Successful Pricing Strategy? Your Suppliers Want In

Image shows logos of Pantone, Pantone direct and Adobe. The Adobe logo has bags of cash with a green upward arrow suggesting increase. The Pantone and Pantone Connect logos suggest to aim demands for payment, with an extended open hand for Pantone and a harpoon aiming at Adobe's cash for Pantone Connect.

Summary The dispute between Pantone and Adobe has unnerved Adobe and many of its users, showing that key suppliers may successfully press for participation in economic gains from subscription pricing. With many price increases across the economy, both B2B and B2C brands asserting rationales of “increased value” should review their supplier relationships and prepare for […]

Catalyst Quote & Comment: Sam Walton On How The Customer Can Fire Everyone

Image shows a framed quote attributed to Sam Walton "There is only one boss. The customer."

Illustrating the point One word: Metaverse.  It’s been a very tough week to be any of the tech giants, with Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Apple, and Meta all reporting missed earnings or declining revenue guidance. Every brutal line of bad news basically boils down to one thing: customers are or will be spending less, and these […]

Catalyst Quote & Comment: Lee Iacocca On People Who Want Economy

Image shows a framed quote attributed to Lee Iacocca ""

Illustrating the point This past week we had the coincidental opportunity to write at some length about Netflix’s new plan for “people who want economy”, in an article that illustrates the very point of the Catalyst Quote: Netflix’s Clever Price Framing Will Ring The Register On Ad-Supported Plan In the article, we show that “economy” […]

Netflix: Ad-Supported Plan As Masterful Pricing Strategy

Image shows the Netflix logo with a bye line "Starting at $6.99 / month"

Summary Netflix will have significantly more attractive economics on the ad-supported plan than on its basic and premium plans. The plan pricing is cleverly framed as both “significant savings” vs. existing plans and as cheaper than competitors. In effect, Netflix is paying subscribers significantly less than $1/hour to watch ads. At a Hulu-comparable $30/CPM, it […]

When SaaS Freemium Is Not Free: The Case Study

Part #2 of 2. Part #1 When SaaS Freemium Is Not Free: The Gotcha “Strategy” was published last week and sets the stage for how to evaluate (and generalize findings) from a case study like the one we tackle here. (Note: All references to a specific company name have been removed, and images have been […]

When SaaS Freemium Is Not Free: The Gotcha “Strategy”

Diagram shows test questions to determine whether a SaaS freemium plan is in fact free or there are hidden or delayed costs

Part #1 of 2. Part #2 is published as a separate post to illustrate a “case study” here. The “Free Plan” Challenge Freemium has become table stakes for myriad SaaS companies and the most successful customer acquisition tool for the SaaS industry as a whole. By providing genuine (even if limited) value and a risk-free […]