How to price a B2B service

Choose 1 client segment and 1 repeatable service before setting a price. A fixed offer makes delivery cost and buying decisions easier to compare.

Write the result, deliverables, timeline, revision limit and exclusions. For consulting, specify whether implementation is included or only recommendations.

Name the buying situation too. A founder exploring options and a company facing an urgent renewal may value the same work differently.

Estimate delivery hours at a realistic labor cost, including employment costs where applicable. Add subcontractors, project-specific software and other direct delivery expenses.

For your own time, choose an explicit labor-cost allowance rather than treating it as free. Record that assumption separately.

Check the hours against completed work where possible. If scope varies, calculate a normal case and a demanding case before quoting.

Keep delivery costs separate from general overhead. Your remaining gross profit must still cover sales, administration, idle capacity and other business expenses.

Gross margin measures gross profit as a share of revenue. Markup measures the increase over cost. The percentages are not interchangeable.

Price = delivery cost ÷ (1 − target gross margin). Enter the margin as a decimal, such as 0.40 for 40%.

Illustrative example, not a market recommendation: delivery costs €600 and the target gross margin is 40%. The calculated price is €1,000, excluding tax.

Adding 40% to €600 gives €840 instead. That leaves €240 gross profit, or about 28.6% of revenue, before overhead and tax.

A calculated margin does not prove demand or net profitability. It gives you a price hypothesis to test against delivery risk and customer value.

Compare alternatives serving the same client and problem. Include internal delivery and doing nothing, not only agencies or consultants.

Ask prospects about the last time they bought similar work. What triggered the decision, who approved it, and what budget actually existed?

Present a clear scope and price in real sales conversations. Record objections, proposals accepted, delivery effort and reasons for losses.

Do not treat a polite interview answer as a purchase. A paid engagement gives stronger evidence, although a small sample is still uncertain.

Use fixed pricing when scope is predictable. Use a paid discovery phase or time-based pricing when uncertainty would make a fixed quote unsafe.

Before discounting, consider reducing scope, changing timing or improving payment terms. State any additional work and its price before starting it.

This week, write 1 offer, cost 1 delivery and test 1 price hypothesis. Review the actual margin after delivery, not just the quoted margin.