rates.

2. Positions you as the expert: You’re not just completing tasks—you’re the expert providing strategic advice, which commands higher fees.

3. Evaluates fit: This phase lets you assess if the client is a good long-term fit for your business before committing to a larger project.

4. Creates high-leverage revenue: Your process will get more efficient over time, allowing you to charge more for the same diagnostic work while it takes less time to complete.

5. Makes your service easier to market: A productized service with clear timelines and standardized pricing is simpler to explain and sell than custom, bespoke offerings.

So, if you’re ready to break through your revenue plateaus, I recommend starting with a productized diagnostic service.

It proves how good you are, reduces risk for your clients, and ensures you get paid what you’re worth.

If you’re ready to create one, check out my productization framework on YouTube here.

Have questions? Hit reply and fire away—I’ll get back to you ASAP.

Adios,

Ray

P.S. – I’m considering hosting a free webinar to break this process down further. If you’d be interested, reply with “WEBINAR” so I can gauge interest. If there’s enough demand, I’ll get it scheduled.