Welcome to The Brainy Business Podcast
Melina Palmer: Welcome to episode ten of, The Brainy Business.
Announcer: You are listening to The Brainy Business podcast, where we dig into the psychology of why people buy and help you incorporate behavioral economics into to your business, making it more brain friendly. Now, here’s your host, Melina Palmer.
A Special Episode
Melina Palmer: Hello, everyone. My name is Melina Palmer, and I want to welcome you to The Brainy Business podcast. This week is special for three reasons. First, I love working on the podcast and creating new episodes for you. So every week is special. Kind of wish I had a professional sound board here in my office so I could dub in some sound effects there. Maybe in, awe, noise, or maybe more appropriately, someone saying, so cheesy. Maybe cheesy. But it’s true. The podcast does take a lot of time, but it’s so worth it. I love all of you for your support and for listening, truly. Thank you.
Celebrating a Milestone: Episode Ten
Melina Palmer: Which leads us to the next reason this episode is special. It is a milestone. Episode number ten. Woo. The traditional gift for a ten year anniversary is tin or aluminum, which actually might be fitting with this metal themed episode. You will get that reference in a minute. Interestingly enough, did you know that most podcasts don’t make it past their 7th episode? I guess that’s the magic number. The old seven year itch rearing its ugly head, I suppose. I want you to know that I intend to stick around for the long haul. I actually did a planning session of questions recently, things I’ve been asked and foundational episode titles, because I was hoping to get a plan through the end of the year, just, to see what I had in the mix and what I was ready to do. And do you know where I got. You know where I ended up? A full year. Not just the end of this year, but all the way through to episode 60, which will take us into August 2019. So not to worry. I will be here for you for the long haul. Please do send any questions and thoughts you have, though this is more of a guide for me to choose from. I can always move things around as needed when really pertinent topics come along, like this week’s on air strategy session.
The Brainy Business Podcast Makes the List
Melina Palmer: But one last thing before I get to those details. Did you see that Fucking. I think I’m saying that right. It’s a site based in the UK. They released an article on August 11 of the six marketing podcasts. You should be listening to and The Brainy Business made the list. This is a site similar to Dig, where you give ups or downs for the things you like to determine where they are on the list. And as of this recording, The Brainy Business podcast is number one. Thank you for those of you who gave some ups to the podcast, and if you want to go do that, I would appreciate it. There’s a link in the show notes. It’s such a cool thing to be included on the list among some other great podcasts. To be recognized on a list with Amy Porterfield is really awesome. Her podcast Online Marketing Made Easy is fantastic. I definitely recommend it. There’s a link in the show notes to the article as well as her podcast if you wanted to check that out. And anyone who’s new to the podcast, welcome. I will not reference the show notes much from here on out, but you can find those in the player you’re listening to or by visiting the page for this episode, which is thebrainybusiness.com ten. Because as you know, this is episode ten. If I say something that makes you think I should look that up, check, the show notes first because I probably already did the heavy lifting for you.
First On-Air Strategy Session
Melina Palmer: All right, now onto the third reason this episode is so special. It is the very first on air strategy session. I have had requests for these since before the podcast even launched. It’s a format I first heard on, one of my other favorite podcasts, Biz Chicks, which is hosted by the amazing Natalie Ekdal. And it seemed fitting that I met Marielle, who is featured on this on air strategy session, through a conversation
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in the Biz Chicks coop, which is the name of Natalie’s Facebook group. Marielle and I had started a conversation back in June when she shared a post asking for help or tips or advice as she was considering a name change and rebrand for her business. I reached out to her because, one, as you all know, I have a background in branding and I’ve been through rebrands before, so I wanted to be a resource for her. And two, I was actually in the midst of my own rebrand as I was ramping up to launch The Brainy Business, which for any of you who knew me before, came with a rebrand from my old business name, website, logo, etcetera. Anyway, I recommended she and I could be accountability buddies to keep each other on track. During the process, we connected and became Facebook friends, so I knew a little about her and her business before we had this strategy session. In case you’re wondering what is an on air strategy session. It is an opportunity to showcase what this advice of incorporating behavioral economics into your business can look like. I get asked all the time what it’s like to work with me because the truth is, no one else is really doing this yet. And the other main question or concern I get about working with me is people are worried they don’t have a fully formed question yet and don’t know if they will gain all the value out of a conversation or if they’re ready for a call yet. As you will hear during this call, this strategy session that’s here, it doesn’t matter at all. Marielle wasn’t 100% sure what she needed, and we simply had a conversation to figure it out. I ask a lot of questions. Remember episode four, questions and answers. You all know how much I love questions. And as you will hear on the call, this is a real conversation. We’re both doing a lot of processing and thinking, thinking through what’s being said and what opportunities there are because there are no box solutions here. When you work with me, it’s all about you and the conversation we’re having and your business in the moment and what you need right now. Lastly, before we kick things off, these are called virtual strategy sessions for a reason. They are all done over video conference, so we can see each other while having the conversation, which is so valuable for both sides. And that’s where I’ve tried to edit out most of the pauses or things like that, where we’re having sort of that nonverbal interaction, but there might be a couple little gaps. And when you do a virtual strategy session with me, I send you the video after the call so you can re watch and take it all in again and again as needed. This allows both of us to engage in the conversation without having to take notes or be distracted during that meeting. I find it to be just much more effective for everybody.
