Do you think undercharging your services will encourage people to choose you over your competitors? Nope, it doesn't. If you think undercharging only affects your earnings, think again! It affects your personal brand as well. Entrepreneurs undercharge for different reasons, but whatever the reasons are, here's how they harm you:
"Wow! Your services are so affordable, I expected to pay much more than what you asked!"
How much you charge is a reflection of your value. Price is perception. Price and value are two different things. Price is what people pay and value is what they receive. Most of the time, people think that the lower the price is, the lower the quality is. Since you're an expert, would you want people to think of your services as low quality? If you undercharge, you fail to communicate your value.
I'll get more clients if I charge less. This is true, you'll get more clients if you charge less, but they are not the people you want to be working with! Charge less and you attract low quality clients.
You're not owning your skills. How would you feel if your colleague — someone who has the same experience as you do — tells you that you're charging too low compared to what he's charging? Or what if, a client tells you "Wow! Your services are so affordable, I expected to pay much more than what you asked!" These scenarios will make you question your pricing.
People may trust you less. Charging less will make people question your credibility. Why are you charging too low while others charge too high? Is it because you're just starting out and you want to build your credibility and portfolio first? Not everyone goes for the lower prices.
Charge less, work more. Charge more, work less. Your pricing determines how much more you need to do. If you undercharge, you'll need to do twice the work. The time you spend doing "more work" could've been used for other more important tasks like skill enhancement, which coincidentally will allow you to again, charge more.
You build a reputation of cheap work. One satisfied client will refer you to another person, and then this person will refer you to another... until eventually you'll be known as the entrepreneur who provides good work but charges low.
Please, never undermine your skills by undercharging. If potential clients think you're charging too much, walk away. They are not your ideal clients. Build a brand that shows your value and one way to do it is to charge how much your services are worth.
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