The Transparent Web and Pricing

I gave a talk about “The Transparent Web: Using Online Marketing to Optimize Pricing Power” earlier this week to the National Golf Course Owner’s Association. Really great folks and I learned a lot while I was there, too. While the presentation was tailored to golf resorts and courses, the same facts holds true for most businesses.

What are those facts?

• Your customers have lots of choices when shopping for products and services.
• Social and search make prices and value propositions completely transparent, whether you want them to be or not. Don’t fight it. Use it to your advantage.
• 3rd-party “partners” (some actually are good partners, some aren’t) want to be the go-to resource for your customers. Understand how you each provide value and work to complement, not compete, with one another.
• You must maintain price parity for the same products across all sales channels — unless the reason makes sense to the customer (e.g., pre-purchase discounts, non-refundable pricing, etc.).
• Your pricing must represent a clear value to your customer.
• Best price guarantees aren’t the same thing as discounting — and that’s a Good Thing.
• Your value proposition helps customers understand why to buy from you.
• Your marketing exists to reveal your value proposition.

I’ve included the slides below. And I’m available to speak about Internet marketing and e-commerce at your next event, too. Enjoy!

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