[0:00] I am super excited for today's podcast. It's something that I've been thinking about a lot for my own business and also for my clients' businesses, which is what does it mean to have a luxury brand?
[0:12] And do you actually want to be a luxury brand? I want to talk about all of that today. You're listening to Aesthetically Speaking. On this podcast, we're talking about all things branding, logos, colors, fonts, and the strategy behind it all. It seems like these days it's easier than ever to build an audience, but harder than ever to stand out online. My name is Rebecca and I'm a brand strategist and designer. Together, we're going to talk about how to bring your brand to life.
[0:40] Music.
[0:46] So I was listening to a podcast by Darcy Benincosa and she is a luxury wedding photographer and she does so much great work kind of like hauling out photographers who say that they want to be luxury photographers but that's not really reflected in their work and it's not really reflected in their marketing and i was listening to her podcast and she was talking about this and i was like okay i have so much more that i need to add to this conversation so i think what would be helpful is if i start by giving you kind of my definition of what it means to be a luxury brand because luxury means something different to everybody.
[1:24] If you were to come to my house, I don't know that you would necessarily say right off the bat, oh, Rebecca clearly loves luxury branding because I don't drive a Rolls Royce. I don't have Tiffany diamond earrings or anything like that. But I do have a lot of what I call quiet luxuries, which are things that are really important to me. So I really, really value convenience, maybe to a fault. Maybe it's because I'm a millennial. Maybe it's because I'm just lazy. I don't know. But I really value convenience and I'm willing to pay for it. So I have my groceries delivered every week. And that used to sound so snobby and over the top to me. And maybe it does to you too. And that's okay, right? The point of life is that we all get to make choices according to what matters to us. But when I stopped thinking of it in terms of, oh, I'm just lazy, or I have more money than I need, quote unquote, and really started seeing as this is me living in alignment with my values, which is I really value convenience. And I really value my time, especially with kids. You know, if you have kids, going to the grocery store is the absolute worst. And I don't know how my mom did it back in the day. I don't know how our grandmothers did it. Props to them. They have more courage than I do because every time I take my kids to the store, I'm like, wow, this is not worth it. And so grocery delivery in my mind is one of those quiet luxuries. It's not flashy. It's not even necessarily super expensive.
[2:53] It is extra. So when I'm talking about luxury in the business sense, in the branding sense, there's lots of different ways that we could approach it. But the way that I like to think of it is luxury is when you are buying something that is more than just the face value of the product. So when you're buying an apple from the grocery store, let's keep going with this since it's on my mind, you're just buying the apple. But if you are going to an apple orchard in the fall and they give you the opportunity to go to different types of apple trees and sample the apples and pick your own apples and fill a basket and take a cute photo op. And then by homemade apple cider, you are buying more than the apple. You are buying the experience. You are buying the value. You're buying the memory of all of that. And so in my mind, that makes it a luxury. There's also the aspect of luxury that I think is worth mentioning, which is a luxury is something with, I don't want to say a high profit margin. I think that's a little bit too redactive, but I would say luxury is something where the price is considerably more than the cost of the item. So what you're charging is more than what it costs just in time, labor, and materials.
[4:12] So I think if we're really going to understand luxury branding, we have to have this baseline assumption of what it is. There's other things that we can add to it, but I think that's a pretty good model for luxury. And a lot of times, I know that this is a cop-out answer, but a lot of times when it comes to luxury brands, you know it when you see it. And I'm going to get into that because I don't think that's as abstract as we think. I think there are some very specific things that we can do in our businesses to make our products more luxurious.
[4:45] And before I get into all of those, well, actually, let me go through this list that make a luxury product. And then I want to kind of talk through how I would consult you if you were my client on determining whether you want to be a luxury brand or not. Because I think a lot of times, especially in the coaching world and sometimes in the service provider world at large, there's this assumption that the more luxurious you can make your business, the more profitable you will be. And that's just not true. There are so many ways to make a lot of money and luxury branding is just one of them. Now, I have a bias towards luxury branding because I think it's so powerful and because I see so many coaches and founders and consultants who are really undervaluing what they're doing because they don't know how to brand it.