Introducing Marielle Court of Gypsy Moon Piercing
Melina Palmer: All right, let’s get into it. First, I want to introduce everyone to Marielle Court. She is the owner of Gypsy Moon Piercing, a body piercing and fine jewelry studio in Medford, Oregon. Marielle, I know you said you’ve been listening to the podcast, so thank you for that. We have talked about a potential name change in the past. Is that what you want to work on today, or is there something else you were hoping I could help with?
Marielle Court: Yeah, I mean, the name change and, like, talking to people about pricing are probably my two biggest issues.
Melina Palmer: Okay, so which one? If we were only able to talk through one thing today, what would you be most interested in. Let’s talk about discussing pricing with people. So tell me about the way your pricing is set up
Marielle Court: Let’s talk about discussing pricing with people.
Melina Palmer: Okay.
Marielle Court: I feel like I never get price shoppers because my studio is pretty high end. And that’s probably my like, biggest thing is sometimes I feel like I’m apologetic about my pricing, but it’s also super expensive to run my business.
Melina Palmer: Yeah. So tell me a little bit about the way your pricing is set up. Do people get information before they come into you or they get quoted when they come by? Or either.
Marielle Court: I mean, if they ask me a question about pricing, I’ll definitely like, answer that over the phone or a message or in person. I charge a $35 piercing fee plus the cost of whatever jewelry that they choose. And then everything that I use is high quality jewelry that’s made in the US and comes with a lifetime warranty for manufacturers defects.
Melina Palmer: Okay. And that’s what you tell people when they ask about pricing?
Marielle Court: Yeah, pretty much. And then if people, you know, want me to expand on that of like
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what my pricing range is, then I’ll talk about that.
Melina Palmer: The pricing range on the type of jewelry?
Marielle Court: Yes.
Melina Palmer: So what is the range of jewelry pricing?
Marielle Court: So gold is going to start at about dollar 70 per piece and then implant grade titanium starts at about dollar 30.
Melina Palmer: Okay. Is there one that you recommend over another or.
Marielle Court: No, I mean, everything that I carry is all high quality and it’s all safe for long term use in the body. So it’s just going to be more a matter of like aesthetics and what people like.
Melina Palmer: And are the items in the starts at price really simple, say a tiny dot of a stud or are they pretty good size and style pieces people would feel good about choosing?
Marielle Court: I have actually a pretty good range of jewelry and that like $30 to $40 range. I probably have about 40 different options and they include different colors of gemstones and different sizes. And then a lot more gold, though.
Melina Palmer: Yeah. Is that because people just tend to prefer gold over the silver look or.
Marielle Court: You can just get a lot more types of things in gold because gold is going to be handcrafted and you can just do a lot more things with it.
Melina Palmer: Mm So do you have a lot of stuff that’s at that $70 range for the gold stuff or is that pretty.
Marielle Court: I mean, that’s pretty basic for gold. Yeah, I would say if you’re going to buy a piece of gold jewelry, you’re probably going to be more like in the 150 to dollar 200 range, but.
Melina Palmer: But I think most people expect that with gold, right?
Marielle Court: You would think so.
The Problem of Price Shopping
Melina Palmer: So in the world of anchoring and adjustment, the concern that I would have is, so if you’re telling people that you start at 70 and it works up, they’re coming in and they’re expecting $70. Right. Or less. It’s a weird thing that, you know, when you hear 70 and up, that that’s what you would think. So I guess part of the question is, do people come in and they sort of gripe maybe, or go, oh, well, I was hoping it was going to be $70 and make a kind of a obnoxious situation for you, but they still buy the bigger thing. Or do you have a lot of people that leave?
Marielle Court: No, I would say by the time I get somebody to come in and we actually talk about it and look at things, and I also offer layaway that I probably get. Most of the people that come in, it’s people that are price shopping that never come in that I don’t think, like, ever actually come in and look.
