Luxurious Relativity

"The saddest thing I can imagine is to get used to luxury." --Charlie Chaplin

I'm not sure that's the saddest thing I can imagine. I get the premise behind the thought but ultimately, there are so many things sadder. I'm a huge fan of luxury myself. Yet as a pragmatist and a realist, I can see the pitfalls that may lure the average person into believing they have a luxurious, rich life because of the outrageously priced goods they've racked up on their credit cards.

In a article on MSN, "Uncommon Sense: Luxuries you can live without -- and should", (http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/Savinganddebt/Savemoney/P107710.asp) author MP Dunleavey points out the new frames that certain items which were once considered ordinary and mundane purchases, things that we need for daily life but which shouldn't set us back too far, have now become commodities.

Pots, now called "cookware", sheets now called "linens", tennis shoes now called "athletic footwear" and watches now called "time pieces"-all have been reframed to adjust our perspective of their value.

The author argues that while the original product is necessary, the "new, improved and reframed" positioning doesn't necessarily need to suck us in. And yet, suck us in, it is. The "average American" can no more afford a $5,000 plasma TV than they can a trip to the moon.

In contrast with the reasonableness of this idea, this Wall Street Journal article by Christina Binkley, "The Psychology of the $14,000 Handbag: How Luxury Brands Alter Shoppers' Price Perceptions; Buying a Key Chain Instead." (http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB118662048221792463.html), shows a strategy used by many retailers. This strategy pushes the limits of reason with incredibly unreasonable, out of range prices to average people with most of the inventory and then a 'step down' product, still within the brand, and still a stretch to pay for, but more within the limits of reason. An example of this would be buying a key chain (the cheapest of which is $135) from Tiffany's instead of a piece of jewelry.

She writes, "when shoppers are confronted with prices they can't afford, a smart retailer will 'move you right along to where you can salvage your pride,' says Dan Hill, president of Sensory Logic, a Minneapolis consulting company that helps companies explore their sensory and emotional connections with customers."

Working with an affluent clientle gives us the benefit of not having to put the screws to our prospects and clients. If someone can't afford our product or service, we know that our product or service isn't right for them. However, the psychology behind this price perception remains the same for the affluent as well.

By framing ourselves as 'absolutely not the cheapest alternative, but definitely worth the price you pay' and really putting out there exactly what we require we are most definitely altering perceptions. Along those lines, one of the saddest things I can think of is getting used to accepting less than what we're really worth.

What are you worth?

Article Source: Main Articles

Kenrick Cleveland teaches strategies to earn the business of affluent clients using persuasion. He runs public and private seminars and offers home study courses and coaching programs in persuasion strategies.

This article may be reproduced wholly or in part without written permission provided the byline, resource area, and any hyperlinks remain in order to give proper credit to the author.

Internet search engines and directory listings are imperative to your sites existence and success. Submit Your Website to the Searchen Networks directory and search engine to achieve authoritive inbound links.

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5