The Keys to Driving a Pricing-Fluent Organization
3) A clear process for an efficient trip without too many wrong turns
Even the best strategy (map) and people (drivers) can fail if road conditions are suboptimal. That’s why governance and compliance – the ability to course-correct and troubleshoot problems on the route that arise – are critical to the success of any pricing strategy. Pricing-fluent organizations don’t just optimize the pricing process to improve efficiencies and execute pricing more seamlessly – they also institute a rigorous process and have procedures in place to ensure strategies are being adopted, executed and analyzed appropriately. Additionally, the most fluent pricing teams also develop processes to increase the number of prices they are able to execute.
4) The vehicle itself for maneuvering to that final destination
Just as a car is critical to getting an endpoint on the map, the use of technology and your level of trust in its science is paramount for achieving pricing fluency. Most drivers on the road today are comfortable that their brakes will work when engaged, or that traffic lights will function as expected. They have confidence that the fuel gauge is accurate and that the car’s odometer will reflect their true speed. Pricing fluency requires the same adoption and trust.
Retail organizations need to go a step further from just adopting the best pricing solutions and analytics – they also need to inherently rely on it, incorporating it into their processes the way drivers do with GPS and other vehicular features. The ability to drive pricing excellence through the power of AI is also extremely powerful.
Becoming pricing fluent – a master of pricing nuances, responding in real-time to changes in market demand and consumer preferences – should be the end goal, the destination of choice, for today’s leading retailers. Each of these four key factors are absolutely critical in today’s dynamic and competitive retail landscape, and executing each one well will open up endless roads of possibilities for your company.
Matthew Pavich is the managing director of global strategic consulting for Revionics, where he develops data-informed, industry-leading pricing strategies, processes, analytics and organizational fluency to help retailers meet the challenges of today’s increasingly dynamic and competitive landscape.