Are you still using spreadsheets to manage your prices? If that's the case, the future profitability of your business could be in jeopardy because relying on this method for all your pricing requirements has definitely had its day.

It's really not rocket science – in order to maximise your profits and stay ahead of the competition you know you have to price at the optimum level. What your business needs is an accurate price management system (not spreadsheets) – and the modern, accurate and most efficient solution to all your pricing demands is to invest in a pricing software solution.

Things change so fast these days and if your're in a competitive market place, staying one step ahead of the competition is crucial. This is what pricing software is all about – to safely and speedily manage all your pricing data, allowing you to focus on what matters most to your business, maximising profits.

Reasons not to use Excel (in a nutshell)

If your sales quotes and price lists are still created manually then you really ought to be made aware that you are compromising accuracy, security, efficiency and revenue – not to mention wasting much of your sales team’s time. Spreadsheets are always susceptible to human error – and, even more worrying, vulnerable to fraud.

They are not designed for collaborative work, they are unfit for agile practices – and hard to consolidate. Excel spreadsheets are incapable of supporting quick decision making and unfit for business continuity.

So, is your current process of managing prices holding your business back? How can you avoid all of the above pitfalls? The answer is to use Pricing Software.

Why use Pricing Software?

It might be that you will choose an off-the-shelf software solution to your pricing management issues – or you may prefer to go with customised pricing software if your needs are complex. Whichever solution you decide upon, you really do owe it to your business to make this investment. It will save you time, money and maximise your profits – here's how:

1. Pricing Software Enables Real Time Pricing – and is Cost Effective

There will be no need to spend days and weeks on pricing administration. Changes to your benchmark pricing, pricing rules, promotional pricing, customer pricing and exception pricing can be made in minutes with easy to use workflows.

2. Pricing Software Allows for More Accurate Pricing Decisions

It will be easier to anticipate the business impact of pricing changes with a visual financial summary. There will be clear visibility of where you are losing margin because items are priced too low, or where you are losing revenue because items are priced too high. Pricing software will accurately point you towards your pricing 'sweet spot'.

3. Pricing Software Optimises Pricing Tests

The key is to optimise your pricing decisions, and get to a point where you can be sure you are achieving the highest price possible whilst still supporting revenue and profitable growth. Because you have your sales history at your fingertips, you can easily identify the areas of margin leakage and complete pricing tests to find that optimum price. Pricing software can even flag up and rank the areas of greatest opportunity.

4. Pricing Software Ensures Rule Conflicts are Handled Automatically

If you have previously struggled with ensuring there were no rule conflicts, for example from any promotional activities that were running, pricing software takes away the stress, and automatically identifies conflicts that require resolving.

5. Pricing Software Allows For A Full Audit History

Pricing Software logs all the changes behind the scenes, giving you the power to question what has happened previously, and keep a record as to the rationale of individual pricing changes – not something available when using Excel.

6. Pricing Software Enables a Move Away from Cost Plus Pricing

If you’re looking to take advantage of applying different pricing strategies across multiple product, customer and market segments, then an online pricing solution is a must. Simply by moving away from a cost plus approach, you’re already on the journey to value based selling, which statistically is proven to support business growth.

7. Pricing Software Allows You to Analyse the Competition

You will receive your competitors' prices as often as you need, with weekly, daily or even hourly updates. It will allow you to benchmark all your product lines against competitors, and gain a clear view of competitor product assortments.

8. Pricing Software Allows You to Focus on the Really Important Stuff

Pricing Software allows you to quickly identify key pricing opportunities and to increase deal sizes because of cross-selling and up-selling guidance.

Conclusion

However good you think your current system of price management is, there are serious flaws involved if you are still using Excel. Errors can seriously eat into your profits.

Time delays in communicated price changes can cost you money because you have lost the opportunity to sell at the new price for the period before the new price 'gets through' to the sales force.

This will be especially important if you're correcting an error or reacting to a change in the market. This makes it almost imperative that you change to a Price Management solution that allows you to quote professionally, increase deal sizes, reduce errors and drive better pricing decisions.

Pricing Software gives you greater control over your pricing and allows you a distinct competitive advantage.

Sources

• http://blog.blackcurve.com/8-reasons-why-excel-based-pricing-could-be-hurting-your-business
• http://blog.blackcurve.com/the-benefits-of-price-list-management-software
• The Strategy and Tactics of Pricing by Tom Nagle and John Hogan, 2016
• Pricing Strategy: Tactics and Strategies for Pricing with Confidence by Warren D. Hamilton, 2014
• Pricing with confidence: 10 Ways to Stop Leaving Money on the Table by Reed K. Holden and Mark Burton, 2014
• Pricing for Profit: How to Develop a Powerful Pricing Strategy for Your Business by Peter Hill, 2013
• Harvard Business Review on Pricing, 2008
• http://www.inboundmarketingagents.com/inbound-marketing-agents-blog/bid/360726/Upsell-Cross-Sell-CRM-How-They-Work-Together