The Price of Influence

The numbered first edition

Can a 40,000-word business book sell at €45? Order a copy and watch me find out - real sales figures, costs and margin, shared with buyers only.

250 numbered copies, printed on premium paper reserved for coffee-table books (yes, my printer tried to talk me out of it). Until 15 September, or until the edition is gone.

“A clear, concise, effective plan for those who need to influence without direct authority.”

Kevin Mitchell

President, Professional Pricing Society

Two ways to order

Both are €45. Both get you a numbered, signed copy and the experiment’s results. The only difference: one comes with a second copy to give away.

250 numbered copies until 15 September or sold out

Two copies - same price

The Influence Bundle

150 bundles exist · after that, singles only

One numbered, signed copy for your shelf, another (un-numbered) copy for you to give away - to whoever needs influencing. Yes, the second copy is my marketing budget - I’d rather spend it on you than on ads.

€45 total

Two premium copies in one parcel - posted before launch day

Pre-order the bundle - €45

One copy

The Minimalist

80 single copies in the edition

One numbered, signed copy, all yours. The same cover paper, sewn spine and seat at the experiment - everything but the gifting.

€45

For the minimalists

Pre-order - €45

Numbered copies are signed with a personalised message and allocated in order of payment, starting at No. 21. Copies are posted as they come off the press, from early September - before the standard edition launches.

Just want the book? Kindle is available now - the €16 paperback arrives 15 September →

The set-up is public.
The results are for buyers.

Everything about how this edition is priced and allocated is on this page - the full copy ledger is below. Order a copy, and here’s what you get:

1 September - the summer numbers: sales so far, the bundle-vs-single mix, and what my outreach did or didn’t do
1 October - the closing memo: every cost including the ones I didn’t see coming, my real margin per order, and what I’d price differently next time
October - a live learning call: what worked, what didn’t, and your questions
A numbered, signed copy - only 250 exist
The premium print itself - the paper and sewn binding my printer tried to talk me out of (more stories on the paper →)

Ordering after 1 September? The first email comes to you retroactively. Sell-out or slow burn, buyers see the real numbers.

How this started

“You won’t be able to sell the book at this printing cost.” That was Mr. Chen, my printing contact in Taipei - and he had a point: an interior paper with a cool blue-white tint, a quarter-cotton Japanese cover, a sewn spine. He just didn’t know pricing is my trade.

The full story is in two letters: the €45 question → · the big reveal →

Where all 500 copies go

The full allocation, since you were going to ask anyway.

150	numbered copies, sold in bundles	Nos. allocated in order of payment
80	numbered copies, sold individually	same edition, same paper, one book
20	numbered copies, Nos. 1–20	my first readers
150	unnumbered gift copies	the second book in every bundle - my marketing budget
100	unnumbered copies I keep	Events, marketing and thank-yous along the way
500	printed, once	no reprint of this edition

“Grounded, sharp and brimming with raw energy, Claire Wang’s book proves what the art of pricing has long understood: in the relationship economy, everything turns on ‘altérité’, what the other person needs, how they see you and what they’re willing to give. Authority no longer builds loyalty. Understanding others does.”

Jean-Claude Le Grand

Chief Human Relations Officer, L’Oréal