Impact Pricing

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  Why Technically Correct Pricing Recommendation Can be Strategically Wrong with Sandeep Mathew 14.09.2026 21dk

  Sandeep Mathew is a sales and marketing leader with 19 years of global CPG experience, including extensive work at Unilever building and deploying revenue growth management (RGM) capabilities. He eventually managed RGM as a global capability across markets and channels. In this episode, Sandeep explains why even sound RGM data and technically correct pricing recommendations can lead brands in the wrong direction.    Why You Have to Check Out Today's Podcast: Learn why a technically sound RGM recommendation can still be strategically wrong for a brand's long-term health. Discover how promotions can become a downward spiral that erodes brand equity and profitability. Build a better promotional strategy by connecting source of growth → brand job to be done → promotional objective before analyzing the data.   "Don't take any recommendation at face value. Look at all angles to it. Most importantly, from the long-term health of the brand. Never compromise that for any short-term gains." — Sandeep Mathew    Topics Covered: 01:20 – From Marketing to RGM: Why Sandeep Trusted Purchase Data. Learn why Sandeep became drawn to RGM after seeing how actual purchase data could produce more actionable insights than consumer intention research. 03:30 – One RGM Framework Doesn't Fit Every Channel. Discover why e-commerce, value channels, omnichannel, and quick commerce each require customized RGM approaches rather than one standardized framework. 06:00 – The RGM Paradox: When Good Data Leads to a Bad Decision. Sandeep explains how he went from trusting RGM recommendations almost completely to realizing that short-term data can miss long-term brand consequences. 08:00 – Why Three Months of Data Can't Protect a 100-Year-Old Brand. Understand the mismatch between RGM's typical 3–6 month or 3–5 year view and the 10–15+ year horizon required to manage brand equity. 10:00 – The Brand vs. RGM Tension. Learn why marketing teams understand the brand but may not understand RGM, while RGM teams can produce powerful analytics without seeing the long-term brand picture. 12:00 – The Hardest Question: How Do You Measure Long-Term Brand Impact? Sandeep explains why long-term data is ideal, why 10–15 years of data still creates causality challenges, and how to combine brand-equity measures, consumer surveys, and RGM analytics when perfect data isn't available. 14:00 – The Promotion Spiral That Can Kill a Brand. Discover how brands can respond to an underlying brand-equity problem with promotions, temporarily chasing volume while gradually increasing discounts and eroding profitability. 16:00 – What Does Your Brand Actually Stand For? Learn the three questions Sandeep uses to diagnose brand strength: What do you stand for? What meaningful value do you bring? How differentiated and salient are you? 18:00 – Build the Promotional Strategy Before Running the RGM Analysis. Sandeep shares his framework: identify the brand job to be done, determine the source of growth, translate it into promotional objectives, and then use RGM to evaluate the options. 19:30 – Final Pricing Advice: Never Trade Long-Term Brand Health for Short-Term Gains. Sandeep's closing principle for making better pricing decisions.   Key Takeaways: "When you're making decisions at that level for a certain brand, you don't want to only win over the next three months or six months. You want to win for the next five years, 10 years." — Sandeep Mathew "Don't forget that there are long-term impacts on the brand. That's the most important thing." — Sandeep Mathew "Sampling will only work if you want to do penetration. Don't do sampling if you want to switch from your lead competitor." — Sandeep Mathew   Connect with Sandeep Mathew: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandeep-john-mathew/    Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: The Value Was Always There 11.09.2026 14dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on June 29, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/the-value-was-always-there/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  The $80M Dealer Reveals the Pricing Tricks First-Time Car Buyers Miss with Dominic Genova 07.09.2026 31dk

