A Set of Instruments of a Pricing Specialist to Achieve Success in 2024

Pricing is a complex task that poses significant challenges for both online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores. When determining price points, a myriad of factors must be considered. Moreover, pricing specialists need to conduct thorough analysis and data-based forecasting to swiftly respond to rapid price fluctuations.

Achieving high-quality results without specialized tools is a near-impossible feat. In this article, we will explore the tasks pricing specialists must undertake to discover the right price, and we will highlight some tools that could simplify their work process.

Let's begin!

A pricing analyst is an expert tasked with identifying the optimum prices for products within their range. Their main responsibility is to define an effective and accurate pricing strategy that aligns with the company's objectives, customer willingness to pay, and market trends.

Pricing specialists are primarily responsible for the following:

• Studying industry trends;
• Understanding the positioning of product lines within the company's assortment matrix;
• Conducting competitor analysis and monitoring competitors' pricing strategies;
• Regularly gathering information on competitors' prices, and preparing price change forecasts based on the collected data;
• Observing customer reactions to pricing in order to identify price barriers and psychologically acceptable price levels;
• Testing different pricing strategies to find the most effective one for their business.

Pricing specialists should always stay abreast of general economic trends, inflation trends, the development direction of their market segment, and changes in consumer habits and expectations.

As inflation is one of the most substantial challenges for businesses, pricing specialists should apply optimal pricing strategies during inflationary periods. They need to make timely adjustments to prices, based on the chosen strategy and the current state of affairs.

Next, let's look at which tools could significantly assist pricing specialists in accomplishing the above-mentioned tasks.

Tracking competitors' prices is an essential tool for price analysts. This is because price competition in e-commerce is becoming increasingly fierce every day. The frequency with which competitor prices must be tracked has significantly increased in many markets over recent years. Practices that were once semi-annual are now monthly, where prices were compared monthly, they are now reviewed a couple of times a week. Many industry niches need daily price updates to maintain control of the situation.

There are two ways to track competitors' prices. The first is to manually monitor all prices and add them to a spreadsheet, then analyze the collected data. However, this method is labor-intensive and time-consuming. The likelihood of errors also increases when manually tracking a large volume of prices. The alternative is to automate price tracking. This allows you to delegate the task of comparing your product prices with competitors' to either an automated program of your own creation or a specialized external service. In this case, artificial intelligence will undertake the responsibility of collecting information, monitoring all market changes, and timely notifying the specialist. One such tool could be the Priceva service. It enables you to navigate competitor prices not only on convenient dashboards but also to gather information in various aspects, presented as ready-made reports.

Priceva allows for the collection of competitors' promotional prices in addition to their regular ones.

The Priceva service enables the export of more than 20 reports, including one for competitors' promotional prices. Given how much prices influence customer choices today, the promptness of obtaining price data becomes one of the top priorities for both pricing managers and other commercial sector specialists.

The main benefit of such tools is that they enable experts to quickly respond to any changes and set optimal prices for goods or services in line with the current situation.

Information about competitors' product unavailability can significantly assist a pricing expert in making correct pricing decisions. Imagine noticing that all your competitors are out of stock, and your company is the sole seller of the product at that moment. During such times, pricing experts can set higher-than-usual prices, thereby maximizing their profits without risking sales volumes.

But how can you track your competitors' stock levels? The solution might be Product Availability Tracker.

This will promptly alert you when your competitors' products are out of stock.

This information will help the pricing specialist make timely price adjustment decisions. Advanced services may even take over the function of recalculating prices due to competitors' out-of-stock situations. For example, the Priceva service allows for automating price adjustments according to predefined formulas depending on product unavailability or availability.

Monitor Competitors' Actions on Social Media and Online Marketplaces
Pricing is the most crucial aspect of the marketing mix. That's why pricing experts need to monitor all their competitors' marketing strategies. Given that social media is a place where potential customers spend a significant portion of their free time, many companies strive to find their target customers there.

Fully recognizing the potential of social media, retailers not only actively engage with potential customers there, but they are increasingly trying to turn such interactions into sales.

Competitive analysis on social media can provide an excellent understanding of target customers. By analyzing information from there, you can learn about customer habits and behaviors, as well as study competitors' activities. Companies can benefit from tracking competitors' promotions and marketing campaigns, as well as adopting some successful business moves and concepts into their toolkit.

When embarking on this task, you need to identify your key competitors. Check who appears on social media and search engines for your keywords. Consider using a competitor analysis tool that can track their social media accounts.

Additionally, a lot of information about how customers perceive the quality of competitors' products and their pricing policy can be gathered from review websites and reviews left on product pages of online stores and marketplaces. Automation can assist in this area as well. Collecting such data can help organize the Digital Shelf solution of Priceva.

Pricing experts must take into account various factors when searching for the best price. Working with proven-effective tools can significantly ease their job and guarantee the achievement of goals set by the company's management.

If you have not yet employed such tools in your work, now is the time to start!

Pricing analysts rely on a comprehensive toolkit that includes dynamic pricing engines, cost analysis software, market research databases, competitor price tracking tools, and advanced data analytics programs. These tools aid in meticulously analyzing vast amounts of market data, understanding competitor actions, segmenting customers based on purchasing behavior, and ultimately, crafting pricing strategies that are both competitive and aligned with consumer expectations. The judicious use of these tools allows analysts to identify pricing opportunities, forecast demand, and simulate pricing scenarios to ensure strategic alignment with business objectives.

The pricing specialist plays a crucial role in steering a company's financial performance and positioning in the market. Their responsibilities encompass conducting detailed market and competitive analyses, setting pricing policies that reflect the company's strategic goals, evaluating price elasticity and customer response, and optimizing pricing for new and existing products or services. Through a deep understanding of both market dynamics and internal cost structures, pricing specialists ensure that pricing strategies not only contribute to achieving profit margins but also resonate with target customers, enhancing the company's competitive edge.

A well-rounded pricing strategy is built on five foundational pillars: thorough cost analysis to ensure profitability; a clear value proposition that communicates the benefits of the product or service; strategic market positioning to differentiate from competitors; a keen understanding of competitor pricing to identify competitive advantages; and in-depth analysis of customer demand to gauge price sensitivity. Together, these elements guide the pricing decision-making process, ensuring that pricing strategies are not only financially viable but also resonate with the target market, reinforcing the brand's positioning and maximizing revenue opportunities.

Professionals in the pricing field must possess a multifaceted skill set that includes strong analytical abilities to dissect market data and financials, strategic foresight to align pricing with long-term business goals, exceptional communication skills to articulate pricing strategies and rationale, negotiation acumen for dealing with suppliers and partners, and the flexibility to adapt strategies in response to market shifts. These competencies enable pricing professionals to craft and implement pricing strategies that optimize revenue and profit while ensuring market competitiveness and customer satisfaction, thereby driving the business towards sustainable success.