Impact Pricing

Alan Hollander, VP of Offer Packaging and Pricing Strategy at Blackbaud, has led pricing initiatives for six years. With nearly three decades in pricing, his impressive career began in 1994 when Tom Nagle hired him after Alan excelled in Nagle's "Strategy and Tactics of Pricing" course. He also held key roles at Ellucian and Simon-Kucher & Partners, bringing deep expertise in large-scale pricing transformations. In this episode, Alan addresses a major challenge for SaaS companies: how AI disrupts traditional per-user pricing. Drawing on his experience at Blackbaud (serving nonprofits with CRM and financial tools), he explains why AI's efficiency conflicts with seat-based pricing. He and Mark discuss the difficulties of shifting customers to new pricing models, managing multiple approaches, and implementing pricing innovations gradually. Why you have to check out today's podcast: "Don't go right to the end goal, in the future state, because people are just going to look at you cross-eyed. Start with quick wins, start with test pilots, test the concepts, show the results, quantify the results so you can build momentum in launching new pricing models." — Alan Hollander Topics Covered: 01:30 — Alan's pricing journey: From Tom Nagle's student to Strategic Pricing Group veteran 02:45 — The AI pricing dilemma: Pricing products with AI vs. using AI for pricing 04:15 — Why AI pricing isn't different: It's still all about jobs-to-be-done and value creation 11:15 — The nonprofit sector challenge: Selling efficiency when budgets are already tight 14:30 — Human augmentation vs. job replacement: Reframing the AI conversation 16:45 — The Salesforce problem: When AI doubles productivity but revenue stays flat 19:20 — Blackbaud's approach: Combining user-based and consumption-based models 21:45 — Market segmentation reality: Financial vs. fundraising as separate buying centers 24:10 — The PayPal model: Why percentage-of-success pricing works for fundraising 26:30 — Optional pricing models: Letting customers choose fixed vs. variable approaches 28:45 — The operational reality check: Systems and processes needed for pricing flexibility 31:00 — The "crawl, walk, run" philosophy: Building momentum through incremental wins Key Takeaways: "Per user is not going to be the answer. You're going to stagnate because unless you're just going to increase your per user price, it doesn't align with how they consume, how they use, what value they get." — Alan Hollander "Sometimes you have to do the right things before you do things right... you can have a beautiful strategy in terms of how you monetize and price, and it's very elegant and you've done all the analytics and it looks super cool. But sometimes you actually need to basically what I would say, do a crawl, walk, run." — Alan Hollander "If you don't lead with the value, I don't care if it's AI, SaaS, it doesn't matter what it is. If you don't lead with the value in a business case... you're not going to get anywhere." — Alan Hollander Resources and People Mentioned: https://www.blackbaud.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-tom-nagle https://www.linkedin.com/in/reed-holden-913ab69/ Connect with Alan Hollander: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alan-hollander-753167/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on May 12, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/markets-dont-segment-by-industry-buyers-segment-by-problem/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Gary Bailey is the founder at The Talent Capitalist, where he teaches monetization as a discipline, and serves as a finance and monetization consultant at FinTech Strategic Advisors. With a background that spans from banking and derivatives pricing in the 1990s to coaching the rise of AI monetization product managers today, Gary brings a unique perspective to value capture and pricing strategy. In this episode, Gary shares his insights on the distinction between pricing and monetization, drawing from his experience pricing hundreds of thousands of different financial instruments to help modern AI companies think about value capture. He explores the controversial topic of contextual pricing - why companies like Google and Facebook price millions of micro-transactions differently based on context, time, and user behavior. Together with Mark, they dive deep into the Jobs-to-be-Done framework, debate whether it's different from problem-solution thinking, and tackle the thorny issue of when dynamic pricing crosses the line from smart segmentation to sleazy manipulation. Why you have to check out today's podcast: "Hire a pricing person, and that's it really, because they're going to throw some things that you hate, throw some things that you like in the same way that you wouldn't ordinarily try and clear your drain all the time on your own. Why would you not [have] someone clear your pricing issues?" – Gary Bailey Topics Covered: 01:32 – From banking derivatives to AI: Gary's pricing journey through 100,000+ financial instruments 03:28 – Monetization vs. Pricing: