Your all-in-one tool for staying ahead of competitors and winning new prospects
No matter what market you’re in, rapid change is guaranteed.
That’s the simple reality of today’s retail landscape: On every level from your manufacturers to your distribution channels, the strategies are evolving. The people involved are getting smarter and the processes they employ are getting more efficient.
How to survive in this fast-paced jungle? Not just by adapting with the times, but by emerging ahead of them. You can be reactive… Or you can be proactive, setting the bar that your competitors strive to meet.
And it all starts with a little bit of knowledge.
Pricing intelligence software arms you with difference-making insights
Let’s start with the bigger picture: From product demand to stocking supply to overall industry trends and more, you should prepare for a certain level of flux. In this sense, preparing entails keeping an eye on the analytics in order to answer your guiding questions. For instance, why is the industry leaning towards practice A instead of practice B? And what are the market inadequacies that you can leverage for gain?
Then, hone these questions down to the micro-level of your individual competitors. Before you can think about beating them, you have to understand how they operate and the strategies they engage in. And… You actually have to know who “they” are: You have your obvious alternative-product competitors, sure, but don’t forget about the substitutes. Take Uber – Lyft is clearly a direct competitor, but they also have to consider cabs, public transport, and city bikes.
Now, narrow your scope down further to your customers – you can’t serve them if you don’t have a grasp on their evolving desires. What sort of products or services do they truly value? And what kind of messaging speaks to their emotions? Part of answering these questions involves some knowledge of their shifting behaviors and characteristics. Now more than ever, new sales channels are gaining traction and previously-minority demographics are emerging as major targets.
Data on external entities – the industry at large, your competitors, your audience – is all fine and well, but don’t undervalue insights about your own company. Specifically in regards to pricing history: What’s worked in the past? See that surge in sales? What really caused it?
This is the sort of context that pricing intelligence software can provide. But, of course, knowledge is only the first part of the equation.
Knowledge is power; use it to boost your market position
Perhaps the main benefit of working with a pricing intelligence software is the real-time aspect of it. With analytic insights, you can immediately capitalize on areas of opportunity that pop up. In the ever-evolving retail landscape, this is key for pricing products that win loyal prospects, return better margins, and optimize inventory turns.
For example, using your mounds of data to build a dynamic pricing model enables strategic price adjustments. Rather than throwing promotions around haphazardly, have them serve a deeper purpose (just think about all the seasonal sales you see each year). And beyond discounts, look into your buyers’ more subtle preferences. Does it make sense to realign prices based on timing (i.e. day of the week or even time of day)? How about the framework of your offers – do free samples, bundles, and the like bring sizable returns?
These details all play a role in hitting your profit targets… And in structuring your marketing campaigns. After all, pricing intelligence software can also shed light on the brand image and price perception you give off. What pockets of value is your product satisfying, and how can you continue playing into them? Coupled with the information you garner from A/B tests and digital channels, pricing feedback can help customize your messaging with greater user empathy.
Such an understanding of your customers also empowers your manufacturing processes at the other end of the sales chain. If you can predict their behaviors, you can also organize production methods that minimize waste and out-of-stocks while cutting costs of inventory and shipping.
… Which brings us to another core advantage of smart pricing:
The best pricing tools enhance your efficiency across the board
Thus far, we’ve outlined the importance of making informed, actionable decisions. But keeping up with the retail world requires you to make these decisions correctly time and time and again That’s why the last piece of this puzzle is automation – and all the perks it affords.
For starters, pricing intelligence software is built on the principle of automated precision. When changing prices or identifying competitors, the success of these initiatives depends on having accurate details and reliable prognoses right at your fingertips.
But ensuring precision through manual gruntwork is impossible given the state of retail, and that’s why you need algorithmic tools: To extend that precision across the entire retail landscape. Automation is a necessity for a holistic industry overview.
Only once you have that full picture can you inject efficiency into your operations. Think: Cohesion across sales channels, those aforementioned inventory stocks, five-star customer experiences, and team-wide synchronization towards your pricing.
Finally, the beauty of an intelligent price optimization tool is that it lets you be more efficient. All the time you’d be wasting collecting data can now be put to maximizing your returns. Let the algorithms do their data-crunching in real-time… And instead, focus on winning over the future.