  Dominic Genova spent 17 years on the factory side at Chrysler and 27 years owning car dealerships. He grew one dealership from a building with no power or water and no sales into a business with 87 employees and $80 million in annual sales of cars, trucks, and service. He rejected the traditional dealership model of commissions, hidden fees, and payment games in favor of transparent, salary-based selling. In this episode, Dominic exposes the pricing tricks hiding behind the "great deal", from payment games to hidden fees, while Mark challenges his sales philosophy from a pricing perspective.  Together, they unpack why the price isn't the price, how a $500 cheaper car can become a $700 worse deal, and why Dominic believes the real product isn't the car. It's taking care of the customer.    Why You Have to Check Out Today's Podcast: See how a $500 "better deal" can become $700 worse once financing enters the picture. Spot the pricing landmines first-time car buyers rarely see coming. Discover how Dominic built an $80M dealership by replacing sales games with trust, transparency, and repeat business.   "I made the buying process, I made our taking care of you a competitive advantage." — Dominic Genova   Topics Covered: 03:00 – The Price Isn't the Price: What Buyers Actually Need to Calculate 05:00 – From No Sales to an $80M Dealership. Hear how Dominic grew a dealership that started with no power, no water, and no sales into an 87-person, $80M business—and why his pricing philosophy focused on bringing customers back instead of maximizing every transaction. 08:30 – How to Build a Sales Team That Actually Cares. Learn why Dominic rejected traditional commission incentives and instead looked for people who genuinely wanted to treat customers well—and how that became part of the dealership's culture. 10:30 – The Buyer Test: How to Tell If a Salesperson Is Sincere 13:00 – Fit the Customer to the Car, Not the Other Way Around. Discover Dominic's "cars are like shoes" philosophy 18:00 – How Dealers Turn a Great Price Into a Worse Deal. Learn how financing and payment tactics can undermine an attractive vehicle price, including Dominic's example of a $20 monthly payment increase that adds $1,200 over a 60-month loan. 20:30 – The Dealer Tricks Buyers Don't Know to Look For. Get a glimpse into the tactics Dominic saw during his career calling on hundreds of dealers, including misleading advertisements, small-print conditions, and additional charges. 23:00 – Why Trust Became Dominic's Real Product. Discover why Dominic viewed his dealership's product as more than cars: "We take care of you." That philosophy helped create repeat customers, referrals, and a reputation that carried throughout the community. 26:00 – The Counterintuitive Profit Strategy: Maximize Satisfaction, Not Price 28:30 – How First-Time Buyers Can Spot a Bad Deal. Learn how to look beyond the advertised price and evaluate the entire deal, rather than assuming the lowest vehicle price automatically means the lowest total cost. 30:00 – Dominic's Final Pricing Advice   Key Takeaways: "So a lot of people go and shop price and then the unethical dealer sticks it to them on something else." — Dominic Genova  "My philosophy was an agricultural philosophy... to get you to come back again and again rather than draining every dime I could when I saw you." — Dominic Genova    Connect with Dominic Genova: LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/dominic-genova-99a12b66/  Website: http://dontbetaken.com/    Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: Hidden Problems, Hidden Value 04.09.2026 2dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on June 22, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/hidden-problems-hidden-value/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  AI Pricing Has 4 Possible Futures, Which One Are You Building For with Steven Forth 31.08.2026 34dk