[5:36] So that's part of the equation, but I think it's something that we need to talk about. So you're not trying to push yourself to be a luxury business if that's not really what you're interested in. So I'm going to say seven things I've determined make a luxury experience, what they mean, how you can cultivate that in your own brand. Number one is craftsmanship. And this is so important and it bugs me that so many people leave this out. I don't say this to throw shade. Well, maybe I do. So if I go to your website and I see that you are a business consultant for luxury brands.
[6:06] Your website is unorganized. You don't seem to have any professional experience. There's typos on your site. You don't have any examples from past clients or testimonials or any of these things. I'm out. I'm going to bounce.
[6:18] Saying that you are a luxury does not make it so. You have to be able to back that up. And that's where craftsmanship comes into play. And this is where I love all of my clients because first and foremost, they value the craftsmanship, the quality of whatever they're selling so much. And maybe everybody feels this way, but actually I don't think that's true. I think there are a large number of businesses whose primary goal is just to make as much money as possible with as little work as possible. And this is maybe a side tangent, but I think it's worth including, I haven't decided how I feel about AI yet. I'm still on the fence. I'm still figuring it out. But one thing that I see all the time that really, really bugs me is these posts that say things like how to use chat GPT to create 30 pieces of content in five minutes.
[7:10] And I'm like, I'm all for working smarter, not harder, right? I don't want people to think like, oh, anything that you can do to be efficient is a bad idea because that's not what I think. But I'm like, okay, so you're going to use chat GPT to help you create a bunch of mediocre content, mediocre at best, I should say, mediocre content to sell a mediocre product so that people can use ChatGPT to sell their own mediocre product through mediocre content? Where is the value in this? And is it really so important to us to just post, post, post, post, post, consume, consume, consume, consume all the time that our standards are so low that we don't even care if it was created by a human or not.
[7:58] And again, this makes it sound like I'm a total hater of ChatGPT and I'm not. I actually use ChatGPT. I even pay for it. I have found it useful in my business, but I don't think you can be a luxury brand if all you're doing is giving ChatGPT some prompts that you copy and pasted from somebody else on the internet. And I don't think that's really what you want to create either. Even if you don't want to be a luxury brand, I do think you want to be a high value brand. And that means creating products and programs and services that are so beautiful and transformative and high quality products. It adds to the beauty and order and experience of everyone who sees it, whether they buy it or not. And I just think, even as I'm saying that, I'm just filled with this sense of excitement for the opportunity that we have in our businesses to create value, to create beauty, to magnify our own talents, and to lift others up. And I don't want to lose that because we're so anxious to create as much content as we can and get as many customers as we can buying some $7 thing. I'm obviously showing a little bit of my bias there, but hopefully you get the point.
[9:14] Craftsmanship is really important. And if you're struggling to sign high ticket clients or to sell luxury products, I would go back to the craftsmanship. Genuinely, I would. You cannot sell a luxury product if it's not extremely well-made. I have a great example of this. There is a glasses, I don't even know how to describe this. She's a style consultant and her area of expertise is the face. And she consults people, high level people on the kind of glasses they should wear. Some of you might be like rolling your eyes at this. Okay. I think this is so cool. So she will literally sit down with somebody. I don't know if it's in person or via Zoom. She will take their measurements. She will look at their face. she will look at their structure, she will take into account how far the bottom of their chin from their nose is or whatever it is, and she will recommend the perfect pair of glasses for you based on how you're going to be using them.
[10:18] What a cool service. That is luxury right there. And obviously, most people don't need that. It's not for everyone. But let's say that you a professional speaker and you have to be able to present on stage multiple times a week and you're getting paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to present your ideas. So you've got to be able to read a teleprompter. You've got to be able to use a remote. You've got to be able to look at the screen behind you and you've got to be able to look good.
[10:48] Suddenly the glasses that you're wearing are very, very important. Especially like I'm thinking about Simon Sinek. You guys know Simon Sinek. He wrote like The Infinite Game and Start With Why and all these books. He wore these clear frame glasses and they became his look. They were part of his brand. And I think, I bet he had a consultant. I bet he had someone who said, these glasses are going to make you look smarter. They're going to help you get more attention. They're going to make it easier for you to show up. They're going to make your eyes look bigger, whatever it is, but I do not doubt that his glasses were a serious consideration. And that level of craftsmanship, maybe you don't want to be that excessive, but thinking about, okay, how could I take my product or service and just dial it up a little bit? What would I do? This is something that I like to think about. What would I do if somebody wanted to feature my services on Oprah or put my product in the Smithsonian? All of a sudden, they're heightening the value and the perception of this product, what would you do to make sure that it was absolutely top-notch? And one thing that I like to do, I do this with my house sometimes, okay? When I go away from home, like if we go on a date or something, you know, I'm out of house for a few hours. When I come in, I pull out my phone. This is going to sound so over the top, you guys.
