A few weeks ago, I told a friend of mine that I needed a haircut.
And I asked for a recommendation.
He gave me one with a warning: It's not cheap.
"Well, that's alright," I thought.
"I used to get $10 haircuts.
Now I splurge on $40 haircuts.
It can't be much more than that."
But when I asked how much it costs, he said, "$250 plus $60 for a tip."
WHAT?!
$310 FOR A MEN'S HAIRCUT?
It's about time you invested in yourself.
So I made an appointment immediately.
I'm Derek Halpern, and you're watching Social Triggers TV, the place where entrepreneurs
and executives turn to learn how to get ahead in business and life.
And since I specialize in training people in the art of persuasion, I had to see how
someone could charge so much for a men's haircut and get away with it.
And not only did I get an awesome haircut, but I learned a thing or two about charging
more for your products and services, giving your customers a luxury experience, and convincing
them to come back for more.
I reveal everything in this video.
Let me walk you through the whole experience.
And after, I'm going to share the key takeaways.
Before I showed up for my haircut, I did some research and discovered that this hair stylist
has been written up in major fashion magazines and worked on runway shows for both men and
women.
He also trained under one of the world-renowned hair stylists for years before he spread his
own wings.
The dude has a pedigree and the experience.
Now, I wondered if I could show up in my typical attire, you know, mesh shorts and a stained
t shirt.
But I opted to wear jeans instead, thinking that if I showed up looking like I rolled
out of bed, they wouldn't let me in the door.
I just imagined that there would be a bouncer at the front being like, "Not today" if I
showed up in mesh shorts.
But that didn't happen.
Anyway, when I entered the hair studio (not the barbershop, not the salon, but the hair
studio), I saw a beautiful, rustic interior decorated with one-of-a-kind furniture, Edison
lightbulbs hanging from the ceiling, and an adorable French bulldog running around.
It was great.
I gave them my name, and they walked me over to the bathroom.
"Your robe is in there.
Put that on."
"Robe?
Do I take my clothes off to put the robe on?
I've never worn a robe for a haircut before."
The guy kind of actually looked at me funny and goes "Yeah, if you're comfortable doing
it."
I put the robe on, got my hair washed, and I started telling the stylist what I wanted.
He took some time to listen, but made some suggestions.
"The perfect hair style depends on the shape of your jaw line, how long your neck is, and
how your hair is trained."
And he went on.
He knew what he was talking and convinced me to let him do his thing.
He spent 45 minutes doing the fade by hand with nothing but scissors.
I couldn't help but notice his gold comb... everyone else usually uses a buzzer and a
plastic comb.
This dude had a gold comb and man sized scissors.
As he was finishing up, he put some product in my hair, saying that he wanted to see how
my hair fell.
He rinsed the product out and went to work on the top of my head.
Another 45 minutes later, I was done.
He walked me through, step by step, what I needed to do to make my haircut stay like
this.
He said I needed a blowdryer.
Product.
A brush.
A brush!
I've never had a brush in my entire life.
But now, apparently, I need a brush.
But there was more...
He said, "Every haircut here comes with a complimentary cleanup.
So if you get a haircut once a month, we recommend you come back in 2 weeks and we'll clean you
up for free."
I scheduled my clean up, and I was done.
So, what are some of the key takeaways from this lavish experience?
Let's break it down.
First, it's not a barbershop.
When you think "barbershop," you think "$20 haircuts."
He elevates his business by calling it a studio.
This means he can charge what he wants because I'm not bringing any preconceived notions
to the table.
This is smart marketing.
And I've done something similar before myself...
When I launched the Social Triggers Insider Podcast, I purposely never called it a podcast
because I wanted it to feel better than some free thing people download on the web.
Instead, I called it a Master Class.
So, if you want to charge higher prices for your services, avoid generic terminology and
use something that stands out.
Doing this elevates your product or service and positions you as someone who offers a
luxury experience.
Second, people can charge whatever they want for their services...
if they can deliver the service, the experience, and more important, THE VISION.
He listened to what I had to say about what I wanted in a haircut.
But ultimately, he convinced me that his vision for my hair was better.
The dude is an expert and he isn't afraid to show it.
So, let's say you're a web designer.
You could just do exactly what your client wants you to do.
At which point, you're a monkey with a mousepad.
Or...
You could make strategic recommendations that you believe are better than what your client
is asking for.
You could recommend things your client doesn't even know exists yet.
You could bring the service, the experience, and the vision, and what will happen?
You won't be a web designer.
You'll be a creative director.
Who gets paid more?
Third, everything about this experience felt different than the usual.
The interior was immaculate.
I didn't have to wait.
I was ushered to the back to wear a robe.
A ROBE.
His tools were GOLD.
Everything felt luxurious.
And if you can make your service luxurious, if you can make your customers feel different,
you'll be able to charge higher prices.
For example, with all of my online training courses, customer service is a top priority.
If people have problems with their account, we get it fixed up as soon as possible.
If they have questions, my support teams answers it.
If my support team can't answer it, I'll answer it myself.
Why?
Yes, it's the right thing to do.
But also, it creates a better experience for the customer.
A bad customer experience results in a customer never buying from you again.
A great customer experience will keep them coming back for more.
So, in your business, take a look at what's considered industry standard... and do better.
If typical response time is 48 hours, answer yours in 12.
Do anything that positions you above the rest and you'll earn it.
Finally, you need to be great at what you do.
That means, you've got to study your craft, and continuously hone your skills.
This guy knew what he was doing, and the haircut was amazing.
But it wasn't just a haircut.
It was a learning experience.
I got a great cut, but I also learned a lot about my hair.
Stuff that I've never heard before, and stuff that I'll carry with me for the rest of my
life.
That means: Not only do you need to deliver your service, you also need to educate your
customers on what they can do without you.
I know it's counterintuitive, but it works.
And that's it for today.
If you liked this video, here's what I want you to do:
First, subscribe to this channel by clicking the little box.
Also hop on the newsletter, where you can get exclusive training material I only share
with my newsletter.
But more important, I want you to tell me about a time when you splurged on something
crazy like a $310 haircut.
How was it?
Was the experience different?
What do you remember most about that experience?
Leave a comment below this video.