Value Bread Blues? How to Announce Price Increases with Casey Brown

Steven Forth is Ibbaka’s Co-Founder, CEO, and Partner. Ibbaka is a strategic pricing advisory firm. He was CEO of LeveragePoint Innovations Inc., a SaaS business designed to help companies create and capture value. In this episode, Steven delves into a report that includes research analysis on the Net Revenue Retention growth of various industries. The report explores the impact of factors such as organizational design, package architecture, pricing metrics, among others. Additionally, it highlights the role of churn, customer success, and a dedicated team in driving this growth.   Why you have to check out today’s podcast: Gain important insights when it comes to Net Revenue Retention [NRR] performance growth for different industries based from a research report Understand how a company's organizational design contributes to a low or high Net Revenue Retention [NRR] Learn how churn, customer success, and dedicated team greatly affects your Net Revenue Retention   "You need to have two pricing metrics so that you can grow in package. So, some form of usage-based pricing is going to be absolutely critical to a successful NRR growth." - Steven Forth   Topics Covered: 01:55 - What drives Ibbaka and PeakSpan to work together and come out with a report that gives insights to the pricing industry 06:01 - Why not include price increase when considering net revenue retention [NRR] 09:25 - Differentiating upsell from cross-sell 10:58 - Two reasons why NRR by API is high 15:07 - An explanation on what those chart and numbers mean on page 29 of the report  18:10 - Explanation to Mark's observation on the package architecture with one data showing huge NRR 20:48 - The meaning behind having independent modules but low NRR [in reference to the two sections in the report] 23:04 - Steven's response to Mark's suggestion of redoing the chart [good, better, best version] 26:17 - Touching on the different pricing metrics for AI [ what he says about pricing based on input/output tokens] 28:50 - Pricing a solution and a platform [case in point: Zoom] 33:23 - Explanation to Mark's question in reference to page 39 of the report about Pricing Metrics for API Integrators: Are APIs supposed to be a pricing metric? 35:10 - Two important points that these data report generates [also touching on churn, customer success, and dedicated team and how it affects NRR] 40:36 - Steven's best pricing advice    Key Takeaways: "If you've designed your packaging and pricing so that you don't have growth in package, don't have upsell, and don't have cross sell, then you know in advance that the net revenue retention is going to be less than a hundred percent because there is always going to be some churn." - Steven Forth "API as a pricing metric is associated with high NRR performance. Why is that? And I think the answer is because of the verticals where it's used." - Steven Forth "There's lots of companies that are not very good at cross-sell. So the fact that, if you're using independent modules and you have low NRR, that suggests that you're not doing a very good job with cross-sell." - Steven Forth "When you really get into this data, even in the verticals that are generally having low net revenue retention, there are a few companies that have high net revenue retention. So you can't just blame it on your vertical because there are probably some of your competitors in your vertical that do have maybe not 130, but 110 to 120% net revenue retention." - Steven Forth "The companies that have the best NRR performance are the companies that have dedicated NRR teams." - Steven Forth   Resources/People Mentioned: PeakSpan: https://www.peakspancapital.com Webex: https://www.webex.com Zoom: https://zoom.us   Connect with Steven Forth: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenforth/ Email: steven@ibbaka.com   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: mark@impactpricing.com

23 Okt 202341min

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on September 14, 2023, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/four-ways-to-grow-a-customer/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at mark@impactpricing.com.  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: mark@impactpricing.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

20 Okt 20233min

This one is the King of Spades from the Impact Pricing card deck.  Of course there's no such thing as a commodity. Well, many salespeople, many business people think they're selling a commodity. And what that really means is that they just have to charge the same price that everybody else charges. But is that really true? In my view of the world, if you're charging the exact same price, that means you're not adding any value. Why would I buy from you versus somebody else? And in truth, there are ways that you can add value to almost anything.  For example, if you were to go to two different vendors of gold coins online today, you'll find they're not identical prices. But isn't gold a commodity? Well, maybe it's approximately the same price, but there's a difference in price based on the service level of the vendor. Based on something that they're giving above and beyond. Maybe it's free shipping. Maybe it's storage. Maybe it's the niceness of the salespeople.  Regardless of what it is, there's something there that says, Hey, I get to charge a little bit more than my competition because my product, my service, something is better. And what we need to do, even if we're selling a true commodity, something that is physically identical to somebody else's, we can differentiate it through other means. So, we should always be focused on the fact that we are not selling a commodity.  In fact, my view of the world is, if you're claiming that you sell a commodity, then we don't need you as a salesperson. And we don't need you as a product manager. Because pretty much everybody has the same thing, why would we need you to help us? So, accept that fact and drive hard, what's different? Where's your differentiation? What can you do that's better so that you can charge a higher price? We hope you enjoyed this example of Pricing Table Topics. What you just heard was done without a script. If you want to get better at speaking about pricing and value, grab a deck of our cards, pick a card, read the saying, and then talk for one to two minutes about what that card says. You'll become a better speaker and expert. If you have any questions or feedback, please email me, mark@impactpricing.com.  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving:  Email: mark@impactpricing.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