Melina Palmer: So you want.
Marielle Court: It’s like my elevator pitched to them over the phone is failing.
Melina Palmer: So you think that by the time somebody calls you, potentially, they know they’re wanting to get something done, just deciding where they’re gonna get it done, probably. Mm. At that point. And so do you have an idea of the percentage of people that you talk to that you don’t see or anything like that?
Marielle Court: I mean, if I had to guess, I would say that people that call and ask me specifically about pricing, I probably lose, like, three quarters of those.
Melina Palmer: Okay. And can you tell when they’re getting off the phone if they’re gonna come in or not?
Marielle Court: Pretty much, yeah.
Role Playing a Phone Call
Melina Palmer: Yeah. So let’s say that I was to call and they said, hey. And do you typically, is it people that are your type of, shop? Is. It’s. It’s typically people getting stuff for themselves or do people also bring in, like, daughters getting their earrings for the first time or whatever?
Marielle Court: Yeah, I do a lot of, like, parents and children because I pierce kids all the way down to like, three years old.
Melina Palmer: Mm So if I was to call and say, hi, I found your shop online or was doing some, look, I’m curious about pricing. I want to come in for some piercing.
Marielle Court: What do you, what I would say to that? I would, you know, just say, oh, hi, thanks for looking me up. I’m glad that you found me. I charge a dollar 35 piercing fee, plus the cost of whatever jewelry that you choose.
Melina Palmer: Okay, thanks, bye.
Marielle Court: Yep, that’s pretty much what I would get.
Shifting the Conversation to Value
Melina Palmer: Okay. So let’s flip now. So you’re calling me and you say the same, you say, hi, I’m interested in coming in for some piercing, right. So, hi, go ahead.
Marielle Court: I’m interested in bringing my daughter in to get her ears pierced. Can you tell me about your pricing?
Melina Palmer: Here’s the interesting thing. I didn’t say that. I just said, hi, I’m interested in some piercing. Right? Like, I’m curious about piercing. So that’s a different question. Maybe you think they’re talking about their daughter, but what I would say, so if you, if somebody calls and they don’t give you any details, like, I’m just curious about piercing. What’s your pricing then? The. Oh, that’s awesome. What are you looking to come in to accomplish? Or what are you wanting to do? Is this for you or for someone else? Like, getting them to answer some of those personal questions? And then if I say, oh, it’s my daughter, so we can go through this sort of, an experience, I guess, now. So if you call and I know you’re busy in the shop, so you don’t want to be on the phone too long with people,
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but. So let’s say you call and give me the, like, no details of like, hi, I’m. I’m interested in pricing on your piercings. So say, oh, awesome. What are you looking to do?
Marielle Court: I want to get my daughter her first year lobe piercings.
Melina Palmer: Oh, that’s awesome. How old is your daughter?
Marielle Court: She’s eight.
Melina Palmer: Oh, exciting. Is she nervous or is she excited to come in? She’s a little nervous, yeah, that’s normal. You know, we have kids in here. All the time and they can get a little bit scared. I have a daughter myself, and I totally understand the importance. You know, you get, it’s like first haircuts and first ear piercings. You just want to make sure it’s a great experience. And we absolutely put in the extra effort to make sure it’s the best situation possible for them. What’s your daughter’s name?
Marielle Court: Elizabeth.
Melina Palmer: Elizabeth. Well, we are so excited to have. Elizabeth come in here. Are you thinking maybe tomorrow would be. A good date, or did you want. To come in today? Do you have a special day in mind?
Marielle Court: Can you tell me some more about your pricing?
Melina Palmer: Yeah. Ah, absolutely. So we have a sitting fee to. Make sure we have the space available for you and you’re ready to come. In and you have everything ready. It’s a $35 fee, and then we have all different kinds of jewelry available. Do you know if you’re thinking about. Having gold or some other metal, probably.
Marielle Court: Just something that’s a little bit cheaper.
Melina Palmer: Little bit cheaper. Anything about gemstones that you do, you want a birthstone or something? Or you just want very simple studs.
Marielle Court: Her favorite colors, purple.
Melina Palmer: Purple. Well, we have some fantastic purple studs that I would say would be great. We have some in a, silver. And if you want to be the. Cost down, I would recommend you go. With the silver color. It’s actually a very specialized metal. It’s not specifically silver, but it’s something that’s not going to damage your ears. You can keep in over time, and, you can usually find those under $50.
Marielle Court: I love it.
Melina Palmer: Great. Can I go ahead and schedule an appointment for you?
Marielle Court: Sounds good.