  Steven Forth is a principal at PatternMind and co-author of Pricing for the Agent Economy, with deep expertise in pricing strategy, scenario planning, and the emerging agent economy.  In this episode, he brings a different way of thinking about AI pricing: instead of trying to predict one future, build strategies that can survive several possible futures. Mark challenges Steven throughout the conversation, particularly around value attribution and credit pricing, creating a fascinating debate about whether outcome-based pricing is truly scalable, whether credits will survive, and what AI buyers may demand next.   Why You Have to Check Out Today's Podcast: Learn how scenario planning can help you prepare for multiple AI pricing futures instead of betting on one forecast. Discover how value attribution and credit adoption create four possible paths for AI pricing—and what each means for your business. Understand why credits, outcome-based pricing, and fungibility could reshape how buyers and vendors exchange value in the agent economy.   "Rather than thinking about, how are you going to predict what's going to happen? It's, what are the early indicators? What are the early warning system you can put in place?"  — Steven Forth   Topics Covered: 01:15 – Why Forecasting Isn't Enough for AI Pricing. Steven explains why traditional linear forecasts assume one future while scenario planning prepares for multiple possible futures—especially when major uncertainties could fundamentally change the market. 04:00 – The Critical Uncertainties You Need to Track. Learn why identifying uncertainties isn't enough—you need to watch for early evidence and warning signals showing which future is beginning to emerge. 05:30 – What COVID Taught Steven About Agile Scenario Planning. Steven shares how the pandemic exposed the limits of traditional scenario planning and led to a faster approach focused on cycling through critical uncertainties as conditions change. 08:00 – Why AI Makes Agile Scenario Planning More Important. With generative AI moving rapidly and no one knowing exactly how the market will evolve, Steven explains why businesses need to remain open to a wider range of possible futures. 09:30 – Will AI Software Still Be Differentiated? Steven explores whether generative AI will wash out software differentiation and whether large language models themselves will eventually converge. 12:00 – The Credit Fungibility Question. Discover why buyers may want credits that work across ecosystems while platform companies could benefit from making credits transferable—and why smaller vendors may resist. 14:00 – Why Buyers, Platforms, and Niche Vendors Want Different Things. Steven breaks down the competing incentives of buyers, ecosystem platforms, and focused vendors and explains why the future of credits may depend on which group has the most power. 16:00 – The 4 Possible Futures for AI Pricing. Steven introduces the two critical uncertainties—value attribution and credit adoption—and shows how combining them creates four distinct pricing futures. 18:00 – From "Blind Faith Credits" to the Outcome Rush. Explore what happens when buyers resist credits and value attribution remains difficult versus a future where outcome-based pricing becomes easier and more scalable. 20:00 – What Niche Vendors Should Do in Each Scenario. Steven explains how pricing strategy changes depending on which future emerges—and why companies that can move fastest toward outcome-based pricing could dominate their markets. 22:00 – The Three Hurdles to Outcome-Based Pricing. Learn why outcome pricing requires agreement on the outcome, the ability to determine who contributed to the value, and enough predictability to make the economics work. 24:00 – Mark Challenges the Value Attribution Problem. Mark argues that pricing metrics already solve one form of attribution, while Steven clarifies the harder question: who actually contributed to the economic value created for the buyer? 26:00 – Can AI Actually Claim the Economic Outcome? The conversation explores why customer support resolution is a promising niche case for outcome pricing—but why multi-agent value attribution remains an open question. 28:00 – Why Credits Are Really a Pricing Currency. Mark argues that credits function like a company's internal currency, while Steven points out that credits can support multiple pricing metrics and flexible consumption. 30:00 – Will Buyers Eventually Reject Credits? Mark challenges whether buyers actually want credits, while Steven suggests the more important question may be which vendors figure out how to move beyond them first. 32:00 – The Pricing Advice AI Leaders Need in 2026. Steven's final advice: understand how your buyers are using AI to make purchasing decisions—or risk making critical pricing mistakes.   Key Takeaways: "The future is not set. And that there is more than one possible future. And that different futures could emerge in different parts of the market." — Steven Forth "We have to be open to a fairly wide range of different futures and agile scenario planning I think is a better way to do that." — Steven Forth "If your strategy is only viable on one scenario, you're accepting a lot of risk into your organization that you don't need to." — Steven Forth   People / Resources Mentioned: Michael Mansard & Wolfgang Ulaga — Steven's co-authors on Pricing for the Agent Economy. Shell — Mentioned in Steven's discussion of traditional scenario planning. Rotterdam — Steven references the city's scenario-planning approach, where major infrastructure investments were designed to remain viable across multiple scenarios. Lovable & Perplexity — Examples of companies using credit-based pricing and the different ways buyers have responded to those models. Salesforce, SAP, Oracle & Microsoft — Discussed as ecosystem platforms that may have incentives to make credits fungible within their ecosystems. Scenarios for Pricing in the Agent Economy — Steven's Substack article that provides the framework discussed in this episode.   Connect with Steven Forth: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenforth/  Substack: Search for Steven Forth on Substack https://pricinginnovation.substack.com/  for his writing on pricing, scenario planning, and the agent economy. Email: [email protected]   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: The Case for Token-Based Pricing 28.08.2026 4dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on June 15, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/the-case-for-token-based-pricing/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  What Are You Really Charging For? The Business Problem Behind AI Pricing with Manu Mehra 24.08.2026 32dk

