The most expensive words in your company are “we can do cheaper”

A founder texts you: “Budget approved. Need agency next month. We handle UAE leads. What’s your monthly?”

That is a 20,000+ AED/month retainer.

Your junior (tired, insecure) replies at 22:30: “We can maybe do 8k we just start yeah we help you push.”

Now your positioning is dead. Forever. Because that is a screenshot.

Why this is worse than you think

• The client will NEVER accept 20k again. You already begged.
• They will forward that message to partners: “Look, they’re desperate.”
• They will push you to add more scope for free because “we’re helping you get started.”
• They will delay paying because they think you’re needy, not selective.

You did not “win a client cheaper.” You sold your authority.

Now the part you’re ignoring: your AI is doing the same thing

If you let ChatGPT / Gemini / DeepSeek reply without rules, it will say “we can customize pricing,” “we can do flexible,” “we support all budgets.”

That sounds friendly to you. To the client it reads: “We have no standard. You control us.”

العميل الآن شافك ضعيف. انتهى.

AI with no price floor is just as dangerous as a panicking junior rep. Sometimes worse, because it works 24/7 and never gets tired of underpricing you.

ChatGPT vs Gemini vs DeepSeek on pricing pressure

ChatGPT: Wants to “be helpful,” might soften your pricing language to “we can discuss package options.” That smells like “negotiate me down.”

Gemini: Loves to package bundles and “optimize” scope. Translation: it might throw in extra services just to sound attractive, destroying your margin before the first call.

DeepSeek: More likely to outline cost logic directly (“for X lead volume we need min 20k AED/month”), which is great — but can come off too cold and CFO-style for emotional founders, unless softened.

The mistake? You’re letting the model choose tone and numbers instead of telling the model: “Never go below 20,000 AED/month for retainer. Ever. Say it in confident, respectful language.”

How to stop the bleeding instantly

At Vista by Lara we hard-code:

• Your floor: e.g. “We typically start from 20,000 AED/month for UAE full-funnel lead generation and WhatsApp sales routing.”
• Your authority frame: “I can book you with our director tomorrow 10:30 UAE or 12:15 UAE to finalize onboarding.”
• Your timeline: “You mentioned November start — are you aiming 1st or mid-month?”

اللغة: قوية، محترمة، واضحة. بدون تسوّل. بدون خصم.

Result: the buyer feels they’re dealing with a serious partner, not a desperate freelancer.

Myth vs Reality for agency owners in UAE