Why value capture matters more than price points 06:26 – The Jobs-to-be-Done debate: Are foundational problems the same as jobs? 12:14 – The umbrella test: Distinguishing core jobs from feature-level problems 15:32 – Why SaaS companies struggle: The 10,000 use cases pricing challenge 16:48 – Google and Facebook's secret: Pricing millions of micro-transactions contextually 18:00 – The factorial complexity problem: When features create exponential pricing opportunities 21:30 – When pricing becomes sleazy: The ethics of contextual price discrimination 23:27 – Airlines and Amazon: When dynamic pricing crosses the line 25:52 – AI for strategic moats: How Gary helps founders identify key monetization metrics 29:09 – Using AI as a pricing sounding board: Context + diagrams = better insights 30:19 – Final advice: Why every company needs a pricing person Key Takeaways: "Monetization is really how much of the value that you create are you capturing, and what is the system behind you consistently capturing that value." – Gary Bailey "Most of the companies that we know, startups that talk about generating revenue, but very few talk about value capture." – Gary Bailey "In reality, the most optimal pricing would be to price every single one of those problems individually." – Gary Bailey "When it gets scammy... I think in some of the healthcare stuff, the PBM stuff and some of the other things do I think, well, that's a little bit risky with healthcare and stuff, but I think people are used to it because they experience it in everyday life." – Gary Bailey Resources and People Mentioned: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-talent-capitalist/https://www.ftadvisory.co.uk/https://www.salesforce.com/https://www.hubspot.com/https://www.amazon.com/https://openai.com/ Connect with Gary Bailey: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-bailey-monetization-cfo/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on May 5, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/urgent-pricing-decisions/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Garrick van Buren is the owner and principal consultant at Pricing from the Start, where he helps early-stage entrepreneurs and B2B SaaS companies create effective pricing strategies before they invest heavily in product development. Since 2003, he has been launching and managing businesses that support entrepreneurial organizations. His diverse experience includes working with creative professionals and agencies, as well as time at a large corporation with established pricing practices. Garrick is also a certified Cicerone (beer sommelier), which gives him a unique insight into customer value and market positioning. In this episode, Garrick shares his "Pricing from the Start" framework, designed to help entrepreneurs avoid the costly error of building products without fully understanding their value or pricing potential. He emphasizes the importance of qualitative customer research, explains the difference between foundational and detailed problems, and highlights why many entrepreneurs overlook pricing to their own disadvantage. Alongside Mark, he explores how the Jobs-to-be-Done methodology intersects with traditional pricing strategies, debates various value frameworks, and delves into how to measure value in B2B settings. Why you have to check out today's podcast: "They need to have a price, they need to be comfortable charging it, and they need to approach it in a way that they want it to be repeatable, that it gets at the customer value, and that they can make the decision in an ongoing way of, is there a sustainable business here that we're developing?" – Garrick van Buren Topics Covered: 01:53 – How Garrick transitioned from struggling creative professional to pricing consultant 03:36 – Why entrepreneurs need to know their price before building their product 05:38 – Why successful companies often don't understand the value they deliver to customers 06:37 – Using MVP and Agile principles to test value through service delivery before building products 08:58 – The "Pricing from the Start" framework: qualitative research and timeless persistent problems 11:57 – Jobs-to-be-Done vs. problem-solution-result-value frameworks: what's the difference? 15:42 – Foundational problems vs. detailed problems in market segmentation 20:48 – Why the McDonald's milkshake example may be hurting Jobs-to-be-Done adoption 23:21 – The single sentence framework: "I help [role] at [adjective company] struggling with [timeless persistent problem]" 25:38 – Working with B2B SaaS companies at inflection points and quantifying customer value 28:44 – The 10% rule: capturing value as a percentage of customer incremental profit Key Takeaways: "Because the alternative is that they burn hundreds of thousands of dollars on something that they were guessing at and then pushed, shoved, fought, and argued with the developers... because they didn't do the first few steps." – Garrick van Buren "Your competitive set is wider than you think. And that I think really drives how I think about both