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03.04.2024 | Bremen – What comes after Inflation Pricing? On the skillful handling of price reductions.
After the high and very high price increases, triggered by the consequences of the Corona pandemic, Ukraine war with supply chain problems and inflation, many companies are confronted with massive demands for price reductions. How should companies react or act here?
Trade and manufacturers are currently in tough disputes over whether prices must fall again in 2024 or whether there are justifications for further price increases. This is also the topic of the lecture by Prof. Dr. Hans-Christian Riekhof at the Bremen Chamber of Commerce on 06.04.2024.
In the negotiations, a clear pricing strategy, but also a good negotiation strategy, is important. Is your sales team prepared for this? Do you need to spend more energy on strategic pricing? Pricing expert Riekhof (Unicconsult Strategy Development) explains the backgrounds and strategies in his practical lecture and gives helpful tips and suggestions. At the same time, he presents the latest pricing study (Pricing Process in Business Practice – Riehof/Breustedt 2023), which specifically addresses the topic of Inflation Pricing.
The Bremen Chamber of Commerce and Prof. Dr. Riekhof cordially invite you to this free lecture.
Here is the link to the event:
Mittelstandstreff “What comes after Inflation Pricing? On the skillful handling of price reductions” – Bremen Chamber of Commerce – IHK for Bremen and Bremerhaven
Date:
03.04.2024
Time:
12:30 PM
Duration:
approx. 90 minutes
Location:
Bremen Chamber of Commerce – IHK for Bremen and Bremerhaven
Am Markt 13
28195 Bremen
Photo: Karolina Grabowska/pexels.de
SpringerProfessional reports on Inflation-Pricing Study
Under the title “Many companies are turning the price screw”, the magazine SpringerProfessional picks up on the inflation-pricing study of the PFH. The empirical study of the PFH Private University of Göttingen, created by the pricing expert Prof. Riekhof and Julius Reutel, investigates how companies are dealing with the current price increases and how they are passing on price increases to their customers.
Pandemic-related lockdowns, supply shortages and extreme price jumps on the energy side have left their mark in sales, especially in medium-sized companies, in recent weeks and months, the magazine writes. The price trend at all levels currently only knows one direction: upwards. This now calls for innovative pricing models. Figures from the cross-industry study of the Private University of Göttingen (PFH) make it clear where the journey is going.
More than 60 percent of the companies surveyed therefore want to pass on double-digit price increases to their customers this year, 15 percent are calculating price surcharges of 20 percent and more, 82 percent are passing on price increases that occur in raw materials and preliminary materials, and 72 percent even expect a second price increase this year. “The larger the company in terms of sales, the higher the approval,” the article says.
One of the surprising results of the study: Above all, new customers will be affected by the price adjustments of the manufacturing companies. According to 35 percent of the companies, prices for new customers will be screwed up above average.
The study is based on a standardized online survey, which was accessed by more than 1,100 people from medium-sized to large companies and of which 163 evaluable questionnaires were taken into account.
Further links
Full article:
https://www.springerprofessional.de/pricing/vertriebsmanagement/viele-unternehmen-ziehen-im-vertrieb-die-preise-an/23470916
PFH Study “Inflation Pricing”: How do companies implement price increases?
Price increases have been a highly topical and also sensitive issue for months. Shortages of electronic components, drastic price increases for many materials, exploding sea freight rates, price increases due to the war in Ukraine for gas, oil and electricity, at the same time wage demands by trade unions in unusual magnitudes: This is the environment in which companies have to pass on their increased and presumably also further increasing costs to their customers.
But how are such price increases implemented? Are the responsible executives prepared for “Inflation Pricing”? Do they act quickly and decisively enough? Do they have a strategic concept for the procedure? How differentiated do they implement price increases?
Price adjustments have always been a strategically important component of a comprehensive pricing strategy. They are at the center of the present study, in which we have focused for the first time on a single pricing process, namely price adjustments.
The study is available for free download at the following link:
https://www.unicconsult.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/PFH.BRO_.130.220830_Studie_InflationPricing_RZ_web.pdf
Photo: Simon Kadula, pexels.de
Rising production costs force SMEs to optimize their pricing
The ongoing exorbitant rise in purchasing prices for energy and raw materials hits German SMEs hard. Companies should quickly get their pricing in order in the face of rapidly rising or fluctuating production costs – but how? This question is addressed by the Creditreform magazine in a current article. The business magazine for SMEs (Handelsblatt publishing group) publishes assessments by experts, including Hans-Christian Riekhof as a specialist for strategic pricing issues. One of his key statements: “Companies often approach pricing naively.”
Massive price increases threatening the existence of many companies
The situation is serious, the magazine quotes Stefan Ortolf from DZ Bank. Russia’s war against Ukraine is affecting a large number of medium-sized companies. With regard to the current situation, about 72 percent of the companies surveyed for a current Creditreform study consider the massive price increases to be the biggest challenge for SMEs this year. The situation does not tolerate any delay – companies must act quickly.
Pricing expert Riekhof: Some companies treat the topic of pricing completely naively – this is now taking its toll
Many managers have never seen such price increases. Today’s entrepreneurs often lack experience. As Hans-Christian Riekhof, Professor of International Marketing at PFH Private University of Göttingen and sought-after pricing expert, finds in his empirical studies, some companies approach the topic of pricing very professionally, but some also completely naively. “The latter is now taking its toll. Because those who have not defined a process to put their prices to the test once or several times a year and possibly adjust them, now lack speed, says Riekhof. ”
In addition, the wrong people often decide on price increases in many companies. There should be consensus across the department boundaries of product development, marketing, product management, sales, service, controlling about where to go in terms of price strategy, explains the pricing specialist”, who imparts strategic pricing knowledge and practical action options to managers in regularly held pricing seminars.
Link:
Full article in Creditreform magazine:
https://creditreform-magazin.de/finanzen/preise-erhoehen-pricing/
https://creditreform-magazin.de/finanzen/preise-erhoehen-pricing/
Screenshot: Creditreform magazine
