Is my approach wrong?

A plumber exists who actually can't afford $1795?

Or is it you didn't get him to see the value of it sufficiently?

Yup..look at craigslist, full of $99 webdesign ads..

If he hung up on you, Brian, then he's probably not a fit.

YOU told him what he needed...did HE tell you anything? Perhaps he thought his "site" was fine. And then you say "What you need is a $1800 fix-up". Did you monetize the problem? My gut says no you didn't.

So you threw an $1800 price tag at him for something he didn't understand the value of or need for, and he got mad. Not a shocker, really.

On anther track, you are NOT competing against $99 CL websites. Anyone with half a brain knows the difference.

Do you get many leads?
Of those leads how many bring up a price objection?

My guess, without seeing the site and marketing, is that it is attracting and converting people looking for cheap web design.

The other idea is that what you said you would do for him didn't seem worth $1795. If the guy is used to his website being just there and not bringing business he might freak out at $1795 since he was paying $19.95 per month. And i am sure yours had a monthly fee as well.

So the two take ideas to fix it would be make sure your marketing and page are set up to presell. You want the customers contacting you to be prequalified. They want a website that converts not just sits and that takes money.

Then once you get those people you need to sell them on the benefits they get. And here's a hint.... new website is not a benefit. Also if you keep getting price objections you should use anchoring. If you are not familiar with the term the best way to explain it is to earlier in the sales process drop prices and justification for such prices. Often comparing Apples to Oranges like online training vs. the cost of university training. Infomercials do this well.

Example: "One of the ways we will get you more traffic is to use _______ techinique originally created by Dan Kennedy. If you are not familiar with Dan Kennedy, he would be best described as one of the top marketing consultants in the Country who charges several thousand dollars per day. Not to bore you with details but in layman's terms this technique works by......."

Example: "A website, when designed with your consumer in mind, can act as a sort of 24 hr a day, 7 day a week help desk. And a small company like yours could pay several thousand per month for a help desk service that was available 24/7."

Example: "By setting up your contact form and presell page to collect all that information many of my clients save on average 30 mins per call vs. those who find them in the yellow pages. Even if all we got was 10 calls that would be 5 hours of your time per month. At your hourly rate that is like $3,000 a year in extra billable time."

BTW my examples may suck as I don't sell websites nor do I design them so I'm pulling it out of my ass. But take the basic ideas and convert them to your business.

He knows his site is very old and need a new site....he asked how much..

@aaron I like this approach
Example: "A website, when designed with your consumer in mind, can act as a sort of 24 hr a day, 7 day a week help desk. And a small company like yours could pay several thousand per month for a help desk service that was available 24/7."

Is your approach to quote a price, tell them what it entails and then wait for the sale? Consultative Sales is the best approach in my opinion. What does he need? What is his budget? What is the purpose of his site? Needs Analysis like Husker speaks to in his post. I cold call for a living and then-if an interest-Needs Analysis-Consult-Options-Price-Objection-Restate/Overcome/Answer-Ask for the business again. This is not inclusive process but, you get the gist. If there is no value then ANY price is too much.

Sounds like:

You didn't reset their buying criteria. What is important to them? What is he looking for? What problems is he having? What kind of an impact is that having on his business? What would it mean for him to achieve xxxx?

You spoke about features which he doesn't understand, doesn't need and doesn't see the value in.

You gave your price without retaking control and go into their buying criteria as above.

If he really didn't have the budget then this process could be in futility, if he just wants to price he is likely on the bottom end of the market. Don't deal with people that will take advantage of your time and expertise.

Talk more with clients that value your positioning of offering good products and GOOD but not necessarily CHEAP prices.

Sounds like he did you a favour by hanging up on you imo

Given that this lead came through your website, what about your
website made him contact you?

Perhaps your website needs more content that presells you
and services offered. AND, gives your price ranges so you get a
better budget match ahead of time.

Maybe he wanted some other service that he thinks could bring
him more business. (Even if he is mistakenly thinking he does
not need a better website because his old one does not do
anything for him and he has dismissed the whole website thingy.)

Anyway, more conversation about him and what he needs seems
like what needed to happen.

Dan