t for a limited time took the product to a price of $137.

However clicking to their main page on their website for their products and programmes, almost the sale promotion was highlighted but instead of $264 the price for the programme was $59.

Now this could well be an oversight - perhaps they had forgotten that they had made available the previous promotion package at only $59.

What it did leave me with an impression of if I were a potential consumer is that I could not trust their pricing strategy. If I had purchased this product base

Strong brands become so as they develop a reputation for consistency - be that how they position themselves, the use of their corporate identity, in their messaging and their pricing.

Yes pricing - a subject not talked about much in the context of branding.

Let’s explore two specific case studies about price inconsistency and the impact to a company’s brand and business performance.

Case Study 1 - Price Harmonisation in a Merger I recall a merger that I was engaged in and one of the biggest challenges we had was the harmonisation of trade terms for the products we were providing to our 14,000 customers.

We had no record of the specific discounts each of our sales representatives had negotiated with the customers and through the merger the plan was that all the invoicing would be brought together.

The customer had been aware they had different agreements in place with the separate organisations prior to the merger which they may not like but understand, as we created one business this was not going to be tenable.

In fact the harmonisation of trading terms, and effectively the implementation of the full merger of the company took us almost 2 years to complete and automate before we could provide our customers with one invoice for all the products they were purchasing from the merged organisation.

During this time, our bottom line was impacted because:

• we had to keep duplicate systems and processes in place with separate accounts teams which resulted in additional overheads for the business
• we had duplicate communication strategies to our sales representatives which complicated their responsibilities
• we were effectively under pricing our products in many cases which had a direct impact on our bottom line.

Case Study 2 - Price Inconsistency in a Coaching Company Here is another example of a far less complex business, yet where their pricing strategy is also inconsistent. I recently reviewed the website of a business coach and they were promoting a new product offering.

The offer they were making for a specific promotion looked tremendous - the recommended retail price was $264 and the discount for a limited time took the product to a price of $137.

However clicking to their main page on their website for their products and programmes, almost the sale promotion was highlighted but instead of $264 the price for the programme was $59.

Now this could well be an oversight - perhaps they had forgotten that they had made available the previous promotion package at only $59.

What it did leave me with an impression of if I were a potential consumer is that I could not trust their pricing strategy. If I had purchased this product based

onisation of trade terms for the products we were providing to our 14,000 customers.

We had no record of the specific discounts each of our sales representatives had negotiated with the customers and through the merger the plan was that all the invoicing would be brought together.

The customer had been aware they had different agreements in place with the separate organisations prior to the merger which they may not like but understand, as we created one business this was not going to be tenable.

In fact the harmonisation of trading terms, and effectively the implementation of the full merger of the company took us almost 2 years to complete and automate before we could provide our customers with one invoice for all the products they were purchasing from the merged organisation.

During this time, our bottom line was impacted because:

• we had to keep duplicate systems and processes in place with separate accounts teams which resulted in additional overheads for the business
• we had duplicate communication strategies to our sales representatives which complicated their responsibilities
• we were effectively under pricing our products in many cases which had a direct impact on our bottom line.

Case Study 2 - Price Inconsistency in a Coaching Company Here is another example of a far less complex business, yet where their pricing strategy is also inconsistent. I recently reviewed the website of a business coach and they were promoting a new product offering.

The offer they were making for a specific promotion looked tremendous - the recommended retail price was $264 and the discount for a limited time took the product to a price of $137.

However clicking to their main page on their website for their products and programmes, almost the sale promotion was highlighted but instead of $264 the price for the programme was $59.

Now this could well be an oversight - perhaps they had forgotten that they had made available the previous promotion package at only $59.

What it did leave me with an impression of if I were a potential consumer is that I could not trust their pricing strategy. If I had purchased this product base

, and effectively the implementation of the full merger of the company took us almost 2 years to complete and automate before we could provide our customers with one invoice for all the products they were purchasing from the merged organisation.

During this time, our bottom line was impacted because:

• we had to keep duplicate systems and processes in place with separate accounts teams which resulted in additional overheads for the business
• we had duplicate communication strategies to our sales representatives which complicated their responsibilities
• we were effectively under pricing our products in many cases which had a direct impact on our bottom line.

Case Study 2 - Price Inconsistency in a Coaching Company Here is another example of a far less complex business, yet where their pricing strategy is also inconsistent. I recently reviewed the website of a business coach and they were promoting a new product offering.

The offer they were making for a specific promotion looked tremendous - the recommended retail price was $264 and the discount for a limited time took the product to a price of $137.

However clicking to their main page on their website for their products and programmes, almost the sale promotion was highlighted but instead of $264 the price for the programme was $59.

Now this could well be an oversight - perhaps they had forgotten that they had made available the previous promotion package at only $59.

What it did leave me with an impression of if I were a potential consumer is that I could not trust their pricing strategy. If I had purchased this product base

heir responsibilities

we were effectively under pricing our products in many cases which had a direct impact on our bottom line.

Case Study 2 - Price Inconsistency in a Coaching Company Here is another example of a far less complex business, yet where their pricing strategy is also inconsistent. I recently reviewed the website of a business coach and they were promoting a new product offering.

The offer they were making for a specific promotion looked tremendous - the recommended retail price was $264 and the discount for a limited time took the product to a price of $137.

However clicking to their main page on their website for their products and programmes, almost the sale promotion was highlighted but instead of $264 the price for the programme was $59.

Now this could well be an oversight - perhaps they had forgotten that they had made available the previous promotion package at only $59.

What it did leave me with an impression of if I were a potential consumer is that I could not trust their pricing strategy. If I had purchased this product base

t for a limited time took the product to a price of $137.

However clicking to their main page on their website for their products and programmes, almost the sale promotion was highlighted but instead of $264 the price for the programme was $59.

Now this could well be an oversight - perhaps they had forgotten that they had made available the previous promotion package at only $59.

What it did leave me with an impression of if I were a potential consumer is that I could not trust their pricing strategy. If I had purchased this product based on the current promotion I was going to spend almost 240% more than if I had purchased the product from their main website.

The same can be said of those professional services firms who state that they don’t place their prices for their services on their web site as they change dependent on the client.

Absolutely the requirements and situations of our clients vary from case to case, but your potential clients do want to know what the potential investment is they will need to make to work with you.

It’s just like having a jewellery store where there are no prices in the shop window - we are likely to consider that the item we are interested in is outside our reach. Many people don’t want to engage with the merchant in the early stages of their browsing and exploring options and feel enquiring about a price opens up a dialogue they are not yet ready for.

And remember the world is small and clients will talk so inconsistency in your base pricing is not going to build your reputation for being a trustworthy partner.

Your 4 Point Action Plan:

1. Review what your pricing strategy is with your clients today and identify what inconsistencies exist
2. Develop a plan for implementing changes - how will you migrate your clients to your new pricing policy, over what time and how you will communicate this to them
3. Review your website and other marketing materials and put in place an outline of your pricing for your key services or products
4. If you do have products and services already promoted on your website, review the pricing you have detailed and ensure that if you are creating alternative bundled packages ensure that they are distinctly different and this is easily understood by your potential clients and customers so that they understand why you have priced the packages differently.

Review your pricing strategies at least every 6 months to ensure that they enhance your brand and your bottom line.