18 Okt 20233min

Brooks Hamilton is a principal at Hamilton AI Strategy Advisors, specializing in strategy consulting, product management, program management, cross-functional team leadership, and go-to-market strategy. In this episode, Brooks discusses AI Pricing capabilities and upcoming opportunities that benefit pricing optimization, revenue and data management, and AI's ability to enhance productivity in various areas of your business.   Why you have to check out today’s podcast: Learn the basics of getting started with AI, especially if you are new to using it Find out how AI can help pricing people in price optimization, management revenue, and data management Learn about AI advancements in email response features, the challenges of using it, and the implications of not implementing it   "I would really look at the opportunity in front of them to delight their customers and delight their employees by simplifying the Excel file management problem that we all wrestle with."  - Brooks Hamilton   Topics Covered: 01:30 - What you can expect from this conversation 02:15 - How is AI pricing helping businesses with no big data sets?  05:32 - The ease of consolidation of customers' names with AI Pricing  07:46 - How much is there to learn with AI pricing? 09:31 - Getting started with AI and navigating it 12:13 - Addressing the issue of AI failing to generate your unique voice [ in the case of writing pricing blogs] 15:06 - Could AI potentially offer a precise solution for the problem presented? [in reference to  Mark’s case] 16:53 - Going deeper into the analogy that Mark provided regarding the AI’s capability to provide a solution 18:55 - AI’s capability advancement in terms of pricing 20:43 - Email responses advancement where AI is concerned 22:17 - Two ways to find out your customers’ size in terms of revenue even with limited data 24:16 - Challenges and questions with regards to AI pricing  25:46 - What does Brooks' company, Hamilton AI Strategy Advisors do? 27:07 - Some more challenges in addition to what Mark already mentioned and what could be the implications 27:37 - Brook's advice on how organizations should look at and think about AI  38:33 - Brook's best pricing advice   Key Takeaways: "In the realm of pricing, certainly things like price optimization, and then more broadly revenue management, especially in a B2B realm, where do I go find these opportunities, have really been the domain of sophisticated analytical and optimization packages." - Brooks Hamilton "Right now I think that the main opportunities are going to be in data management, data cleanup, and then just trying to make your life as a corporate citizen or somebody who interacts with corporate citizens easier in terms of getting faster and more complete on your email responses. It can be that simple to try to just get more productive." - Brooks Hamilton "It's one that I would advise them [companies] to not take off looking at it and saying, hey, this is just going to be crypto crap all over again. Because there are some real differences. And as McKinsey has pointed out, if you do not begin this journey, it is going to be very challenging later to catch up because unlike other tech revolutions, the pace of change of this one is rapid." - Brooks Hamilton   People/Resources Mentioned: OpenAI: https://openai.com Outlook: https://www.microsoft.com/en/microsoft-365/outlook/email-and-calendar-software-microsoft-outlook McKinsey: https://www.mckinsey.com/   Connect with Brooks Hamilton: Email: brooks.hamilton@strategyadvisors.ai LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brooks-hamilton-austin/   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: mark@impactpricing.com

16 Okt 202330min

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on September 7, 2023, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/two-ways-to-grow-revenue/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at mark@impactpricing.com.  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: mark@impactpricing.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

13 Okt 20232min

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on September 1, 2023, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/the-first-principle-of-pricing/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at mark@impactpricing.com.  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: mark@impactpricing.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

11 Okt 20233min

Karan Sood had the privilege of overseeing revenue management for over $6 billion in revenue across a diverse range of industries during the past decade. Throughout this experience, he gained a deep understanding of the critical role that pricing plays in business success. In this episode, Karan explains how to effectively map out touch points within organizations to help individuals understand the significant impact pricing can have on business success.   Why you have to check out today’s podcast: Understand the challenges that come with the pricing role and learn how to strike a balance when interacting with other roles in the company for them to understand pricing's role in business success Gain insights on how sales flow through pricing Learn how pricing intersects with strategy and marketing   "Map out your pricing touchpoints in marketing, supply chain, finance…everyone! And then figure out how your pricing should operate in the organization." - Karan Sood   Topics Covered: 01:29 - What led him to pricing and how that internship led him to one job after another 05:46 - Pricing as strategy and marketing 07:40 - Important thoughts on pricing underrepresentation 10:34 - Why there aren't VP of Pricing titles in most organizations 11:34 - The friction role that go with pricing 13:44 - How does pricing relate with sales enablement? 21:53 - What happens when you're mainly pricing and not enabling sales teams 24:56 - Likely reason for sales prevention team existing in the sales enablement team 25:43 - Causes of over-discounting and how not to fall into the trap 28:17 - Karan's best pricing advice   Key Takeaways: “Pricing sits at the heart of the organization.” - Karan Sood “It's [pricing] not guesswork, but it's guesswork with a framework in a way that there's no one perfect price.” - Karan Sood “I don't worry about that price per se anymore because I know with the right leverage with the customer and internally in the organization, I can move that needle.” - Karan Sood   People/Resources Mentioned: Philip Kotler: https://www.pkotler.org Robert Dolan:https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/profile.aspx?facId=6449 Thomas Nagle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-tom-nagle-2bb2288/ Yellow Pages: https://www.yellowpages.com   Connect with Karan Sood: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/soodkaran/   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: mark@impactpricing.com

9 Okt 202331min

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on August 25, 2023, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/defining-value-based-pricing/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at mark@impactpricing.com.  Now, go make an impact. Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: mark@impactpricing.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

6 Okt 20235min