[12:09] When I come in, I pull out my phone and I just document all of the little tiny details that stick out to me. Like, oh, my baseboards are really dirty. I know that's such a mom thing, but really the dirty baseboards. Oh, my windows need to be cleaned. My windowsill is cracking. We should re-calc that. All these little tiny things. I have to look at it with fresh eyes because in creating a beautiful home and in creating a beautiful luxury business, the details matter. And it is those 1% little tiny shifts that change someone's perception of, oh, that's a cool book to, wow, that's a stunning heirloom that I would be willing to pay hundreds of dollars
[12:49] for and want to put in a glass case in my house, right? Something like that. So I've beat that to death, but craftsmanship is super important. And along with craftsmanship, this is my number two, is aesthetics. These are like hand in hand. And there's a reason that I separate these because there's two kinds of aesthetics. There's the aesthetic of your actual product, like how it's designed. And then there's also the aesthetics of your marketing, right? That's like the branding. So let's suppose that you have this beautiful, fine oil painting and the painting itself is gorgeous, but it's not framed. And all you do is you post a picture of you holding it in your dirty studio.
[13:29] Do you think that is going to speak to a high ticket art collector? No, you have to paint the picture for them of how this beautiful thing will make their life more beautiful. So you need to frame it with a custom frame, a special kind of wood, one that is carefully selected to bring out the undertones of the painting or whatever it is. Then you need to take pictures of the painting in the kind of house that the art collector you want to attract would be living in, or that they would aspire to be living. And suddenly, you have created a very different kind of product. It's no longer just a painting. It's something to add to their collection. And it means something different. And then on top of that, as you know, while I'm finishing out this example, your website better be gorgeous. It better be clean, easy to navigate, simple instructions. The prices shouldn't be like $10.99, right? That's you would expect if you were going to a cheap print shop. Imagine that your art is on the most expensive menu you can think of. Those prices, they're just teeny tiny. They don't put dollar signs by them. It's just $2,000. And you just know that.
[14:39] Such a difference. So you have to really, really think through, okay, my product is well-made. My product is beautiful. It's packaged beautifully. How can I sell it beautifully? And this is what's so fun because when my clients come to me, right, they usually have a certain level of quality and craftsmanship nailed down. They are an amazing coach. They have an amazing product. They're selling an incredible service. But what is missing is the way that they are presenting it aesthetically. And so we have to really look at that and say, okay, step-by-step, what are the 1% changes that we can make to this product to show people how beautiful it is and to paint the picture for them of what it would do for their
[15:24] life. And that's why aesthetics is so important. Sounds basic, but it's worth saying. Ugly products do not sell. They don't. They genuinely don't.
[15:33] And this is what's really interesting. So people ask me all the time, they used to, maybe not so much more, but people have asked me a lot, how do I feel about Canva? Do I feel threatened by Canva as a designer? And I always just laugh at that because I'm like, why would I feel threatened by Canva? I actually love Canva. And I love that graphic design is becoming more accessible to more people. And I'll tell you what I think it's doing. I think it's raising the bar because now anyone can have a crappy logo made on Canva. Sorry, not sorry. But to have a logo that is professionally designed, to have a complete color palette that complements your products and your personality and attracts your ideal clients, to have a custom-made website and brand photography that embodies your values, suddenly that becomes a lot harder to obtain. And so when you invest in professional branding, it makes it easier for you to stand out because there's so much stuff on Canva. So that's my take anyway.
[16:33] Craftsmanship and aesthetics, I think we covered that. The number three thing in a luxury business is the experience.
