 Hey guys, welcome back to my channel or if you're new here, hello, welcome. My name's Sam, I am a professional hairstylist and here on my channel I like to share my life and my experiences and advice if you are also a hairstylist or would like to work in the beauty field. Today I wanted to talk about money and charging your worth as a hairstylist, beauty professional. And this is something that I've been wanting to talk about for a while because it is a topic that I've struggled with a lot. First of all, let's talk about charging your worth and feeling comfortable with that. And what is your worth? Like what is your work actually worth to a prospective client? This is something that I had a hard time with because working in the beauty industry, the services that we're providing are not necessities, they're luxury services. No one has to go and get their hair highlighted. And I think for me growing up, and maybe some of you guys can relate to this, beauty things were not something that we ever did or spent a lot of money on. Like my mom would just boxed out her hair in the bathroom and if we ever needed haircuts we would just go to the chain salon and get our little $15 cuts. We were not going to the salon and blowing hundreds of dollars on color and all these fancy things. I was always like a DIY kind of girl. That's how I fell in love with this field was doing things on myself at home. So now being on the other side of things, in the beginning it was hard for me to charge a certain amount for my services because I just would reflect on how it was for me growing up and I just couldn't fathom spending $200 at the hair salon. And I mean anything that was more than like $15 or $20 for a haircut felt like a lot to me. And I was like, I don't know, is that okay? Is that too much? Here's a little story time, right? I know you guys love my story times. So I was really into makeup and I always would do my own makeup and my friends would see it and if they ever needed tips or recommendations or whatever or if they ever wanted their own makeup done. Sometimes we'd be going out somewhere and they'd ask me to do their makeup and curl their hair for them or whatever. That started to kind of grow through word of mouth. Friends of friends of friends would then start asking me if I could do their makeup and stuff and I actually started having some girls ask me to do their makeup for their proms. I always felt weird charging anyone because I wasn't a professional makeup artist. Like I literally was just self-taught. I just didn't know like, am I good enough to be charging people? Which is totally ridiculous because if you have a skill or you have a service, a product, something to offer, something that somebody else wants, you should be charging them. Unless that's your mom or your sister, you know what I mean? Like if it's someone that you don't really know, why would you not charge them? So there was a couple of girls that had reached out to me and wanted me to do their makeup for prom. This was when I think I was still in beauty school at the time. I think that I only was charging them $40. But at the time, like even $40 felt like a lot to be asking for. I was like, I don't know, is that too much? So anyway, a few days before their prom, the one girl backed out and decided, nevermind, I'm just gonna buy my own makeup products and I'm just gonna do my own makeup. So I drove to the house where they both were getting ready because they wanted to get ready and like take their pictures and whatever together at the one girl's house. So I drove over there and that sort of thing too, like they weren't even coming to me. I was going to them. So I definitely should have been charging more than $40, but you live and you learn. I'm doing the one girl's makeup. She's just sitting back, not a stress in the world, just like enjoying, you know, getting ready and enjoying her prom day. Meanwhile, the other girl who had changed her mind and decided she was gonna do her own makeup is over at her vanity stressed out because this girl was like not a regular makeup wearer. So she like didn't really have a lot of experience putting on makeup. I don't think I've ever put on false lashes in her entire life. So she was struggling. Like it was more difficult for her than she realized. And so as I'm doing the other girl's makeup, I look over and for a split second, I wanted to stop and go and help that girl and like give her some pointers or be like, oh, hey, here, let me just help you pop those lashes on. Because to me, that is something that's just so easy. It's second nature to me. It takes two seconds. It's really not that big of a deal. But then I was like, nope. I had an epiphany in that moment. And I realized what I have to offer is valuable. What seemed like simple and not a big deal to me was a huge deal to her. That's when I realized, oh, wow. See, this is why you need to charge people. And I shouldn't just offer her help for free. She had the option to pay me to do her makeup for her, but she decided she didn't want to. That really was like the first moment where things started kind of like turning in my mind. I love what I do so much. I'm so passionate about it. And on the one hand, I think this is why we struggle too. It's because we love what we do so much. And it's something that was once a hobby for us. So now you feel like, oh, well, I love it so much. Like I would do this for free. But honey, this is not a hobby anymore. This is your career. This is how you make a living. You need to be charging a reasonable amount that you can survive and live. You have bills to pay. This is not just something that you're doing for fun. But I love what I do so much. And so I always strive to grow and be better and better and just do the best work that I possibly can. So I take the time to practice techniques and to go to classes, watch classes online, keep learning as much as I possibly can. Really like take my time and do the tedious things that I know are gonna make the end result better. I really take pride in my work. And I know that the quality of my work and not even just the work that I'm doing like the actual hair itself, but also the experience that I wanna offer to my guests. I go out of my way. I try so hard to make their experience pleasant and to really make them feel like they can trust me. I take extra time during the consultations to really get to know them. I try to make sure that they're comfortable. I don't like to double book myself so that way I can give each client my full attention. So I know that what I'm offering