Marketing : Pricing Strategies

Pricing is one of the most important elements of the marketing mix, as it is the only mix, which generates a turnover for the organization. The remaining 3p’s are the variable cost for the organization. It costs to produce and design a product; it costs to distribute a product and costs to promote it. Price must support these elements of the mix. Pricing is difficult and must reflect supply and demand relationship. Pricing a product too high or too low could mean a loss of sales for the organization.

Pricing should take into account the following factors:

· Fixed and variable costs.

· Competition

· Company objectives

· Proposed positioning strategies.

· Target group and willingness to pay.

Types of Pricing Strategies

An organization can adopt a number of pricing strategies. The pricing strategies are based much on what objectives the company has set itself to achieve.

Penetration pricing: Where the organization sets a low price to increase sales and market share.

Skimming pricing: The organization sets an initial high price and then slowly lowers the price to make the product available to a wider market. The objective is to skim profits of the market layer by layer.

Competition pricing: Setting a price in comparison with competitors.

Product Line Pricing: Pricing different products within the same product range at different price points. An example would be a video manufacturer offering different video recorders with different features at different prices. The greater the features and the benefit obtained the greater the consumer will pay. This form of price discrimination assists the company in maximizing turnover and profits.

Bundle Pricing: The organization bundles a group of products at a reduced price.

Psychological pricing: The seller here will consider the psychology of price and the positioning of price within the market place. The seller will therefore charge 99p instead £1 or $199 instead of $200

Premium pricing: The price set is high to reflect the exclusiveness of the product. An example of products using this strategy would be Harrods, first class airline services, Porsche etc.

Optional pricing: The organization sells optional extras along with the product to maximise its turnover. This strategy is used commonly within the car industry.