The Relativity Of Luxury

"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, sheets, tennis shoes, watches. . .all of these things have been reframed, making them appear far more valuable. . . cookware, linens, athletic footwear, time pieces.

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."

Fortunately for us, in working with an affluent clientle, we don't have to "put the screws" to prospects that shouldn't be attempting to purchase our services or products. Yet, the psychology behind altering price perceptions remains the same.

We frame ourselves properly when we suggest we are not the cheapest, but definitely worth the price. When we put out exactly what we require, we will alter perceptions. With that said, and with Charlie Chaplin in mind, one of the saddest things I can think of is accepting less than what we're worth.

What are you worth?

About the Author

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

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