PricingBrew

Insights & Tips

Already a subscriber? Login

Become a subscriber and unlock an information arsenal focused on making your pricing efforts more effective.

The Harsh Reality of Pricing Skills Development in B2B

If we’re being brutally honest, there aren’t many people involved in B2B pricing who actually planned on being in pricing.

Most often, you’re doing something else…accounting, sales ops, marketing, etc….when a pricing-focused opportunity comes up. And in some cases, you’ll either be asked to take it on, or you’ll simply be assigned to the task.

So, you end-up with a business card that says “pricing” on it, but you may have very little knowledge specific to the practice of B2B pricing. This not only makes it difficult to gain respect internally, it makes it tough to advance your career.

Great situation, right? But wait…there’s more…

Very often, the people who have placed you into this pricing role will know very little about pricing themselves.

They may know they need a dedicated pricing function, but they’ve spent their careers doing other things, too. So, it’s very unlikely that they’re going to be able provide all the knowledge and skills a pricing person needs to be effective. In fact, they may not even be able recognize what’s needed, in order to get you the proper training.

So, don’t risk it! The lesson here is that you need to be proactive.

You need to take it upon yourself to make sure you’re getting what you need to increase your pricing skills and knowledge. Create a sort of self-development program and get after it. Set aside at least a few hours every week to learn more about pricing in a B2B environment by reading books, perusing websites, attending webinars, and so on.

Because it helps them to help you, your superiors will more than likely support your self-development efforts. It’s also very likely that they’ll actually admire your initiative and drive, viewing you as a “self-starter”.

And when you start putting what you’ve learned into practice? They’ll take your suggestions and recommendations a lot more seriously, because they’ll know that you’ve done your homework.

Get Immediate Access To Everything In The PricingBrew Journal

Related Resources

  • Getting Started in B2B Pricing

    This 8-part course focuses on the critical concepts that B2B pricing professionals need to know. Whether you're trying to figure out where to begin or just want to ensure everyone on your team understands the fundamentals, this course can help.

    View This Tutorial
  • How to Get More Aligned With Sales

    Taking a purposeful approach toward aligning more closely with the sales team can reap great rewards for pricing results. Learn five straightforward steps toward fostering a better working relationship with integrity.

    View This Tutorial
  • Fighting Over-Discounting in the Field

    Over-discounting in the field is a frustrating reality for most B2B pricing teams. So, how do you prevent it from happening? In this Expert Interview, Chaz Napoli shares the strategies and tactics he's found to be effective through hundreds of customer engagements.

    View This Interview
  • Closing the Skills Gap in Sales Negotiations

    In this Expert Interview, Jason Levinson discusses the latest methods and innovations in negotiation training for salespeople. Closing the negotiation skills gap is not a hard as you might think!

    View This Interview