products, solutions, jobs-to-be-done, pricing, all of those things." – Garrick van Buren "If we're going to capture 10% of value and we're going to charge $10,000 a year, that means that somebody is expecting $100,000 worth of value in that year against this kind of problem." – Garrick van Buren Resources and People Mentioned: https://pricingfromthestart.com/ Connect with Garrick van Buren: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrickvanburen/https://pricingfromthestart.com/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on April 28, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/why-i-dont-use-value-maps/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Fede de la Balze is the Co-CEO at Staff Schedule Care and former VP at Pacific Lake Partners, a unique private equity firm specializing in entrepreneurship through acquisition (search funds). With extensive experience in pricing strategy for small and mid-sized businesses, Fede has been instrumental in developing pricing bootcamps for private equity portfolio companies. His journey from supporting searchers to becoming a CEO himself provides valuable insights into the intersection of pricing strategy and business acquisition. In this episode, Fede shares his fascinating experience with search funds, the critical role of pricing in business valuation, and the unique challenges of implementing pricing strategies as a first-time CEO. Together with Mark, they explore how pricing power indicates business quality, the importance of incremental testing over analysis paralysis, and the evolution of the search fund industry. Why you have to check out today's podcast: "Come up with something that's a little bit better than what you have and put it in front of someone and test it. I think that's worth a lot." – Fede de la Balze Topics Covered: 01:41 – What is Pacific Lake Partners and how search funds differ from traditional private equity 04:15 – The story that sparked the need for pricing bootcamps in the search fund world 06:33 – Why pricing isn't just about changing numbers - it's about market segmentation and value delivery 08:20 – Who owns pricing in small and mid-sized businesses 09:49 – How pricing power became a key criteria in Fede's business search process 13:22 – The reality of being a searcher - "like floating in midair" with binary outcomes 17:16 – Why the search fund industry is becoming oversaturated with email outreach 18:42 – The three types of knowledge every new CEO must master 21:02 – Dealing with legacy pricing decisions and constraints as a new business owner Key Takeaways: "If you don't think there's a pricing opportunity, it's probably not a good business to buy. Not because you're going to depend on pricing to grow the business necessarily, but because if you don't think there's a pricing opportunity, there's probably not enough value differentiation." – Fede de la Balze "The CEO needs to think and understand that this is their calling. No one's going to figure this out other than them." – Fede de la Balze "Pricing is not a one-time event. It's how you think about how you're adding value and you should continually be thinking and tweaking your pricing model as you go to align with value." – Fede de la Balze Resources and People Mentioned: https://www.pacificlake.com/https://www.staffschedulecare.com/https://impactpricing.com/value-optimization-bootcamp/ Connect with Fede de la Balze: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/federico-de-la-balze-7387a42a/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on April 21, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/moving-hearts-and-minds/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Join Mark Stiving for a unique dual-guest conversation with Jon Jennings, longtime Impact Pricing sponsor and successful pricing recruiter, and Ryan Walter, a pricing veteran with over 15 years of leadership experience who recently transitioned into recruiting. Together, they reveal the insider's view of private equity pricing transformations, from deal diligence to exit strategies. In this episode, they explore why private equity firms are investing heavily in pricing capabilities, how to determine the right level of pricing leadership for different situations, and the evolving landscape of pricing careers. The conversation covers everything from pre-acquisition planning to AI's impact on pricing roles, offering valuable insights for both pricing professionals and business leaders. Why you have to check out today’s podcast: “In the private equity space, part of the diligence is we think there's an opportunity of pricing improvement of some dollar amount to go get. In order to get that, you're going to need to transform the way things are working, which is building out a team.” – Ryan Walter Topics Covered: 02:05 – Ryan's journey into pricing: From MBA analytics to solving 7-Eleven's cigarette pricing crisis in Florida 03:29 – Pricing transformation strategies: Why PE's 5-year timeline perfectly aligns with pricing capability building 07:49 – Pricing as a center of