clients is more. It's more valuable than what they're gonna get if they're just like add a chainsaw on. So don't sell yourself short. Don't doubt yourself. Really consider what it is that you're providing to your clients. How much time are you putting in? How much effort are you putting in? I saw this post on Instagram yesterday. Let me pull it up. I saved it because I was like, oh my God, this is perfect for what I wanna talk about in my video. It says, stylus. It's time to stop thinking of pricing as an emotional decision. It's a business decision that heavily impacts your financial future. I think oftentimes we, I don't know, like feel guilty. I know at least for me, I can only speak for myself, but like I would feel really guilty charging a lot because I would feel like, oh, I don't know. Maybe that's too much. Maybe it's more than they can afford. That's another thing. Don't ever assume what somebody can and cannot afford. Right? Like price is subjective to everyone. What I consider expensive could be a totally reasonable price for you. It totally depends on the person and also just on their priorities. I might be willing to spend $400 on one thing, but not on something else. So don't ever assume like, oh, that might be too much. Maybe I should like knock the price down a little bit or throw in a discount. Or if somebody asks for a discount, don't just offer it up to them. Like if you decide that it's a smart business decision to run a promo for the month or something like that. If there's a purpose behind it and it's something that you're offering to all of your guests, that's one thing. But if somebody is like, oh, well, I can get a discount or oh, so-and-so down the street charges less, no, no, no, because here's the thing. The people that want a discount don't value you and your work because they obviously don't think you're worth what you're charging. And if someone asks for a discount once, they're gonna always expect that discount and then they're gonna go and start telling their friends, oh, I get my hair by so-and-so and she always throws in a free haircut for me. So just ask and she'll give you, she'll hook you up. Trust me, there are people out there that will value you and your work and they will be willing to pay your prices. And remember what I said, this is your career. This is how you make a living. Somebody that has a desk job isn't gonna go into the office and their boss is gonna just sell them like, hey, could you do this extra thing for me or could you work extra hours today? No pay though? No, it doesn't work that way, right? We're not gonna be doing extra work for free or for a discounted rate. It's just not fair. So you really need to take the emotions out of it and I know it can be hard because money is a very emotional thing for most people but that brings me to my next tip and the next thing that I wanted to talk about. How do you talk about money with your clients in a way that will take the emotion out of it, will make you feel more confident and comfortable and will also make them feel more comfortable? I talk about price during my consultations. So the way I do it is the client comes in, we go over everything and I actually have a course where I break down how I do my consultations so that you can ensure that you're really giving your guest exactly what they want and what's gonna work best for their hair and their lifestyle. I'll put the link down below. I go through everything, right? Like we talk about their hair history, their goals, what they want, their lifestyle, blah, blah, blah. And then when we get to the end, I will explain to them, okay, so based on everything we talked about, what we would need to do in order to give you the hair that you want today is blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Right? A full foil, a root smudge, a toner and a haircut, for example. So price-wise, we're looking at, and I always give a range, right? Between 300 to $400. Is that okay? Are you comfortable with that? And I like to give a range just to be on the safe side because you never know. Sometimes you'll be in the middle of doing color and you think that you're only gonna need one extra bowl and then you end up needing two extra, right? So I like to give a range just to cover my bases. That way they know before I even start how much it's gonna be. So there's no surprises at the end. And then that way they are agreeing to that price. So that way I know at the end, they're not gonna try to pull like, oh, can I get a discount? Oh, that's more than I thought it was gonna be. No, you are agreeing to this price before we start, which means that is what you're gonna pay at the end. And it makes them feel more comfortable too because then that way they know what it's gonna be. There are no surprises. I'm not gonna just throw in all these little add-ons throughout the service. It also gives you the opportunity if, say, that price is more than what they were expecting because oftentimes clients will go online to book their service and they'll see the menu and the prices. They think they're coming in for a color retouch, but they need foils. So the service that they're booking might actually be different than the service that you end up doing. So the price can be different that way. And then also, you know, we usually just list our starting prices. So again, if they have a lot of hair, you need to use extra product in case it ends up costing more than what they can afford or more than what they're comfortable spending, you can address that and tackle that before it's too late. So for example, if I tell someone, yeah, the price today is gonna be like $400 for what you want. They're like, ooh, you know, I was actually really just looking to spend like no more than $250. I'm not gonna say, okay, we can do it for $250, then no problem, no, no, no, no, no. The price of what you are asking for is $400, period. But if you only can spend $250 or less, then let's find an alternative solution. What can we do? We might not give you your exact dream hair today, but maybe we can do it in stages. Maybe we'll just tackle your main concerns first. That's also going to make you feel more confident too, and not feel guilty in the end. And you're gonna be less likely to discount your price because you're saying very matter of fact. This is what you're asking for, right? If you don't feel comfortable paying this amount or you can't afford it, that's on you, not on me. And you're leaving the decision up to the client. It's their choice. It has nothing to do with you, right? This is the service