Melina Palmer: Great. And I would say just steer clear. When you come in. Know what you’re looking for. If you don’t want to put her into gold, then just keep her away from that, because those are a little bit more expensive if you’re looking to keep the cost down.
Marielle Court: That sounds great. Thank you.
Melina Palmer: Tada.
Marielle Court: Ah, yeah, I loved it. It was, like when you were talking about, if you have an hour to solve a problem, you have to, you know, come up with the questions for 55 minutes. Huh?
Melina Palmer: Right. And so in that case, similar to the. So in the. It’s not about the cookie, it’s not. Really about the price. I want to know someone’s going to take care of my kid, right? And it’s. It’s scary. And if you’re going to, for whatever reason, you feel like the place in the mall, that’s like all they do is they pierce little girls ears, right? So you think you take them to the Claire’s or whatever, and it’s gonna be fine because that’s where they go. And if I was going to a tattoo parlor, I would be a little bit nervous. Like a place that does other types of piercings, which is silly, right? Because you obviously know more about this than this. You know, 17 year old girl that’s working in the Claire’s in the mall, who’s piercing the kids ears. That’s really not a great experience, I would think. So being able to help put them at ease, it’s a scary process. And kids are scared to get their ears pierced. They’re excited, but they’re scared. So anything you can do to help overcome the fear is the bigger thing. And once they’ve gotten, set up with you. I know. So being able to use the name, we’re so excited to have Elizabeth come in, and then, you know, when she comes in, you can say, hey, Elizabeth, we’re so excited for you today. And we picked the these out for you, you know, and you could say, you could set some earrings aside, a couple of purple choices that are going to be under $50 to make sure they can get in and out for less than $100 or something like that. Right? And then if you set them at this, like, you should be able to get in and out for under $100 for the sitting fee. Plus those, you could sprinkle in a couple of more expensive earrings that are going to be like, these ones are going to be at that $99 range. And then here’s the ones that’ll be. You’ll be out closer to 75, then be working on having them be, you know, similar. But if you have, then with the relativity piece, if you have something that’s, like, a little bit bigger and definitely nicer to where you feel like looking at them, it’s more than $15 worth of benefit to go up size, you know, so then you can be working through that, and then maybe they decide they want to look at something else, too, right? And then you can work through that process with them. But because you’ve already established that you care about mom, you care about her budget, if she chooses to go into gold, then at that point, you talk about the price difference, say it is, it’s definitely more expensive to make a jump up, but we can go ahead. And I want to make sure you’re. Before you look, because they’ll. They’re going to be an emotional state at that point, which means they’re going to be more likely to want to buy,
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which is good, but you don’t want them to feel remorseful. The good thing about yours is, like, once you use it, it went through your body. Like, you keep it, right? Yeah, it’s yours. So you don’t have returns or anything like that, but you want them to feel like it was a really great experience.
Recap: Pricing Mindset and Value
Melina Palmer: Hey, everyone, I’m popping in here for just a minute to check in. I want to recap on what has happened so far because there was a key turn in the conversation. When we first started talking, Marielle mentioned she had concerns about pricing, but after asking some questions, it became clear to me the issue was not about the prices she was charging. This was more of a mindset issue about how she approaches the discussion about pricing. As she mentioned, she doesn’t get a lot of rate shoppers per se, but she was losing 75% of the people who were calling for pricing information. I think it is fair to say by the time someone is picking up the phone to call a shop, especially for a milestone like getting your daughter’s first earrings, they know they’re going somewhere. And people ask about pricing because they don’t know what else to ask or compare you on. That is relativity, which I mentioned in the call here and which I also talked about in episode five, the truth about pricing. There’s a link to that episode in the show notes for you, and if you haven’t listened to it already, it also has a freebie worksheet that you can go download. It’s a really great episode. It also goes into detail about anchoring and adjustment, which was referenced in this segment here as well. The reason I was so excited about sharing this episode right now is because of the episode I did recently on value, which was episode eight and is also linked in the show notes. Did you notice how the subtle the shift was in the conversation to turn it to being about value and instead of price? In episode eight, I talked about the difference between price, worth and value. So to put it into context of the conversation with Marielle, she was getting hung up in talking about the price of an item, whether it was the piercing fee or the cost of the jewelry itself, and was missing the piece about communicating the value for why someone should choose her, why it would be worth it for them. She has special training and she has received a solid five star rating from 79 people on her Facebook page and 53 of them went on to write reviews. That is a big deal. Trust me, as someone who now is asking for ratings and reviews for a podcast all the time and you know, for Facebook or whatever it is, it takes a lot. It’s hard to get people to take that step. So that she has 79 ratings and 53 reviews is huge. Everyone on there talks about how nice she is and professional and that she takes the time to figure out what they want and helps to keep them calm because it is a scary process for most people. As we’ve discussed on the call, one review, which came in a couple days after Marielle and I had our conversation, was a perfect transition to this next section. It says, Marielle is wonderful. Did a second piercing of my daughter’s lobes and removed a, Tragus piercing done incorrectly in another shop. Returned today to choose more earrings from her, will never go to another shop for future piercings, impeccably clean and took her time to ensure exact placement. Additionally, her jewelry selections are amazing. I am sure we will be back. The value Marielle provides is in her impeccable taste of jewelry. And you should really check out her Facebook page because it has some beautiful selections. Her value is in her experience and how much she cares about people and that she knows how important the process is to them. This is not just a job for her. It’s her career, and she loves it, and it shows. That’s the value. And as this review and honestly, all the others show, once people come to Marielle, they will never go anywhere else because it’s worth it to them to use her, regardless of the price.