excellence: The evolution from analyst roles to VP-level positions and what's next 11:05 – Private equity hiring differences: Stakeholder dynamics, investment thesis pressure, and the "shorter leash" reality 14:30 – Pricing problems in portfolio companies: When port cos don't see the problem PE firms see and how to bridge that gap 17:37 – Pricing transformation explained: Why it's all-encompassing and requires strategy, finance, data, and leadership skills 20:48 – Transformational roles in organizations: The difference between backfilling and building, and why transformation always wins 23:41 – Hiring pricing professionals for PE: Building pricing advisor roles at the firm level and sharing resources across portcos 26:17 – AI's impact on pricing: Data foundation requirements and immediate use cases like rebate design and negotiation prep 29:13 – AI in pricing strategies: Competitive data matching, SKU comparison, and the 80% solution approach 32:06 – Promoting the pricing field: Building the next generation of talent and educating people into pricing careers Key Takeaways: "In the private equity space, part of the diligence is we think there's an opportunity of pricing improvement of some dollar amount to go get. In order to get that, you're going to need to transform the way things are working, which is building out a team." – Ryan Walter "The reason I like that word [transformation] is it's all encompassing because it's not really one thing. It's not, oh, we need to get a director of FPA in here. We need to get somebody who understands strategy, who understands finance, who understands data and IT tools, and is a leader that can influence others." – Ryan Walter "If you're going to go for a pricing transformation, you have to dive in with both feet. Halfway doesn't typically work." – Jon Jennings Resources and People Mentioned: 7-Eleven: https://www.7-eleven.com/ Connect with Jon Jennings & Ryan Walter: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonjennings/https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-walter3141/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on April 14, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/willingness-to-pay-is-not-rational/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Mark Stiving is a pricing expert and the host of the Impact Pricing podcast, where he explores the intricate relationship between pricing, value, and context. With a wealth of experience in pricing strategies, Mark is passionate about helping companies maximize their revenue through effective pricing techniques. Steven Forth is the co-founder and Managing Partner at Ibbaka, a leading pricing strategy consultancy. With deep expertise in B2B SaaS pricing and value-based pricing models, Steven has been at the forefront of pricing innovation for over two decades. He's passionate about the intersection of pricing strategy, customer value, and emerging technologies like AI agents. In this episode, Steven turns the tables on Mark to explore context-driven pricing – Mark's revolutionary framework that's changing how pricing professionals think about willingness to pay. Together, they dive deep into the four contexts that drive every pricing decision, the three-layer business framework that organizes pricing strategy, and why perfection is the enemy of progress in pricing. Why you have to check out today’s podcast: “Willingness to pay is contextual.” – Mark Stiving Topics Covered: 01:37 – What motivated Mark to think about Context-driven Pricing? 03:15 – The four categories of context: problem, customer, behavioral, and environmental. 04:52 – How environmental factors influence willingness to pay? 06:01 – The role of competitors in shaping pricing strategies. 08:13 – Understanding the foundational problem and its impact on pricing decisions. 14:01 – The intersection of context-driven pricing and AI. 24:58 – Key takeaways on implementing context-driven pricing effectively. Key Takeaways: “Pricing is about understanding the context in which a buyer operates.” – Mark Stiving “Defining the problem is crucial to determining willingness to pay.” – Mark Stiving “Perfection is impossible; focus on being better every day.” – Mark Stiving Resources and People Mentioned: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenforth/https://www.ibbaka.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/craig-zawada-a0a39029/https://pros.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanliozu/https://zilliant.