Price competition can seem scary, but many of the wounds are self-inflicted. While that sounds discouraging, it’s actually good, because it means you can take control of them, avoid them, and win deals at better price points. Pricing is the … Read More
price wars
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice and the $23 Million Book
I’m a big fan of automating pricing tasks. Companies spend way too much time on mundane issues like moving pricing information from one system (or spreadsheet) to another, and far too little time really thinking strategically about price and value. … Read More
What’s your plan to close out 2009?
What’s your plan to close out 2009? For many companies, 2009 has been a tough year. While many people remember the crash of the dot-com bubble, some people seem to have forgotten, and even that crash didn’t impact the broader … Read More
Value, Scarcity, and Pricing in the Age of Superabundance
For most people, throughout most of human existence, scarcity was paramount.** Now we live in an age of not just abundance, but superabundance. The agricultural revolution created abundance– not by today’s standards– in food. The industrial revolution created abundance in … Read More
Competitive pricing cuts tech profits, despite topline growth
Despite strong demand for technology products by both home and business buyers, competitive pricing is exerting strong downward pressure on profits and stocks. Hardware makers are suffering the most, from storage, to memory, to processors. As this Wall Street Journal … Read More
Blockbuster Goes after Netflix with Pricing
Punished by the the popularity of cheap DVDs, video-on-demand, and the Netflix DVD-rental-by-mail service, Blockbuster announced further price cuts on its subscription plans. These plans allow consumers to rent and return videos at stores or by mail. The added ability … Read More
Pricing Pressure Pounds AMD Shares
Shares of AMD took a beating last week after the Austin chip maker announced a 4th quarter loss and offered cautious guidance because of an ongoing price war of attrition with Intel. The loss is largely due to charges related … Read More
Motorola Lays Off 3,500, Cites Pricing Problems
Electronics giant Motorola, the number 2 maker of cellphones after Nokia, announced that it will shed 3,500 jobs in a cost-cutting move after overly aggressive discounts trimmed profits. Motorola reported net income of $624M, off nearly 50% from a year … Read More
Why Price Wars Are a Bad Idea
People are competitive. Companies are competitive. They want to beat each other, they want to “win.” That’s why otherwise smart people often start or join price wars. Price wars transfer money from sellers to buyers. This is not a good … Read More
TV Price War Hurts Circuit City
A vicious price war for large, flat screen televisions has bit into Circuit City’s bottom line. The electronics retailer posted a loss for the past 3 months, sending shares skidding. As usual, the price war for fancy TV’s has removed … Read More