In this article, the authors look back at the accuracy of their pricing predictions for 2021 and look forward to predicted pricing trends for 2022. Kyle Poyar (kpoyar@openviewpartners.com) is a Partner at OpenView. Kyle helps OpenView’s portfolio companies accelerate top-line growth through segmentation, value proposition, packaging and pricing, customer insights, channel partner programs, new market entry and go-to-market strategy.
Quarterly reporting season is here once again and, while many are doing well, not all companies are shining. What went wrong with pricing? Why do today’s pricing challenges seem insurmountable? How do we manage the huge swings in supply and demand caused by the COVID effected economy and resulting inflation, supply disruptions and unpredictability?
The COVID-19 economy has forced rapid and significant changes in many business and pricing models globally. Most significantly, it has driven the rise of subscription pricing in industries that previously would not have considered a complete pricing strategy transformation necessary. In 2021, we are seeing three trends around subscription pricing which are game-changers and which both B2B and B2C businesses should be keeping a close eye on this year.
In this article, the author presents a scenario of an all too common lifecycle that plays out consistently in pricing management groups in mature companies: new pricing managers are hired for growth, they immediately lower prices while ignoring other key indicators, and when this doesn’t work they scramble for other solutions or leave before creating a black mark on their resume. This article describes how to break this cycle and provides strategies for new pricing managers to help improve their chances of success.