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabesmith/https://www.pricefx.com/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on April 7, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/tariffs-are-a-second-chance/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Alastair Dryburgh is the Chief Pricing Architect at Intelligent Pricing Architecture and the author of the book “Pricing Genius.” With a background in commercial direction for a marketing consultancy in the pharmaceutical industry, Alastair has spent years honing his expertise in pricing strategies, particularly for creative agencies and consultancies. He believes in the power of value capture and the importance of differentiation in a competitive market. In this episode, Alastair shares his insights on the significance of value over pricing, the necessity of focusing on unique offerings, and how consultants can effectively communicate their value to clients. Together, they discuss the challenges of pricing in a crowded marketplace and the impact of AI on consulting practices. Why you have to check out today’s podcast: “Consider seriously the possibility that you are ten times as good as your competitors in at least part of what you do, and you should not rest until you have found a way of getting paid in accordance with that.” – Alastair Dryburgh Topics Covered: 01:16 – Meet Alastair Dryburgh, a pricing expert with a unique background in the pharmaceutical industry. 01:55 – Discover the pivotal moment in the pharmaceutical sector that reshaped Alastair's career. 05:22 – Learn why successful pricing hinges on value capture rather than value creation. 05:52 – Understand the oxygen vs. coffee analogy that clarifies the pricing dilemma. 07:37 – Explore the consultant's dilemma of "Will I" vs. "Which one" decisions. 09:33 – Find out why many consultants appear the same and how to differentiate yourself. 11:04 – Uncover the proprietary process strategy inspired by McKinsey that can set you apart. 13:45 – Understand why specialization simplifies your business and enhances your appeal. 16:43 – Learn how to position yourself as the only choice for potential clients. 24:17 – Examine the impact of the AI revolution on consulting pricing models. 28:18 – Get final advice on recognizing and leveraging your 10x advantage in the market. Key Takeaways: "It's about value capture, not value creation - you may be creating vast amounts of value but capturing only a tiny fraction of it." – Alastair Dryburgh "Every time I got more specialist, things got easier - your marketing becomes clearer and clients know immediately if they're your target." – Alastair Dryburgh "If you're using AI to reduce costs with a cost-plus pricing model, it will kill you - you're just saving your way out of business." – Alastair Dryburgh Resources and People Mentioned: https://www.linkedin.com/company/intelligent-pricing-architecture/ https://www.amazon.com/Pricing-Genius-Getting-Properly-Advice/dp/1908770783https://www.mckinsey.com/ Connect with Alastair Dryburgh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alastairdryburgh/http://alastairdryburgh.com/guide/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on March 31, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/price-segmentation-at-national-parks/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Marcos Rivera is the founder of Pricing I/O and author of "Street Pricing." He brings 25 years of pricing experience, including a three-year tenure as an operating executive at Vista Equity Partners where he worked on pricing strategies across multiple portfolio companies. He's been running Pricing.io since 2019 and is passionate about the intersection of pricing and AI. In this episode, Marcos shares his insights on the evolving landscape of pricing in the age of AI, the importance of capturing value, and how companies can differentiate themselves in a competitive market. Together, they discuss the shift from traditional pricing models to outcome-based pricing and the role of AI in enhancing pricing strategies. Why you have to check out today’s podcast: “AI forces you to walk the walk versus talk the talk.” – Marcos Rivera Topics Covered: 02:48 – The evolution of pricing in SaaS where the system gets credit for capturing more value using AI. 05:36 – The significance of capturing value quickly and efficiently. 08:09 – Differentiation in a competitive market and the role of pricing power. 12:16 – The importance of entry points and reducing friction for customers. 14:44 – How product design and pricing design are interconnected. 17:07 – The challenges of pricing in the AI landscape. 18:59 – Marcos's approach to using AI in pricing strategies. 28:56 – Pricing advice from Marcos. Key Takeaways: “Pricing is about capturing value, and AI opens up new opportunities for that.” – Marcos Rivera “Entry points matter; make them as low friction as possible.” – Marcos Rivera “Understanding how to differentiate your offering is crucial in a crowded market.” – Marcos Rivera People and Resources Mentioned: Steven Forth: https://impactpricing.com/podcast/691-pricing-in-the-agent-economy-the-future-beyond-subscriptions-with-steven-forth/Vista Equity Partners: https://www.vistaequitypartners.com/Pricing.io: https://www.pricingio.com/Finn AI: https://www.glia.com/https://www.zendesk.com/https://www.cursor.com/https://www.hubspot.com/https://www.salesforce.com/https://www.snowflake.com/en/https://www.netflix.com/https://slack.com/https://99designs.com/https://www.deepseek.com/enhttps://openai.com/https://claude.ai/https://grok.com/https://www.perplexity.ai/ Connect with Marcos Rivera: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcoslrivera/https://www.pricingio.com/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/mark@impactpricing.com

