Mala McAlpin Founder of Kelly George Aesthetics, a cosmetic clinic in Tamworth, Kelly is an experienced Registered Nurse, whose journey began back in 2006, when she began training for Allergan. Her philosophy is “great skin is achieved through science, not marketing gimmicks” – and these sentiments are shared across her beliefs on discounting.
Kelly George is one of many practitioners that stand firm against discounting on injectables, and regularly have to deal with requests for a ‘better price’ – the most recent case, according to Kelly, taking place at her local supermarket by a complete stranger.
“Don’t get me wrong, there is absolutely the time and place for special promotions,” says Kelly. “In my clinic I usually like to pair a deal with an event so it creates excitement and conversation. For example, I recently turned 40 so I created a series of “Made in ‘79” offers. This created buzz on social media and was a great way to advertise the fact that although I am 40, I don’t look 40…thanks to all the great treatments we offer at the clinic. However, while we love a good promo at KGA, I never discount injectables.”
While offering cheap injectables may attract more customers looking for a bargain, as Kelly wisely reminds us, it will also automatically cheapen your brand.
“If you want to position yourself as the premium option, your message needs to be one of confidence in what you’re offering. My clients are not paying for what’s in the syringe, they are paying for my years of experience, as well as my aesthetic eye. Discounting injectables would condition my clients to devalue my services. From a business perspective, how can you expect to grow your business when you have just dictated a low perceived value on your services? It is very difficult to increase your prices once you’ve set a precedent. You’ll find your clients just wait for the next time you have a deal”.
“Do you want to be known for results and experience or do you want everyone in town to know you’re the cheapest?” says Kelly. “Discounting injectables attracts the ‘price shopper’, the type of client who will come for the deal, but won’t be loyal, and will happily go next door for their next treatment if they are now offering a better deal. At KGA, instead of promoting my business through “cheap deals”, I reinforce our position as the premium option by instead promoting our superior results. My messaging encourages clients to focus on the value of what I offer, not the price.”
Kelly is also a passionate advocate on the negative effects discounting has on the industry as a whole, as poor results created by inexperienced practitioners offering cheap services will contribute towards creating a bad name for injectables in the long-term.
“Devaluing cosmetic procedures may result in additional adverse outcomes for patients, particularly as cosmetic injectables become less and less taboo. Price-conscious shoppers will select their injector based on price alone, neglecting experience and safety. Ultimately however, the consequence of choosing price over experience comes at a greater cost to the client as we continue to see an increase in poor aesthetic results and significant (sometimes irreversible) adverse events.”
When setting a price for your services, you are not only determining your own worth, but also influencing the calibre of clients you will attract. Think about your ideal clients – who are they and what are they looking for? What will they be telling their friends? And will they stick with you?