[16:39] What is the experience of your brand? And when I say this, I don't just mean the purchasing experience. I think this is something that we get wrong, or at least we leave out the details sometimes. We're like, okay, yeah, so what does it look like when they buy the product? It's like, no, no, no, no, no. What does it look like to interact with my brand? I have a lot of people, this sounds braggy, but I don't mean to be braggy. I have a lot of people who interact with my brand who will never buy from me. And they are very, very important to my brand because A, my brand is built basically on referrals and my personal reputation. And so anyone who knows me and understands what I'm all about is going to be more likely to share about me to their friends, their business buddies, whatever. So don't think that, oh, this is just about what it looks like when somebody purchases from me in their post-purchase email sequence, blah, blah, blah. Yes, all of that stuff is important. But I want you to think through, okay, when somebody sees my brand for the first time, where do they see it? Is it on Instagram? Is it a podcast? Is it in person? On a t-shirt? Like, what is it? What do they think of it? What inspires them? What makes them cringe, right? What do they want to see more of? What is confusing to them? And these are things that you can actually ask your audience, okay? I just launched a program called Rebrand Your Life. I actually just closed the cart. Don't worry, I'll be launching it again if you didn't get a chance to sign up. And I did a little survey after launching.
[18:07] Because I want to know what people are thinking about my brand. And I want to know what parts of my messaging and the design have landed and maybe what needs some work. And not to toot my own horn, but the number of people who commented on the design of the branding, it was so fun to see your posts about this because they were all so beautiful. I looked forward to seeing you talk about this. How many businesses can say that? People look forward to me selling to them because of how well-branded it is. That's part of the experience. And so I think that's something that you have to talk through. Something that I like to ask my private clients in cultivating, sometimes I call it like their customer journey. Some people call it the funnel. I don't really love that. I usually call it like the customer journey or the customer experience. And I like to ask them, what are they thinking or what are they doing or what are they seeing in that moment when they decide to actually buy? And if you can answer this question, like specifically, if you can explain it in real language, you can sell something so much easier. Because I think a lot of times we're like, well, they believe that it will change their life.
[19:22] Yes, that's probably true. But they probably believed that for a while. What is it that made them actually say, you know what, I'm going to do this. I'm going to do an example because I know this can be abstract. So my client, Shanna of Modern Sleep Mama, she's a pediatric sleep consultant, and she has a lot of specialty with families of multiples and children with physical disabilities or complex medical issues. So her brand is not just about helping babies sleep, right? She could just say, I'm going to help you get your baby to sleep, all of that stuff. And that is motivating, right? That speaks to a need. But she's also creating more of a quiet luxury brand. and she's selling an experience. So we determined what it was when somebody said, oh, I'm actually going to buy this was twofold. One, when they saw that her bedtime routine with her twins, her multiples was actually a beautiful, calm experience. Literally, I was like, I want you to show them aesthetically what it looks like to put your kids in their jammies, to zip up the sleep sack, to turn on the diffuser, showing that experience and that it's calm and that it's easy.
[20:36] So that's what they see. And what they feel is that even if I have children who have specific needs, I can have this beautiful sleep experience. And that's the turning point. So it's not just, I believe that I can put my kids to sleep too. It's seeing like, oh, I almost feel jealous. That looks so lovely. That looks so special. I want to create that too. That's possible for me. That's the kind of experience that I'm talking about.
[21:01] The next thing that makes a luxury business, and one thing that I am going to harp on over and over and over again, you guys, your brand values. I'm not saying that you have to have specific values, but you have to have values, period.
[21:16] And again, there's lots of businesses out there whose primary objective is to make as much money as possible, to sell the business, to go public, to get investors so that they can profit and be done with it. And their level of personal involvement is pretty minimal, right? The business is the means to an end. That's really not who I'm talking to. And I think you guys know that. My ideal client and the people who want to build the kind of businesses that I am an expert in building, their business is their business. It is their calling. It is their life's work. They are never going to turn it over to somebody else. They might hire somebody else to help them run things, but they are the founder. They are the visionary behind their business. And it is their personal brand that they're building alongside what they're selling. They have values. And if you're sitting here thinking, okay, you're describing me, but I don't know what my brand values are.
