Start From Your True Cost

Every price you set begins with one number: what the order actually costs you. That is not just the panel's wholesale rate. Your true cost per order includes the wholesale cost (rate per 1,000 multiplied by the quantity), any fee you pay when receiving the customer's payment, and a share of your ongoing costs such as panel top-up fees or messaging expenses. Many beginners price from the wholesale rate alone and wonder why their "profit" disappears — it was never profit; it was uncounted costs. Write down the full cost for each service you sell before setting a single price.

Choose a Markup Approach

A markup is the amount you add on top of your cost, usually expressed as a percentage. The simplest reliable method for beginners is a consistent markup rule applied across your menu — for example, doubling the wholesale cost (a 100% markup) or adding a fixed percentage. Consistency matters more than the exact number at the start: it keeps your pricing logical, makes quoting instant, and prevents the "different price for different customer" problem. You can refine per service later, once you know which services sell easily and which need sharper pricing.

Position Against the Market, Not Just the Panel

Your customer is not comparing your price to the panel's wholesale rate — they cannot see it. They are comparing your price to other resellers, to doing nothing, and to the value of having someone handle everything for them. Your price should reflect the complete offer: the service itself, your guidance in choosing it, your availability when questions arise, and your reliability in fixing problems. Competing purely on being the cheapest is a losing game — there is always someone cheaper, and the cheapest reseller is usually the first to cut corners on support.

Package and Tier Your Offer

Instead of selling only raw quantities, group your services into two or three simple tiers — for example, Starter, Growth, and Professional packages with increasing quantities. Tiers make decisions easier for customers (most people pick the middle option), increase your average order size, and let you present a clean menu instead of a calculator. Keep the tiers honest: each tier should be a genuinely larger quantity of the same service, not a relabeled small package with a big price jump.

A Worked Example

Here is a neutral example showing the arithmetic (not a recommendation of specific prices):

  • Panel wholesale rate: $2.00 per 1,000 units; customer wants 5,000 units.
  • Wholesale cost: 5 times $2.00 = $10.00.
  • Payment receiving fee: $0.50 on this transaction.
  • True cost: $10.50.
  • Markup rule: 100% of true cost = $10.50.
  • Retail price: $21.00, with $10.50 gross profit before other costs.

Run this calculation for every service and package you sell. When the numbers are written down, pricing stops being a gut feeling and becomes a business decision.

When to Raise or Lower Prices

Prices are not permanent. Raise them when your costs rise (panel rates change, fees increase), when demand consistently exceeds the time you have, or when you add genuine value such as faster support or better guarantees. Lower them cautiously and temporarily — for a promotion or to win a specific customer — rather than permanently, because raising prices back up is always harder. Review your menu every month or two: check each service's current wholesale rate, confirm your markup still holds, and adjust where the math no longer works. A price list you never revisit slowly stops being profitable without you noticing.

Pricing is where your business either funds itself or quietly bleeds. Build it on real costs, keep it consistent, present it simply, and revisit it regularly — and it will take care of itself while you focus on customers.