Pricing Mindset: Just Like the Weather
Melina Palmer: All right, back to the call and a really great segment about mindset
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and something I learned from my first real job at Alaska Airlines, something I’ve never forgotten and find to be helpful when I work with entrepreneurs. One of the pieces of training was when you tell somebody what the price is, you have to just say it like you’re telling them what the weather is, right? So if you say the price apologetically, they will feel like you’re overcharging them or that there’s some reason they shouldn’t get it. So I remember, you know, you go through the training to where you say, here’s the, you know thing, and somebody says, okay, I want to fly from Medford to Portland or whatever. And you. They say, okay, you go through the process, you get all their information. You’re working on getting them that flight, and then you come back, and you’re like, okay, I’ve, put this together for you leaving this day. Do this. And that’s going to be $28,272. Would you like to purchase that today and just wait? And they’re like, okay, sounds good. And then they buy it right where you might be thinking, oh, nope. Like, nobody wants to pay that.
Marielle Court: I’m renting a car.
Melina Palmer: Like, you could buy a car and get there. I will come down and drive you. But you never know what their situation is. You don’t know what they’re wanting to do. You don’t know what’s reasonably priced for. For them or not, you know? So stepping into this with that mindset of if you are apologizing because, you know, you wouldn’t want to pay whatever that is.
Marielle Court: I know, which is so crazy to me. It’s totally a mindset thing because I’m like, I have really expensive earrings, you know, and I’m like, I am not loaded with money. You know, I’m like, we live in a very modest house, but I still, like, splurge on fancy jewelry.
Melina Palmer: Right. Because it’s about your identity. It’s who you are. It’s something you’re going to wear a lot. There’s the, you know, how. How do you justify to yourself or to a, significant other or whatever about those earrings, for me, at least.
Marielle Court: Like, I can wear them to work and it sells, you know, I have to be able to wear it to sell it.
Melina Palmer: Yeah.
Marielle Court: I might not need, like, ten pairs, but, you know.
Emphasizing the Experience and Value of Jewelry
Melina Palmer: So people buy on emotion, and so there’s the thing they’re going to fall in love with, and you want them to be able to have that benefit. Like, I would say if you’re able to do that. So where I was talking about gemstones and you’re wanting to move them up the rung, if you have some that look, you know, have the really tiny, I would assume at that, like, dollar 40 range or whatever in the silver medal, you have that, like, barely a color to it. Right. And that if you. They were to go to $75 or whatever it is, here’s the one that there’s really weirdly big for $100 or something, and then there’s this one at like 65 that is definitely more than double the size of the small one, but it’s less than double the cost. So you need to find the point where they look and they go, ooh, right. And then little girls are going to go, but, mom, you can’t even see, see this. I don’t want that. You know, I want to be able to have the thing. And there people are used to seeing big, like, gaudy costume jewelry and huge gemstones and things like that. And so those little tiny things don’t have that same appeal. And then you could say, do you have anything that are actual real gemstones or is it. Yeah. Are they all, or a lot of them are the glass they’re all gonna.
Marielle Court: Be in set in gold, for one. Very. Any genuine gems set in titanium. And then everything that is a man made gem is like a Swarovski gem, not a crystal, but a gem. So it’s like a little higher end. And they still warranty that to, like, not ever change color.