[22:12] That's okay. That's just a sign that you would benefit from working with a brand strategist like me to help you figure those out. Because if you feel like, yes, I'm passionate about my business. I have such big ideas, so many big ideas. I know where I want to take this. I'm not ever going to just quit my business. You need somebody to help you pull those deep values out of you because I promise they're there. You just have to be willing to let somebody like me ask you some deep questions to really get at the heart of things. And when you know what your values are, oh my gosh, I've said this before. I'm going to say it again. It makes everything in your business so much easier. And we are willing to pay so much more for a business that has values than a business that's just about the product.
[23:01] And I'm going to share some of my values with you because as I say these, you're going to realize like, oh my gosh, all of Rebecca's content goes back to these values. And it does. It's not salesy. It's not forced. It is so easy and authentic for me because these are my genuine values. I don't have to pretend. But I also have done a lot of work, a lot of soul searching to determine what these are. So I'm just going to go through some of my brand values are because I think it's helpful to see. Number one is that I believe brand development is personal development and that your brand is personal and building a brand is part of creating the self-image and identity that you want and that your brand should reflect your personality in some way. I also believe that branding is a business tool. It helps you sign more and better clients.
[23:49] And it is about personality, but it's also about profitability. And I think that my work is kind of the intersection of those two things. Another one of my values is that branding is more than just design. I'm not just a graphic designer. I am a brand strategist. I am a creative partner and consultant and strong messaging and positioning. Those things are crucial to communicating your authority and your expertise. I could go on and on, but just one more thing that I really believe that I try to bring out is that my client's success is my success. I am a client first business. So I celebrate and spotlight my clients. I care about them. I check in with them. And not everything in my business is a financial decision or transaction.
[24:33] Sometimes I help people just because I want to help them. Sometimes it's just the right thing to do. Sometimes I make myself available on the weekend because my client needs me and I still have boundaries and I still charge what I'm worth and all of that stuff.
[24:48] I also care about my clients and that's really, really important to me. And I've defined that as one of my values. So it's easy for me to look at these and say, okay, I need to make decisions.
[24:58] What can I do? What are my values? How do I do that? A few more things that make a luxury business stay with me. Okay. Because hopefully you're getting a good sense. Well, I kind of already talked about this one. Transformation. I feel like experience and transformation are very related, but slightly different. And so I want to point that out. experience is obviously like how you experience the product, both before you buy it and after you buy it. But the transformation, and when I say product, I'm talking broadly, that can be a specific service, a group coaching program, a private offer, whatever. The transformation is who you become because of your investment. And I think we understand this principle because it's been harped on us so much on Instagram, but I think we struggle to apply it in kind of two ways. Number one is we don't know what the transformation is. And so we don't speak to it very specifically or very confidently.
[25:55] So we just say things like, I'll help you create the life of your dreams rather than saying, I'll help you work out in a way that it feels like part of your lifestyle and not something you have to force yourself to do at 6am. We kind of tiptoe around the transformation because we're not really clear on what it is. But I think the other thing that happens when we're good at articulating the transformation is we're, I think sometimes we're too heavy handed. It's like, we're shoving this transformation down our ideal client's throats, like hire me and you will make more money. You will sign so many clients. You won't know what to do. And I think there is a time and place for that kind of content, especially if you're selling maybe something smaller, maybe something with a very specific deliverable. But if you're building a luxury brand like I am, you can leave some of that transformation open to interpretation, okay? You don't have to educate and sell and convince people all the time. You can literally just show them your life. You can show them how you have embodied the transformation that you're providing and people will naturally be drawn to you. It's just human nature. And so I think This is where aesthetics comes back into play because you can show the transformation so much more powerfully.
[27:12] Then you can tell people the transformation. And I am very, very good at showing people the transformation and helping my clients show the transformation. And that doesn't mean that you can't also use your words, but I think if you're just using words, it can feel a little bit more oppressive, whereas we want this to feel inspiring. And that's what you can do when you're able to really live your brand and bring people along. Two more things that make a luxury brand. Number six is pricing.
[27:42] And I put this on here, but I'm feeling it last for very specific reasons. I don't think you have to charge $100 million bajillion in order to be a luxury brand, right? There's all these other things that you can do to be a luxury brand. I actually kind of love the idea of having this high transformation, this beautiful experience, these designs and aesthetics and craftsmanship,
[28:04] but still charging a reasonable price. Reasonable being totally relative, obviously. but pricing is part of your positioning as a brand. And so I just want you to consider a couple of things. You might know that I really love Lululemon. I love it as a study in branding, and I also love it as a consumer. I think it's a great product. Everything I buy from there, I really like. But Lululemon has this intangible brand asset that makes people obsessed with it. And so it sells 90% of its products at full price, which is like unheard of in retail.