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on March 24, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/reasons-why-b2b-salespeople-discount/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Stephen Forth is the Co-founder & CEO of Ibbaka and a recognized expert in generative AI in pricing. With extensive experience in the intersection of artificial intelligence and pricing strategies, Stephen provides valuable insights into how agents are transforming the pricing landscape. In this episode, Stephen discusses the concept of AI agents, their role in pricing, and how they can deliver value in various contexts. Together, they explore the implications of AI-driven agents on user interfaces, pricing strategies, and the future of business interactions. Why you have to check out today’s podcast: “Understanding what job your agent is going to do is critical for pricing.” – Stephen Forth Topics Covered: 02:07 – Definition of agents and their functionality. 03:17 – Differences between agents and general-purpose AI like ChatGPT. 05:11 – User interface simplicity and complexity in agent design. 08:16 – The AI agent layer cake and its implications for pricing. 11:12 – Access and usage-based pricing for agents. 14:03 – Outcomes-based pricing and its challenges. 16:16 – Tokenization. 20:27 – The importance of understanding the job an agent performs for pricing. 24:31 – Stephen’s insights on the evolving landscape of pricing strategies. 31:28 – Steven’s pricing advice around agents. 31:53 – How to connect with Steven. Key Takeaways: “Agents make it easier to do things, and if those things are valuable, we’re going to do them a lot more.” – Stephen Forth “Pricing agents will require a shift in how we think about value delivery.” – Stephen Forth Resources and People Mentioned: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jakob_Nielsen_(usability_consultant)https://openai.com/https://zilliant.com/https://www.perplexity.ai/https://www.salesforce.com/ap/agentforce/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc_Benioffhttps://www.ibbaka.com/ibbaka-market-blog/how-to-price-ai-agents Connect with Stephen Forth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenforth/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on March 17, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/practical-pricing-in-a-world-with-tariffs/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/

Mike Blake is the founder of High Score Strategies, with over 26 years of experience in business valuation and M&A markets. He specializes in advising small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) on increasing their valuations. Mike is passionate about the relationship between pricing and value, and how effective pricing strategies can significantly impact a company's worth. In this episode, Mike shares his insights on how pricing affects valuation, the importance of differentiation in a competitive market, and the shift from growth to profitability in business models. Together, they explore the concept of context-driven pricing, the significance of signaling in pricing strategies, and how companies can leverage their unique data to enhance their market position. Why you have to check out today’s podcast: “Pricing is language. It communicates to the market what kind of brand you are.” – Mike Blake Topics Covered: 01:37 – The relationship between pricing and valuation. 02:30 – The importance of pricing in determining profitability and cash flow. 03:39 – Differentiation and competitive moats in pricing strategies. 04:53 – The shift from growth to profitability in business models. 08:36 – Signaling in pricing and its impact on investor perception. 11:17 – How to differentiate in a market dominated by larger players. 13:23 – The relevance of pricing strategies for SMBs, and how service-based companies offer consulting as value-ad. 17:04 – What Mike does. 19:36 – Why businesses that don't know their business model. 20:53 – Why value-based pricing is excruciatingly difficult. 25:53 – Mike’s advice on pricing and negotiation. Key Takeaways: “Pricing is the stem cell for all of that. [Cash flow, revenue, and profitability]” – Mike Blake “Companies that get pricing right are the most valuable.” – Mike Blake “If you're selling 100% of your deals you're probably not optimizing your revenue because you're selling too cheaply.” – Mike Blake “Understanding your unique data can create alternative revenue streams.” – Mike Blake Connect with Mike Blake: https://www.linkedin.com/in/unblakeable/ Connect with Mark Stiving: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/mark@impactpricing.com

This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on March 3, 2025, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/pricing-ai-the-rules-havent-changed-but-your-strategy-should/ 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: mark@impactpricing.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/