Melina Palmer: Mm And you talk about that with people when they come in to buy. Right. So the other thing is you want them to sort of fall in love with and pick whatever it is before you talk about the pricing. So again, the emotion, there they are in what’s called, like, a hot state when they’re there, so they’re more likely to get the bigger thing. And is it still the case with piercings and things that they need to keep it in for like six weeks. So I would absolutely use that to your advantage. In a statement of, well, maybe I’ll just get these to get done. You say, well, you know, these are something you’re going to be wearing for quite a long time. You’re going to be showing them off. You want to make sure it’s something you really love and are happy with.
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I remember when I got my ears pierced about 100 years ago. It feels like the earrings had a sharp point at the end, which meant whatever I bought was not something I would ever want to wear or put in again. Is that still what people use?
Marielle Court: I don’t use that style of jewelry because I pierced with a hollow needle. So everything is going to be a flat back and a lot more comfortable to sleep on and won’t stab you in the head.
Melina Palmer: Perfect. Those are terrible and no one likes that. So it’s another benefit you provide over going to a place in the mall where they leave you with a piece of jewelry you’ll never want to wear again. And then you can factor in the sentimentality of the experience and use that as an additional way to build value. Look to see if you have any stories from moms who maybe brought their daughter in for the first pair of earrings and if she loves to pull them out and put them on when she plays dress up, or simply to say, these are the ones mommy got me when we went together for our special day. It’s a great thing to build around a special day for moms and their daughters.
Marielle Court: Yeah.
Melina Palmer: That’s a thing that they’re going through together that they’re doing. And it’s a really special memory. It’s an important experience for them and, you know, you’re a big part of that. So being able to play on the emotion of the ladies that are there that are coming in to make it be a special setup for the girl and the mom to remember this thing together. Whether it was like I was trying to think through, like, what, else do you do when you go in for something like this, right? You go and you get, maybe she’s going to take her out for ice cream after to help because you know, you have the painful piece of it or you’re going to do something. So is there, if there was like an ice cream shop near you that it was like, hey, here’s a, you know, if you had some sort of a deal with an ice cream shop to be like, here’s a gift certificate. If you want to go, you can get a free stuff scoop of ice cream courtesy of us. You’re sending them some business? Maybe. When I got married, like my nail place, they do mimosas and they always ask if you want glasses of wine and things like that when you’re in there, because it’s about the experience of being there. So, like, obviously you’re not doing that with mom and whatever, but, you know, is there the sparkling cider or like making it the celebration of the event that it is, knowing that you get a lot of those? Because that’s when you get the moms that are going to be talking, right. They come to you for the experience. The price doesn’t matter. It’s not about that. Right. So then you get to where you’re like, the scent of the cookies is where one mom says, like, oh, I see that you got little Anna’s ears pierced. How was, was it terrible? How was that? And go, oh, my gosh, no, you have to go. If you’ve been thinking about having Susie’s ear pierced, you have to go here. They made it so easy. It was this great experience. She loved it so much and she wants to go back. You could also do something about the excitement of it. If they refer somebody, maybe they get a discount on their next pair of earrings. Or if they do buy another pair within six months, they get 10% off or do a holiday coupon. And I don’t know how much of this you want to be getting into, but I remember I bought a piece of jewelry once and they did the sort of like for every, you know, hundred dollars you spend, you get $10 off sort of a thing when you come back on another occasion. Because you don’t just do piercings. Right? Do you want to sell the jewelry also? Like, if somebody probably do more jewelry.
Marielle Court: Sales actually than I do piercings?
Melina Palmer: Yeah. So would something like that still be like, do you get a lot of repeats? Like, people that come in for piercings, do they come by, get jewelry from you later?
Marielle Court: I do. I’d say that I’ve done a pretty good job of like, you know, maintaining my clients and for them to recommend me. I have a Facebook group. It’s still fairly small. I want to say it’s like just under 400 people, but it’s pretty active, I think is really awesome.
Melina Palmer: Yeah.
Marielle Court: You know, maybe three months old.
Melina Palmer: Okay, well, that’s a lot of people. That’s great. So is that group typically the adults getting piercings and jewelry or is it for the, like, mom taking their kids in group.
Marielle Court: It’s for adults.
Melina Palmer: Yeah. So when you say it’s pretty active, what are they?
Marielle Court: You know, I get lots of comments. Likes people, like, posting their own pictures of jewelry that they’ve upgraded or if they came in and got a piercing and. People just excited to share, you know, maybe occasionally somebody telling me that they, like, recommended me to somebody else.
Melina Palmer: Awesome. Yeah. And so what would you say is the mix of the kids for, like, that first experience versus adults that come in?
Marielle Court: I get a lot more adults, yeah.
Melina Palmer: Would you want to have more of the moms taking their kids for their first, like, is that a place you would. You would want to grow in that space or do you want to grow more with adults
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getting piercings?