[28:41] Most retail businesses, they only sell stuff when it's on sale. And so for Lululemon to sell things, 90% of their things at full price is huge because they've built up such a strong brand that people are willing to pay whatever it costs. And they've also done a good job communicating the value of their products and the transformation, what it means to wear Lululemon where people don't wait for a sale. They just know that those pants cost $108 and that's what it costs. That may not be your vibe, but it is possible to achieve that. This brings me to the very last aspect of being a luxury business, which again, take with a grain of salt, okay? I don't think you have to use the most extreme version of all of these to be a luxury brand, but I do think there are elements of all of these things that
[29:32] you could include in your business. So if you came to me as a client and said, help me become a luxury business, this is what I would tell you. So the last one is exclusivity.
[29:41] And what this means is not always that there's a limited number or that it's only for the cool people. That could be how you choose to go about it. I think what it really means is just that it's not for everyone. If there is a product that is for the masses, it's literally for anybody. It's going to be very, very hard for you to position that product or that service or that membership or whatever it is as a luxury. And it's going to be very hard for you to sell it if you're pricing it super high, but it's still for the masses. So you have to consider all of that. But like I said, being a luxury means it's not for everyone. It's for someone specific and that it is perfect for that someone.
[30:24] So there are trends in pricing in the online business world, just like there are trends in the regular world. Not like the online business world is different than the regular world, but you know what I mean. And pricing is part of those trends. So there was a time when selling extremely high ticket coaching packages was the thing to do. And everyone was encouraging you to sell 10,000, 20,000, $60,000 coaching packages. And then it became really popular to run a membership group that's $99 a month. And it's for more people, right? All of these things. And what I have found is the businesses who follow these trends, who I don't want to say like they don't know what they're doing, but they often just kind of do what everybody else is doing. They eventually burn out because it doesn't work that well.
[31:13] I have never been the kind of business to offer a low-ticket product to a bunch of people. And that's not to say I never will. But to me, it's very important to build up my brand as more of a premium service. I want to create a white-glove experience. I want a really, really profound transformation. And I want deep, long-term relationships with my clients. I can't do that with a $17 lead magnet. I can't even do it with a $200 group program. It's important to charge more and to deliver more. So when you're creating your business, and if I were your brand strategist, what I would ask you is, long-term, how do you want to work with people? How do you want to deliver the transformation that you believe you can provide? Your ideal clients, what do they want from you? What's the sweet spot of all of these things?
[32:07] And then I would say, great, How can we filter other people out in a way that feels genuine and kind, but letting people who don't need a glasses consultation know that this glasses consultation is not for them. And that's where the right messaging, the right aesthetics come into play. So if you're sitting here and you're thinking, I don't know if I actually want to be a luxury business, I'm not here to convince you.
[32:31] I'm not here to tell you that it's right or that it's wrong. But if you're listening to this and your curiosity is piqued, if the idea of working with less clients, but on a deeper level and getting paid more per client is intriguing to you.
[32:48] If you really care about the quality of what you're selling and the aesthetics of it and the transformation that it provides, then I think you do want to be a luxury brand. And we can work together to bring some of these other things to your business to help you grow that way. And my services are not for everyone, but they are for the business owner who is genuinely serious about not just hitting six figures, but making a million dollars. And for someone who wants that level of public awareness and recognition and being known for their unique genius. And if you really want to start a movement where you want to build a community of people who believe in your ideas and embody your brand, where they are leaders on their own and not just followers, you need a brand to do that. And I go back and forth on calling myself a luxury brand designer or not, because to be honest, I'm not charging luxury prices. But I recognize that the service I'm providing is a premium investment and that it is an incredible transformation. And if that's something that you want for your business, then let's chat because
[34:00] I am booking clients for 2025 and I would love to work with you. And that's all for now. And I'll talk to you guys soon. Bye.
[34:11] We hope you enjoyed listening to aesthetically speaking if you want to support the podcast please leave us a nice review or connect with us on instagram at rebecca peterson studio.
[34:21] Music.
