The $600 Haircut

Would you recognize a $600 haircut if you passed one on the street? Would you pay $600 for a haircut if you could? This was the question asked on ABC’s 20/20 one night in their episode True Confessions (click here to view the episode).

Many of us would no doubt express shock at such a price tag. “Six HUNDRED dollars for a HAIRCUT?? Good heavens…that’s ridiculous!” Right?

On the surface, perhaps. But to those who have the money and can invest that much in themselves, it’s not so silly.

Let me ask you this now, when it comes to your business, would you be willing to pay $2000 or more for a website?

Again, some would look at that and faint dead away from sticker shock, while others would see the value of the investment, save up if they have to, and gladly pay a highly skilled professional to do the work for them.

Quiz time…what do the haircut and website have in common? Go ahead, review the notes. It’s an open book quiz.

See the common thread? I called each one “an investment”.

Some people choose to invest in themselves, some choose to invest in their business. Celebrities and high profile people must invest in themselves to shine in public. They need the best hair, makeup, personal trainers, dieticians, chefs…all so they look the very best they can to represent their brand. Their bodies, faces, lifestyles and fashion statements are all a part of what makes them, them.

Your website is the same. It’s the face of your business, it’s the front line of contact, it’s the first impression to potential clients.

But “the $600 haircut” goes deeper than first impressions. There’s another side of this well-coiffed coin from the professional’s point of view: The High Quality Service Experience.

The moment you tie a big price tag to your services and product, it tells the world you’ve got something special, something no one else can get anywhere else. You’re paid the Big Bucks because you value what you do and others value it too.

The old adage “you get what you pay for” rings true on so many levels. One of the hairstylists in the interview when asked, “Is this a Monet? ” he said, “Hopefully it will be, I’m going to give it as much love as I can.”

When people buy a Monet, they expect nothing less than a Monet. When you’re paid what you’re worth, you feel good about you and you pass that love on to your client.

Just to put it into further perspective, can you remember a time, possibly during your first year of business, where you under estimated a quote and ended up doing far more work than you anticipated? Maybe the project suffered from “scope creep”, where the client keeps asking for more and more, and you don’t want to say no because you REALLY want to make an impression and were afraid of losing out on that income?

What happened? Did you get resentful, grumbling at your screen that you’re not getting paid enough for this? That the client was taking advantage of you and totally unappreciative of your efforts?

Whose fault is that? Not the client’s. They’re only guilty of bad manners. You were the one who set the terms, and you were the one who kept moving the boundaries to compensate and accommodate. Some, not all, clients will push these boundaries to see how much they can get away with. It’s your responsibility to put a stop to it and keep the project on track with what was agreed to in the initial proposal.

Your prices are more than just time and materials. Prices include the kind of experience your clients can expect from you. Are you offering champagne and caviar, or mediocre coffee and a day-old danish?

So, with that said, what do you think of the $600 haircut now? Is it worth it to you to have your hairstylist come to your house and treat you like a queen getting ready for the red carpet? Or are you content with schlepping down to the local quick-cut franchise in the middle of a hectic day? No one will know the difference once you’re done, but you will.

Tell us your thoughts and opinions in the comments, we’d love to hear what you have to say on the subject.