Marielle Court: Both. Do I have to choose one?
Melina Palmer: No, but, you know, it’s making sure you have the plan around it. I think there’s a lot of little things that are inexpensive that you could do or free, you know, that you can do to make that an experience for them. And there would be some, like, oh. There’s a little bit of effort into it, but. And I haven’t taken a daughter or whatever to go get piercing, you know, whatever, but it’s sort of like every girl’s rite of passage, right? Every single girl, we’ll say, like 90% get their ears pierced, you know, before they’re 13. Typically maybe in that, like 13 to 16, do you get, you know, some. But that a lot of them get that done?
Marielle Court: Yeah, I would say most of them are by, like, eight years old.
Melina Palmer: Yeah, I know. My. I was supposed to wait until I was 13 and then somehow, like, finagled it a little bit earlier, but, you know, it’s something that every little girl is doing, and so, you know, the moms are talking about it, the, like, whatever event or, like, oh, well, I’m having to take Rebecca to get her ears pierced, but if it is the. Then they come back to the next soccer game or something and say, oh, it was so great. Or PTA or, you know, whatever it is, if it is a different experience, I don’t know that I’ve heard of any place where the girls get to feel. It’s like the. You’re a princess for the day. Like, getting this thing done. It’s such a big deal that there should be more to it.
Marielle Court: You know, I’ve actually totally thought that with, like, having, you know, it is such a big experience. Like, most people get, like, one, you know, maybe two piercings in their life, right? And so it is a very memorable thing. And I definitely try to do that. And I kind of thought about that with, like, you know, having the mimosas are the sparkling drinks and things like that. Like, having some kind of a setup where they can come in and, like, you know, leave a deposit to set, like, a day that we book, like, a half a day for, like, a girlfriend party like you. And, you know, three of your friends come in and get. And we just make it all about that. Of, like, treating you like a princess.
Melina Palmer: Yeah, yeah. And that, I mean, for them, where they feel they know they’re getting everybody together and they’re going to do it versus is, then you’re selling the experience. Right. The price of the jewelry isn’t really what it is. So you could be doing then. And that way you’re selling sort of like the package. So do you want your daughter? Do you and your friends want the. We’ve got. You can just do this, or you can get the princess package, or we have the, like, queen for a day package or whatever, where. And then if you’re in this one, you can choose from any of these types of earrings. Like, you can get anything in this range, and you don’t have to pay any extra. Right. So they’re paying maybe $250 to come in and have the princess package or whatever it is. And then there’s an array of jewelry that’s in there that, you know, is in the setup for you. And then, like, the queen package is dollar 400 or something, and, like, it’s got these more expensive pieces. And then if they wanted anything else, it would just be for, like, the difference in the piece. Right. So they’re not paying for the full piece, which helps them feel like they’re paying less because they already committed to this other thing, and then they’re buying the experience. Turn it into being about that versus the commodity of where it feels like you can. Even though, you know, I know you have special pieces that people aren’t just able to go get at the Claire’s or whatever. People would say earrings are a commodity, just like, checking accounts or a commodity and things like that, that you can get something everywhere.
Marielle Court: Yeah.
Creating a Special Experience: The Princess Package
Melina Palmer: So what is it about you that makes it different? And I know when you get into your own space, you could then potentially set it up to where there’s, like, do little girls coming in typically have the. If there’s the, like, a fluffy chair, like, the girls get to sit in this spot or the sparkly thing or whatever it is. And do you. I would assume you give them. I feel like I had a, like, where I got to hold on to, like, a teddy bear or something that they had in the store, when I got my ears pierced, in case it was difficult. Do you give them something like that to help them through the process?
Marielle Court: I don’t, but I have thought about that with, you know, I told you, like, I used to have stuffed animals with, like, earrings, and I need to get some more. But that would be a good idea because then they can take that with them.
Melina Palmer: Yeah, yeah. So that’s where you can say, I would. I would do something along the lines of, you know, most people who come in, like, you can, you can get in and out if you just want the, like, sitting fee, plus the jewelry, like whatever, you know, but it’s usually this. But you say most people and, you know, start getting this to be the case, but, you know, most people opt for the princess package, which is $150, and we have a whole array of jewelry you can choose from. They get a stuffed animal to take home with them, and, it’s just a very easy experience.
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I can have it already set out for you of what pieces are in that package, so you don’t have to worry about them getting excited about a really expensive piece of jewelry. And we do a little toast, and it’s a really fun experience, and it makes it so much more comfortable and helps them to really ease into the process, because we know that everybody goes through this, but you’re really nervous, and we make it about being the best possible experience for you and your daughter. Like, someone will pay more for that.
