Ian Tidswell provides the key to superior B2B pricing. Providing high quality price guidance to your sales teams as they negotiate with customers can result in measurable profit increases. It really should be a core process.  However I’ve rarely seen clear quality price guidance. Here some key questions to ask:   Why is price guidance important? When your company hires sales reps, how important are Excel skills? Do you test them for data-driven insights? I didn’t think so. Yet somehow…

Pricing thought leader Ian Tidswell shares B2B price research methods to set list and target prices in this article. Having a robust way to assess customers’ Willingness-to-Pay (WTP) is a key capability required of all companies.  It’s surprising to me how many B2B companies rely on gut-feel or ad hoc processes to get this done.  This may be driven in part at least from not being familiar with the techniques, and the various challenges each presents, along with a more…

Ian Tidswell shares an article co-written by Ofer Levi that shares four reasons customers will accept cost increases. As China cleans up its manufacturing companies, some raw material prices are increasing or are scarce. While never easy, passing on cost increases can be done with a simple explanation, communicated clearly to sales and customers. The amount of increase possible will depend on the competitive context. Don’t forget to use your other commercial policy levers! China is working to reduce it’s…

Ian Tidswell shares an evergreen, ever-valuable post on how to determine the hidden value of your new product or service. You innovate to keep ahead of the competition. But do you understand what your customer perceives as valuable? Let’s review what all the possible sources of value are for B2B products and services (note I’ll refer to product below but it also applies for services and solutions).  In my next blog, I’ll talk about ways to capture that value by…

From archives of Ian Tidswell’s website, this evergreen article explores pricing in uncertain markets and how to handle foreign exchange movements. “The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry” said Robert Burns in 1786.  And while he wasn’t to my knowledge a businessman, the saying holds true today. When things change in commerce, pricing is one of the most effective levers we have to react quickly.  Making the most of an opportunity (or minimizing a threat) is…

Ian Tidswell provides an article that highlights multiple ways to assess customers Willingness-to-Pay (WTP), which is a key capability required of all companies. Having a robust way to assess customers Willingness-to-Pay (WTP) is a key capability required of all companies.  It’s surprising to me how many B2B companies rely on gut-feel or ad hoc processes to get this done.  This may be driven in part at least from not being familiar with the techniques, and the various challenges each presents,…

Ian Tidswell provides insight into the psychology of pricing. Why are we often less than completely rational? Delving into psychology, one can think of the brain as having two types of circuits: system 1 and system 2 (Kahneman) or elephant and rider (Haidt). The elephant (system 1) acts quickly and seemingly automatically, following a set of pre-programmed rules. It’s in control when you react to seeing a family member, catch a ball thrown at you, answer simple questions like 2+2…

Ian Tidswell shares a guide on B2B price guidance, why it’s important, and what type of price guidance to give.   (Sorry, this one’s a bit long. It’s also a key to superior B2B pricing) Providing high-quality price guidance to your sales teams as they negotiate with customers can result in measurable profit increases. It really should be a core process.  However, I’ve rarely seen clear quality-price guidance. Here are some key questions to ask:   Why is price guidance important?…

  Ian Tidswell shares pricing information on creating and capturing value in an informative infographic. Success in the Medical Technology industry requires constant innovation. However, capturing a fair share of the value (pricing) from that innovation throughout the product life cycle is especially challenging given multiple market access hurdles, constrained healthcare budgets, and diverse stakeholders. The infographic below outlines the 6 steps to creating and capturing value in MedTech, from offering design through market access and reimbursement approval to new…

  Ian Tidswell provides insight into the strange pricing practices fueled by loyalty programs, credit card programs, fees, and customer perception of value.  Utpal Dholakia always has interesting posts on pricing.  This one got me thinking about the strange way that buying a coffee can result in wealth transfer to an airline.   Airlines make a lot of money off of their loyalty programs (often all of their profit). 71% of those miles are purchased, many by banks for their credit…

  Ian Tidswell provides an infographic that provides the details of the key 6 steps to creating and capturing value in MedTech, from offer design through market access and reimbursement approval to new product transitions. Success in the Medical Technology industry requires constant innovation. However, capturing a fair share of the value (pricing) from that innovation throughout the product life cycle is especially challenging given multiple market access hurdles, constrained healthcare budgets and diverse stakeholders.   The steps illustrated include:…