A piece of marketing collateral came across my desk recently. It was incredibly clear that the company that developed it spent a fair amount of money on it–high quality paper, fancy matte ink, an expensive die-cut and some embossing on their logo. Unfortunately it was also clear that they didn’t spend nearly as much time on the messages and the content in there.
Here’s a simple example. To protect the guilty, I won’t mention their industry…but this was their mission statement:
“To be the most successful [redacted] company in the world at delivering the best customer experience in markets we serve.”
Incredibly generic…and pretty bad, right? But what does all this have to do with pricing?
Well, it doesn’t convey the value of what they sell. And something this generic doesn’t help differentiate them from what their competitors have to offer. And it certainly doesn’t send a message that they’re worth top dollar–even with all their fancy printing techniques.
To me, it was an important reminder. We can spend months coming up with a stellar pricing strategy that’s ripe with potential to capture more revenue and margin. The analysis and spreadsheets can clearly say the products we’re selling are worth it… The sales team can be trained and behind the whole effort… Even the executive team can be supportive, excited and looking forward to the results…
But if your marketing messages and material aren’t conveying the value of what you’re offering, everyone will face an uphill battle. As the saying goes, you only have one chance to make a first impression.
So beware…the first customer touchpoint your company has might be dooming your pricing strategy from the start. You could be telling customers that you’re not worth it before they ever see a price.
