People putting prices too low

[bruc123]

im sick of customers going else were to cheap places such as £6.50 for a full body massage!! I just cant compete n whilst I do have a good regular client base some of my regulars are going for these cheap offers. really disheartened does any one else come across this? iv got a salon and into my second year of business and I really dont want to lose customers but at same.time dont want to make a loss!

 

[lhannah]

Could you try a test the therapist idea to show your knowledge to clients. Ultimately your clients are paying for experience, yeh some may be trying this other salon out but how many are coming back to you?

 

[daisylou93]

How can you possibly make money and run a business with prices that low?!?! £6.50 is just about minimum wage! 😲 the mind boggles!

 

[bruc123]

I no its ridiculos nail extensions at £15.00 ive been doing it for 10 years now and I do have a lot that come.back to me but im.finding even clients that iv done for 4 years or so are gping fo groupon offers they come back but then stray again but it drives me round the bend!I dont think people work out overheads expenses etc

 

[Patricia76]

That is a crazy price

 

[pinkglitter-x]

Its so annoying! Its the cowboys that do it. Little or no training with crappy products...

But when people come to you for corrections or whatever you just wanna say SERVES YOU RIGHT! But hopefully theyll go once and have a rubbish service and realise why its cheaper and come back!

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[melanieloveswax]

Unfortunately, you have to stand your ground. If you drop your pricing, it will hurt you in the long run.

Find out what your competition is doing and what you are doing better.

I've had a few go to lower priced places. They come on back.

 

[Verve Designs]

How can you possibly make money and run a business with prices that low?!?! £6.50 is just about minimum wage! �� the mind boggles!

Well- that's the thing you see. They're not making money and they're not running a business.

It's not sustainable which means they'll be out of business in a few months and move onto something else.

Some people think they're being terribly clever by massively undercutting the market, generally those people are new to the industry, new to working for themselves and are being naïve in the extreme.

I run two businesses on two ends of the spectrum, my design business (by industry standard of companies I'm comparable with) is "cheap", but they're prices I've honed over the years and while I'm never going to be rich doing it, I can make a living doing something I enjoy (I still get naïve people trying to undercut me as well mind!)

However, our hair extension salon is marketing as a high-end premium service, and priced accordingly.

We're comfortable with both as we provide an excellent service for what we charge in both fields. We're also comfortable that few people are going to work harder and make the customer as happy as we do as well

Just my opinion, but that's the way I look at it.

p.s and if these cheapo places attract the lower end of the market? so be it. They're welcome to them.

 

[persianista]

10 Reasons Why You Should NEVER Compete On Price

This is an article I stumbled upon once. It's well worth a read, and explains precisely why you should never use price as a tool for competing for business.

 

[Faylizzie]

10 Reasons Why You Should NEVER Compete On Price

This is an article I stumbled upon once. It's well worth a read, and explains precisely why you should never use price as a tool for competing for business.

Really interesting read and very very true! Thank you for sharing that! Xxxxx

 

[caxtonsarah]

Thought i'd have a rant about this too.

When I first started out as a mobile nail tech 3 years ago I was unique as there was no one like me around, however now everyone and their dog does it and a majority are cheaper than I am.

I've also now started doing lash extensions and again so many people also do it for ridiculous prices.

BUT i've decided to just ignore it. If people want to pay cheapo prices to someone who is probably using very cheap and nasty products from ebay and who is not insured and maybe even not qualified then they can continue to do so. I know that I am qualified, insured and use top quality products and you pay for this.

So just rise above it and ignore it and just continue doing what you are doing at the prices you are doing them for and people will hopefully recognise that.

 

[Willmott]

Love the article mentioned in previous post! It's so easy to see but perhaps forget.

I run a hair salon and have struggled over last few years with recessions cost going up etc....yes we have done offers as in 20% off colours etc....thinking maybe the is the wrong route!

It's hard to know what to do when you need more bums on seats at the end if the day! And I agree the groupon offers etc aren't helping!

