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How to reply to a customer asking for a discount: sample emails for every answer

Seven replies for the email that asks for a better price: a polite no, a yes with a condition, a counter-offer, a team purchase and more. Decide your policy once, then send the one that says it.

The replies

Each one copies with its subject line. The parts in brackets are the parts to change; everything else can go out as written.

A polite no that holds the price

Subject: Re: [their subject line]

Hi [Name], Thanks for asking. I keep one price for everyone, so I do not offer individual discounts on [Product]. That way, nobody who paid in full paid more than the person who happened to ask. It also means the price is as low as I can make it for everyone, rather than higher for most people and lower for a few. If it helps with the decision: [your refund policy, for example: every purchase has a 30-day refund, so you can use it properly and get your money back if it is not worth it to you]. Happy to answer anything about whether it fits what you need. [Your name]
Yes, on the annual plan

Subject: Re: [their subject line]

Hi [Name], Yes, there is a way to pay less: the annual plan. It is [annual price] a year, which works out at [monthly equivalent] a month instead of [monthly price], or [number] months free compared with paying monthly. You can switch at [link], or reply here and I will set it up for you. [Your name]
Yes, for students, teachers or non-profits

Subject: Your [Product] [education / non-profit] discount

Hi [Name], Yes. [Product] is [percentage]% off for [students and teachers / registered non-profits], and from what you describe, you qualify. All I need is [a photo of a current student card / an email from your school address / your charity registration number]. Once I have it, I will send you a code that works at checkout. [Your name]
A counter-offer: a smaller plan or a longer trial

Subject: Re: [their subject line]

Hi [Name], I keep the price of [plan] the same for everyone, but from what you have told me, you may not need all of it. [Cheaper plan or smaller licence] is [price], and it covers [what they said they need]. The one thing it leaves out is [feature], which it does not sound like you use. [Or: I can extend your trial to number days, so you can see whether the full plan earns its price before you pay anything.] If that sounds right, reply and I will set it up. [Your name]
No, but there is a discount anyone can use

Subject: Re: [their subject line]

Hi [Name], I do not do one-off discounts, but there is one running for everyone right now: [what it is, for example: 30% off the annual plan until date]. [Link or code.] [If nothing is running, use this instead: I run a sale about once a year, usually when a major version ships. If you like, I will let you know when the next one starts.] [Your name]
A hardship request, handled kindly

Subject: Re: [their subject line]

Hi [Name], Thank you for telling me, and I am sorry things are hard at the moment. I keep a reduced price for exactly this: [price or percentage off] for [how long, for example: the next six months]. Here is the code: [code]. You do not need to explain anything further or send me anything. If things change, there is no need to tell me. Just carry on as you are. [Your name]
A team or bulk purchase

Subject: Pricing for [number] [licences / seats] of [Product]

Hi [Name], Thanks, that sounds like a good fit. For [threshold, for example: 5] or more [licences / seats], the price is [percentage]% off, so [number] comes to [total] instead of [full total]. [How it works, for example: you pay one invoice and I email you number licence keys to hand out.] I can put [a PO number / your VAT number / your company address] on the invoice if your accounts team needs it. If that works, reply with [the name and email for the invoice] and I will set it up today. [Your name]

Subject lines

A discount request is usually a question in an existing thread, so reply in the thread and keep their subject. Use a fresh one only when the email holds something they will need to find later, like a code or a quote.

  • Re: [their subject line] (reply in the thread)
  • Your [Product] [education / non-profit] discount
  • Pricing for [number] [licences / seats] of [Product]
  • A cheaper way to use [Product]
  • [Product] annual plan: [monthly equivalent] a month

Why you should not haggle case by case

Every private discount is a price only the people who ask get. The customers who paid in full did not ask, and they are usually the ones you most want to keep. A public policy is fairer, and it is also easier: a private deal is a decision you make again with every email, with someone waiting on the answer, and each one makes the next request harder to refuse.

So decide once, write it down, and put the public parts on your pricing page:

  • Do you discount at all, or is the price the price?
  • Is there a cheaper way in that anyone can take: an annual plan, a smaller plan, a single-device licence?
  • Who gets a standing discount (students, teachers, non-profits), how much, and what proof you ask for.
  • What you do for someone in genuine hardship, if anything.
  • Whether you run sales, and whether you tell people who ask in between.
  • From how many licences a team gets volume pricing.

Once the policy exists, “no” becomes “here is what is available to everyone”, which is easier to write and easier to hear.

What makes the reply land

  • The answer comes first. Yes, no, or “here is what I can do”, in the first two lines. A reply that opens with how much you value them and gets to the no in paragraph three reads as a brush-off.
  • No apology for the price. “Unfortunately we cannot” says the price is a problem you would fix if you could. “I keep one price for everyone” says it is a decision.
  • No defence of the price either. A list of features and the hours behind them turns a question into an argument. If they want to know whether it is worth it, point to the refund window.
  • Offer something real. An annual plan, a smaller licence, a date for the next sale. “Keep an eye out for offers” is not an offer.
  • Never make someone prove hardship. If you have a hardship price, give it on their word. Asking for proof puts every honest person through it to catch the rare one who is not.

Where the policy lives day to day

A discount request is the same question asked by a different person every week, which makes it exactly the kind of reply to save once and stop rewriting. In Moorline, saved replies are snippets, one shortcut from the composer (⌘;), and {name} becomes the customer’s first name when it goes in. Keep the polite no, the annual plan and the education reply there, and the policy is applied the same way on a tired Friday as on a fresh Monday.

If you connect Stripe, Moorline also shows beside the conversation whether the person asking already pays you, on which plan and for how long. It is read-only, so it cannot apply a discount or change a plan, but it tells you whether you are answering a stranger or a customer of three years, which is often the difference between two replies. Customer support as a solo founder covers the rest of the routine these replies fit into.

Questions people ask

Should a small business give a discount when a customer asks?

Only if the same discount is available to anyone else in the same position. A student price, an annual plan, volume pricing for a team: those are fair, because they are rules. A private discount for whoever thought to ask is a lower price for the people who push, paid for by the customers who did not.

How do I politely say no to a discount request?

Thank them for asking, say no in the first two lines without apologising for the price, and give the reason in one sentence: one price for everyone. Then offer something real if you have it, such as an annual plan, a cheaper tier, a public sale or your refund policy. Asking for a discount is reasonable, so the reply should be friendly, not defensive.

What if the customer says they will buy a competitor unless I give a discount?

Let them decide. If a cheaper product does what they need, they may well be better served by it, and a discount won under that pressure teaches them it works. Answer the question underneath instead: what they need the app to do, and whether yours does it. Sometimes the honest answer is that the other one is a better fit.

Should I offer a student or non-profit discount?

If you are happy to, it is one of the easiest policies to defend, because it is public and anyone who qualifies gets it. Decide the percentage, decide what proof you need (a school email address is usually enough), and put it on your pricing page so the request stops being a negotiation.

What about customers who already paid full price?

That is the best argument for a public policy. If a discount exists, anyone can find it, and nobody feels cheated when they learn about it later. If it only exists for people who asked, the customers you most want to keep, the ones who paid without a fuss, are the ones who paid more.