you offer. This is how much it costs. It is what it is. And ever since I have been utilizing that, which it's been a couple of years now, I haven't had a single issue. I haven't had anybody try to ask for a discount. I haven't had anyone have any issue with the price because we talk about it. And if it is too much for them, then we find an alternative solution. And that works out perfectly every time. And I know clients really appreciate that. And again, it's another thing that sets you apart and makes you worth more because you're offering that higher quality experience. And then lastly, I wanted to talk about raising prices because I know a lot of people feel really uncomfortable doing that. As soon as you get to a point where you are like completely overly booked and you are having a hard time getting new people in, you should probably start raising your prices a little bit. And it doesn't have to be a significant amount and it doesn't have to be all the time. But even if it's just like once a year, raising them by a few dollars, that way you can continue growing and it'll leave room like, yeah, there might be a few clients that after a while they maybe can't afford your prices anymore. That leaves room for the people who can, right? And then that way you can just keep growing and become more successful in your career. You also just have to do it too because the prices for everything are going up. So if you're owning your own salon, your own business, all your overhead prices are going up. So if you're not raising your prices as well, then your income is gonna be decreasing and it shouldn't be that way. Especially like the more skill and experience you're getting, like your prices should be going up, not the other way around. And so when it is time to raise your prices, just be upfront with your clients, let them know ahead of time. Because again, nobody likes to feel surprised or shocked. Posting it on your social media, posting it on your website, sending out an email to your current clients. And what I like to do too is, if you know like next month, you're gonna be raising your prices and you have somebody that comes in pretty regularly. When they come in, let them know ahead of time. Hey, just so you know, next month, the price is gonna go up to this amount. Or if it's say it's somebody that you haven't seen in a while and they come in and maybe you just recently changed your prices, you can say to them, hey, just so you know, the price now is X amount. I just recently raised the prices. Also charge you what the price was since I haven't seen you in a little while. But just so you know, for next time, it is now gonna be this amount. There's ways that you can go about it where it doesn't have to be this big deal and like this super awkward, uncomfortable scenario. There's another girl actually, one of my friends, I guess went to high school with this girl. She's a stylist now and she was showing me, she had posted a thing on Facebook. This girl has been out of school longer than me. She's been doing here for, I don't know, like five or six years now. And she was still charging the same prices that she was charging when she first came out of beauty school, which is absolutely ridiculous. And she finally recently decided to raise them a bit and she, I'm not kidding, had the longest post on Facebook explaining why she had to do this and how she feels so guilty about it. And it was just this whole thing like, oh, I'm a single mom and blah, blah, blah. It was such a long post. I couldn't even get through the whole thing. I was just like, oh my God. And I totally get feeling that way, feeling like you need to like over-explain yourself, but you don't. It's business. It's a business decision. When Starbucks raises their prices, do they post this whole long thing explaining to you, begging for you to be okay with the new prices? Absolutely not. They don't say shit about it. They just do it and people will pay. They still go back. Obviously, you know, we're having more of a personal human connection with our clients. So you do want to communicate with them, but don't feel the need to explain yourself so much. If somebody has a big problem with you raising your prices, like I said earlier, they obviously don't value you and your work. My coworker had this one client that had been going to her for a really long time, like I think since she first started over 10 years ago. And she just has always been a problematic client for other reasons, but the one day she was ringing her out and the haircut price had increased by $3. And she let her know, and I don't even think she was charging her the new price. I think she was just letting her know for next time the price is now gonna be $3 more. And this woman had the nerve to complain and like whine and be like, oh, I don't get a discount for being a long time loyal client. Oh my God, I can't believe the price is going up. My coworker was just like very uncomfortable and was like, oh, I'm having that guilt. And I got so mad for her. I just swooped in there and I was like, the gas prices are always going up. I've been driving cars for 15 years now. I'm not getting a discount on my gas for being a long time customer. The gas station, it doesn't work that way. As time goes on, the prices of everything are gonna increase. Obviously the stylist that you've been going to, I would hope right after 10 years of her doing this and her growing and getting busier and learning more and getting more experience, her work is not gonna be the same as it was when she first started doing your hair, when she first came out of beauty school. So she should be charging more because she's worth more now. And if you disagree and you think that you should still be paying the prices from 10 years ago, then you need to go somewhere else. It's totally fine if something is out of your budget or it's just more than what you feel comfortable paying for, it's just not a priority for you. That's absolutely fine. But you don't need to make the person feel guilty or talk down to them or shame them for charging what they charge. Just go somewhere else. That's all. Anyway, I digress. I think that's everything that I wanted to cover as far as this topic goes. Let me know your thoughts in the comments. If you liked this video and you would like to see more videos like this, please give it a thumbs up. Don't forget to subscribe to my channel before you go. Feel free to also go follow me over on Instagram. I like to share tips like this all the time over there. And hopefully I'll see you in my next video. Bye.