 

[Becca@PolishedToPerfection]

I am constantly seeing this especially on Facebook! Someone posted an add yesterday acrylic nails £12 gel polish £10! Had a nosey at her profile and she said her mum bought her a acrylic kit for her bday and she's booked up all week!! Needless to say her pics are terrible! No apex, white tips right down the nail but yet people are asking to book in with her! She even spells it acrillic!!!! Lol. I charge £20 for shellac and £26 for acrylic/gel, I've thought so much about lowering my prices because I don't have any clients but I won't do it!! I've spent thousands on training and buying all my products from sweet squared so I won't lower myself to these people. It really p***'s me off though! xx

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[Verve Designs]

Love the article mentioned in previous post! It's so easy to see but perhaps forget.

I run a hair salon and have struggled over last few years with recessions cost going up etc....yes we have done offers as in 20% off colours etc....thinking maybe the is the wrong route!

It's hard to know what to do when you need more bums on seats at the end if the day! And I agree the groupon offers etc aren't helping!

I don't think offers themselves are a problem. They're a useful tool in quiet times, and they're not permanent! People know that they're finite.

I think the way I look at is that while I'd like to be known as good value for money and not terribly expensive I'd prefer people to be loyal to us and our services and not loyal to our prices.

Because prices are easily matched and beaten, and services aren't.

Really low prices give people a temporary competitive edge. But it's just that, short term and temporary. Competition like this is essentially slowly putting themselves out of business. Not you.

If you're in it for a living and for the long-haul? sit tight and they'll disappear within months.

 

[persianista]

I've been lambasted on here for espousing the 'never discount services' theory. What people seem to overlook is that I've seen a few recessions in my time in the industry, and am still standing. It's frustrating reading thread after thread asking which 'offers' will provide the magic bullet to get your book filled up. Feels like I'm a lone voice in the darkness saying 'don't discount, put your prices up'. It works. I'm living, breathing proof that it works.
I've never ever done a discount on my services, I was taught many years ago by a successful salon owner that it wasn't a good idea. He always said you should price in the middle. Never the dearest, never the cheapest. Good advice that's served me well.
I do on average fifty clients a week, mainly technical services (I'm a hairdresser, primarily a technical one).
Never ever compete on price. We all get the clients we deserve.

 

[misseden]

TOTALLY AGREE WITH PERSIANISTA!!!!! i have never done offers or discounts and i have also seen two recessions since i qualified and it has not harmed me. funnily enough i was looking on some other salons facebook pages just to see what prices they charged for things and they actually had a post on that said: i have gaps today so name your price and treatment and i will pick a winner. so people were saying a facial for a fiver or a leg wax for three quid, the eventual winner was gelish for nine pound! i was shocked it just looked so desperate having clients decide the price. chin up to those that are struggled but honestly clients never forget a good service and they ALL come back in the end.

 

[emmalou061987]

I struggle with pricing. Have a lot of cheap people round here lol! But today I finally decided some of my prices were too low so iv jumped in and changed them! Feel happier now! This article really helped to thank you for posting it! Feel more confident asking for more! I do offers for introductory services and package deals but asking clients to name a price is a bit... What's the word... Stupid (no offence intended)!


Emma-Louise @ALittleLuxury

 

[persianista]

I see it on the author forums, people desperate for readers, so they give away their single book free. There are now so many priced at 99p that free ones don't even get picked up.
The mad thing is that those of us who price higher are actually selling a lot more.
People assume that the free and 99p ones are rubbish.

However you get those readers who grab anything free, fill up their devices with stuff that isn't their interest, and leave a rubbish review. The people giving away freebies get far harsher reviews than those who charge properly. It's always been said that groupon clients are the hardest work.
People who invest a little cash in your service/book/whatever, have more motivation to savour the product because they've paid for it.

 

[virtues2011]

Common sense has to prevail with pricing, the area you are in has to be taken into account, price yourself to high or to low and you price yourself straight out of the market. It's no secret, the majority of people today work on 'value for money' it's no good to charge three times as much for a service in an area that cannot sustain it just because you think you're worth it. Equally the same applies to those who charge pennies. You need a suitable balance to be successful, along with exposure.


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[Carlalouise]

In the hairdressers down the road from me they are charging £5 for a luxury manicure or pedicure, as far as I'm concerned they can keep the type of clients that go for that!

However my new nail technician (self employed) who has moved into the area has done an introductory offer of 50% off Acrylics & gels for the next 4 weeks, not something I would do but she's convinced once she's got them they'll keep coming back! I hope she's right.