Marielle Court: I love it. It’s so funny because, like, some of these things are, like, so simple, but they’re brilliant.
Melina Palmer: Well, that’s my goal. That’s what I’m here for. That’s the dream, right? So being able to understand the way that, you know, the brain, if you give it something to latch on to, like a price to where it can run away, then it’ll do that. Right. But the subconscious buys on emotion as, you know, from listening to the podcast. And so what are the things that will get it to where they want to be part of it before they even come in, you know, and that’s where then you can say, if you are selling it as a package and you know that there’s the host of stuff that’s in there, and you can say that you have the pieces and you might have, you make sure everything is at a good range for you, but you can have them book that and pay that upfront to hold their spot or whatever it is. And then you set up the day you come in, we have it all ready for you. And then you would, I would recommend to, you know, you make sure you get their name, you get their favorite color, and then you could have different, even just like a, chalk type of a sign that says like, welcome Princess Elizabeth. Right. Got the little thing so they feel like they’re special and it’s really about them versus just like the churn and burn. I think you’ve got a big piece to overcome with the little girls and moms of having extra hesitancy coming into a tattoo shop. Right. And so letting them know what that experience is going to be like and assuring them, I would expect they’re not walking by a bunch of people who are getting tattoos in front of them. Is that true?
Marielle Court: Yeah. I mean, everybody has a separate room, so.
Melina Palmer: Right. So they’re not having to be, it’s not like they’re going to be seeing anything along those lines. And, you have your space, which is separate, and we make it really special and fun for them and all of that piece. And again, those things are basically free to do over and over. And if you get, like you said, those teddy bears, I’m sure you’re getting at a discount to where you’ll actually potentially make more per appointment at that $150 than you would otherwise. And then when they’re there, if they wanted to upgrade to another piece, you could have then a, set of, like, so these are the ones that are in this package. And then you have something ready to go that shows, like, if they want, well, these are only $75 more. Or if you wanted to pay dollar, 50 more you could get. If they didn’t like anything in it, then you could show like, then it’s only the difference and they kind of forget about what they paid already.
Marielle Court: Yeah. You’ve given me so many ideas. This is brilliant.
Melina Palmer: Thank you.
Behavioral Economics in Business
Melina Palmer: Good. And there you have it. I really loved this strategy session with Marielle and I can’t wait to see how she implements the things we talked about. I know I have some moms listening. What do you think about the suggestions and opportunities we discussed, discussed in the call? Is that something you would pay more for the comfort and assurance that your daughter is going to be taken care of and have this rite of passage be a fantastic experience and memory she will have for the rest of her life? Or to be able to go with your girlfriends for a fun day together like you might go to the spa. I know people who do this anyway. Who have pacts or plans to get. Tattoos or piercings at the same time, so why not incorporate that into your offering as a business owner? As Marielle said, these are small things that can make a big difference. Incorporating behavioral economics into your business doesn’t have to cost a lot or be a huge rebrand. It’s just looking at the brain’s natural decision making process and finding the right way to associate your business with that to help people to see why buying from you is their best choice. And while we didn’t talk about it on the call, note that the queen package I mentioned is a high anchor using relativity to make the princess package look more reasonably priced and affordable. Listen to episode five, the truth about pricing for more on that. And of course, there’s a link in the show notes.
Concluding the First On-Air Strategy Session
Melina Palmer: All right, there we go. Our, very first on air strategy session is complete.
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Did you like it? Was it helpful? Is there another type of business or consideration you would like me to be on the lookout for as I’m choosing upcoming on air strategy sessions? Let me know either by chatting on social media, you can find me everywhere, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as the brainybiz that’s b I z. Or send an email to melina@thebrainybusiness.com if you have a suggestion and would rather connect that way. And make sure to check out Marielle and Gypsy Moon Piercing on social media as well. There are links in the show notes thanks again for being the first on air strategy session, Marielle. Okay, that wraps up this first on air strategy session and our episode ten, which is so exciting. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. We talked about pricing, mindset, value, relativity, anchoring and adjustment, all sorts of great concepts from behavioral economics to help Marielle’s business grow and thrive. Next week is episode eleven, which will be another foundations episode. And because we talked about it quite a bit here, let’s jump right in to anchoring and adjustment. Until then, thanks again for listening and learning with me, and remember to be thoughtful.
Announcer: Thank you for listening to The Brainy Business podcast. Melina offers virtual strategy sessions, workshops and other services to help businesses be more brain friendly. For more free resources, visit thebrainybusiness.com.
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