How customers perceive value is crucial to pricing. This is articulated by Kim Harrison in his article on communicating value to customers, on Cutting Edge. Customers must believe they are getting value for money in order for you to have pricing power. When this is the case you can optimize profitability through price increases without losing many customers, as most of them will remain loyal for the perceived value they are getting.
Value surpasses price to include several other attributes such as service, response, variety, knowledge, quality, and guarantee. It is important for marketers to use the channels of marketing, advertising, and promotion to highlight the salient features of these other attributes to ensure that customers’ perception of value is maintained, thereby making price increases acceptable and retaining customer loyalty.
Communicating the value of your brand is a key activity as it is crucial to the success of your business. Your approach to doing so will determine whether you build or harm your brand.
Ana Raman’s “6 steps to guide you in communicating value to your stakeholders” were referenced, as summarized below:
Identify what value means to each of your stakeholders, as everyone perceives value differently. Secondly, define what your product or service does, focusing on benefits. Next, understand how your stakeholders consume and process information by understanding which mode of information transmission works best for each. Then, communicate how the benefits of your products/services meet your stakeholders’ needs and create value for them. The fifth step is to monitor, measure and continuously improve. Finally, move your stakeholders to action by allowing them to act as ambassadors or referrals, using some means to win others over.
If you would like to learn how to create and communicate the value of your brand, eCornell has a certificate for you. It is the Marketing Strategy Professional Certificate which was developed by Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management to help you do just that.