How to Functionally Manage Your Pricing During Crisis with Lydia DiLiello

Why you have to check out today’s podcast:  Learn about price gouging as a functional price management strategy  Discover the importance of value differentiation relative to pricing and market segmentation in turbulent times  Pricing strategies that you must consider at this time of crisis to keep up with your competitors   Lydia DiLiello is the CEO and founder of Capital Pricing Consultants, an expert model revenue management and business consultancy dedicated to sustainably improving revenue and profitability for its clients through relevant and timely insights, strategic plans and targeted training programs.   In this episode, Lydia shares her insights on how to manage your pricing during a crisis,  how to keep up with competitors to maintain market share, and why a crisis management plan is important in such times of downturn.    “Determine what the single most important thing is that they want out of a business every year, one thing, and then make everything else drive back to it from a strategic standpoint.”  - Lydia DiLiello Increase Your Pricing Knowledge: Become a Champions of Value INSIDER!  To sign up go to insider.championsofvalue.com. Use the promo code 'INSIDERNOW'  to take advantage of our special $5 offer for the first month.   Topics Covered:    01:17 — Lydia’s backstory how she got into Pricing  05:53 — Price gouging as a functional price management strategy  07:28 — Pricing advice for companies, how to keep your business going in the hard times 09:20 — How to manage manpower layoffs during the crisis: e.g. If you are a restaurant and all you’re allowed to do is a curbside delivery, would you lay off your waitresses and waiters?  10:58 — Lydia’s thoughts on lowering your price to maintain your market share  12:14 — Why discounting shouldn’t be your standard operating policy relative to your pricing strategy 15:50 — Thoughts about competitors lowering their prices at this turbulent economic condition  17:21 — All about market segmentation relative to pricing and value  18:33 — All about having a crisis management plan: How should management react, prepare, and pivoting during a crisis 22:16 — Best pricing advice Lydia has for the listeners   Key Takeaways:  “Companies that are making decisions based upon the welfare of their employees are going to end up in a stronger place just to brand loyalty and recognition.” — Lydia DiLiello  “If there are things that require labor and you have the resources to do it, get it done now, keep your people employed because it puts you in a stronger position when this finishes to come out ahead.” — Lydia DiLiello  “I believe that’s not a good thing to do, lower your prices just to keep going. I think they should not do that, and I feel strongly about that because what it does is it devalues their brand.” — Lydia DiLiello  “I think that brand advertising is all the more important. Continue to sell it at what it sold before the crisis or find ways to run co-specials where you’re not changing your base price. That base price remains but maybe now it’s buying one get the second half off for a short period of time, but don’t readjust that base price.” — Lydia DiLiello  “Change your value offering as fast as you possibly can. If you change your value offering, it takes six months for the competition to keep taking that business. Less and less price. They’ll gain the market share. But eventually, your good customers will see the difference in your products. And if you really do have value and product differentiation, they’ll come back to you.” — Lydia DiLiello    Resources / Links:  Jim Tressel  General Motors  Procter and Gamble    Connect with Lydia DiLiello: LinkedIn  E: [email protected]    Connect with Mark Stiving:      Email: [email protected] LinkedIn Twitter