Headlines

State-of-the-Art Pricing Strategies Invaluable

Winning a greater share of wallet begins with mastering pricing, study finds.

Published

2 months ago

September 24, 2023

INSTORE Staff

PHOTOGRAPHY: metamorworks/iStock.com

Retailers, in a constant battle to fend off price leaders like Amazon and Walmart, know that while offering a low price may not win new customers, having higher prices will definitely cost them existing ones, a new survey from DemandTec by Acoustic has found. As a result, pricing is more critical than ever in retail transactions – and artificial intelligence (AI) can be a big help in making that happen, the study says.

Here are three key findings from the DemandTec survey:

Less than 50 percent of retailers are satisfied with their ability to establish a winning pricing strategy;
One in three retailers fear any price change could drive adverse customer reactions;
82 percent of best-performing retailers in the study say that AI technology is essential to drive business improvements in the future.

“Retailers that excel at applying data science and AI to pricing optimization can successfully counterbalance consumer price sensitivity with rapidly changing margin and supply pressures,” the report notes.

Click here for a link to download the full DemandTec by Acoustic study.

When There’s No Succession Plan, Call Wilkerson

Bob Wesley, owner of Robert C. Wesley Jewelers in Scottsdale, Ariz., was a third-generation jeweler. When it was time to enjoy life on the other side of the counter, he weighed his options. His lease was nearing renewal time and with no succession plan, he decided it was time to call Wilkerson. There was plenty of inventory to sell and at first, says Wesley, he thought he might try to manage a sale himself. But he’s glad he didn’t. “There’s no way I could have done this as well as Wilkerson,” he says. Wilkerson took responsibility for the entire event, with every detail — from advertising to accounting — done, dusted and managed by the Wilkerson team. “It’s the complete package,” he says of the Wilkerson method of helping jewelers to easily go on to the next phase of their lives. “There’s no way any retailer can duplicate what they’ve done.”