Posted by Christopher Stevenson
Mr. Thomas E. Murry, CEO, Local 20 IBEW FCU, Dallas, closed out the Filene i3 meeting last week. Did he close with a motivational speech to get folks charged up before they left for home? Nope. How about an insightful look at the nature of innovation? Nuh uh. Cool credit union product ideas? No. The closing session was on the art of shaving.
Mr. Murry spends 45 minutes a day shaving his face. Read that again; 45 minutes shaving! I spend a third that time on my entire grooming regimen, shaving included. (Hey, I'm clean. What more do I need?) I couldn't imagine what would possess someone to take that much time just scraping his face. Why would he do it?
Because it's an experience. It wakes him up and makes him feel good.
Okay, good enough. Though, when I walk down the shaving aisle at Target or the grocery store, I don't get the sense that anything there will make me feel good. I pick up my Gillette Good News disposable razors (cheap and relatively effective) and Barbasol or Colgate (whichever is cheaper) and I'm set for a month, all for under five bucks.
But Mr. Murry found The Art of Shaving store in a Dallas shopping mall. The clerk showed him "The 4 Elements of a Perfect Shave®": prepare, to soften the beard and protect the skin; lather up with shaving soap and a shaving brush; shave with a good handle and proper technique; and moisturize. He also received a free barbershop-style shave with his purchase. Never mind that "The 4 Elements of a Perfect Shave" are "value priced" at 100 dollars; Mr. Murry was sold.
More than that, though, he's become an Art of Shaving evangelist. He talks about it with friends. He shared his routine with his roommate at the CUNA Management School. He talked it up with Filene's Denise Gabel who was presenting at the school. And, he took time out of his workweek to come to the i3 meeting to share it with the group. With the help of Lydia Johnson, Vancity Credit Union, Vancouver, British Columbia, he even demonstrated the proper way to shave on Todd Marksberry, Delta Community Credit Union, Atlanta.
Mr. Murry moved me. At heart, I'm a cheapskate (hence the disposable razors and Barbasol), but when I returned from Dallas I broke out my good razor and shaving brush (a gift from my ma years ago) and went out and got myself some high-end shaving stuff. I wanted to feel good, just like Mr. Murry. Am I just an easy sell? Maybe, but my face is smooooth.
What's the bottom line? Some people are willing to spend more for high-quality experiences? That's part of it. Here's the rest of it. More people will be willing to spend more if you can get your current customers to go out and rave about your products and services, even if they are considered commodities by the general public. That frees you up from having to compete on price alone and that's good news. As Denise Wymore commented on an earlier post, Umpqua did it by offering free chair massages for busy moms. GECU, El Paso, Texas, is doing it with Savings Revolution, an event in which selected members compete to achieve defined savings and debt reduction goals; it's like Weight Watchers for your wallet (more to come on this in later posts).
It's cool stuff, even better than shaving with expensive shaving soap.