  Manu Mehra is Head of AMER Industries Strategic Deal Pricing at Databricks, with more than 12 years of experience across pricing, product, cloud, and AI, including Google Cloud and Thermo Fisher Scientific. He brings a practical perspective on how AI is changing the way companies think about outcomes, value, platforms, and pricing models. In this episode, Manu explains why traditional pricing models don't neatly fit AI, why outcome-based pricing is compelling but difficult to standardize, and how companies can turn platforms into solutions around specific business problems.  Mark challenges him throughout the conversation, especially on the attribution problem: if AI creates the value, how do you know AI actually caused it?   Why You Have to Check Out Today's Podcast: Learn why AI is pushing pricing toward outcomes. Discover how platforms become solutions customers will pay more for. Understand the attribution and standardization challenges behind AI pricing.   "Pricing cannot be an afterthought. It has to be integrated within the product roadmap." — Manu Mehra   Topics Covered: 01:15 – How an accidental pricing analytics role led Manu to a career spanning product, cloud, AI, sales, finance, and strategic deal pricing. 03:30 – Why Pricing Has to Start With the Product. Why integrating pricing into the product roadmap can create value before launch instead of scrambling for cost-plus pricing afterward. 05:30 – Why AI Breaks Traditional Pricing Models. Why subscription, license, and consumption models don't fully fit AI when thousands of customers can pursue completely different outcomes 08:00 – The Hardest Problem With Outcome-Based Pricing. Why AI outcomes are difficult to standardize across billing, finance, legal, and revenue recognition—and why 10,000 customers could mean 10,000 different outcomes 11:00 – What Actually Counts as an AI Outcome? Manu uses a QBR example where AI can automate 95% of the SQL work, turning hours and effort saved into a measurable form of value. 13:30 – The Attribution Problem: Did AI Really Create the Value? Mark and Manu debate how to determine whether AI actually caused increased revenue, lower costs, or other gains—or simply helped the business get there faster. 16:00 – Platform vs. Solution: What Are You Really Selling? Why a broad platform can have wildly different value depending on the customer's use case—and how platforms can become solutions by solving specific business problems. 19:00 – How to Turn Products Into Business Solutions. Manu explains how compute, data, and AI layers can be combined into packaged solutions instead of being sold as isolated products. 21:30 – How Customer Segmentation Makes AI Pricing Scalable. Why identifying recurring customer patterns can help companies map different business problems to repeatable combinations of SKUs instead of creating a custom solution for every customer. 24:00 – Why AI Companies Use Credits. How credits can create cost predictability, manage backend costs, and give customers flexibility across different AI capabilities. 27:00 – When Credits Make Sense—and When They Don't. Why platform customers may value the flexibility of credits while digital-native customers who already know exactly what they want may have less need for them. 30:00 – The Pricing Advice Manu Wants Leaders to Hear. Why pricing should never be an afterthought and why the industry is moving from cost-plus toward value-based and outcome-based pricing.   Key Takeaways: "The reason is, even though you might be a platform organization or you're selling a platform, but end of the day, you're still trying to solve a customer problem." — Manu Mehra "The tricky thing with outcome is it's very hard to standardize it." — Manu Mehra "Pricing needs to be integrated during the product roadmap." — Manu Mehra   Connect with Manu Mehra: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manumehra1/   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: Stop Measuring WTP. Start Shaping It. 21.08.2026 3dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on June 8, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/stop-measuring-wtp-start-shaping-it/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  Stop Asking AI "What Should I Charge?" with George Boretos 17.08.2026 27dk

  George Boretos is the founder and CEO of FutureUp, where he helps companies uncover hidden revenue and margin opportunities through AI, predictive analytics, and pricing science. In this episode, he explains why AI can't simply tell you what to charge, how machine learning can uncover pricing opportunities, and why competitor pricing data can sometimes make your model worse.   Why You Have to Check Out Today's Podcast: Learn where AI actually helps pricing from price optimization and segmentation to uncovering underpriced customers. See why more data isn't always better.  Discover what your sales data can reveal about willingness to pay, price variation, and hidden revenue opportunities.   "Don't use AI to actually get specific pricing directions and price point suggestions. Don't follow it blindly." — George Boretos    Topics Covered: 00:00 – Why "What Price Should I Charge?" Is the Wrong AI Prompt. Why general-purpose AI lacks the context and pricing intelligence to set your price. 03:30 – Where AI Can Actually Improve Pricing. How AI can support optimization, segmentation, packaging, and tiering. 06:30 – Why There's No Single "Right" Price. Why pricing requires different methods for different businesses. 09:00 – The Pricing Data AI Needs. Why transaction volume isn't enough without price variation. 12:00 – What Win/Loss Data Reveals. How won and lost deals can reveal win probability and market exposure. 14:30 – Finding Customers You're Undercharging. How price differences can uncover segments and pricing patterns. 17:30 – When Competitor Data Hurts Your Model. Why adding competitor pricing data can actually make a model worse. 20:30 – Why Market Indicators Can Matter More. How market trends can sometimes explain pricing better than competitors. 23:00 – Why Companies Ignore Pricing. Why simply caring about pricing can unlock major margin opportunities. 25:00 – Pricing Strategy vs. Execution. Why the best pricing strategy still needs strong execution to work.   Key Takeaways: "Use AI as a tool... Don't use it to actually get specific directions, specific price point suggestions." — George Boretos  "Pricing is a great differentiator. It can move mountains, it can increase margins, revenue, everything." — George Boretos    Connect with George Boretos: Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgeboretos/   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: The Business Case Nobody Built 14.08.2026 3dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on June 1, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/the-business-case-nobody-built/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  #LivePricingCoachingWithMarkStiving: From 35% to 70% Win Rates, Mark Richman's Pricing Transformation 10.08.2026 37dk

  What happens when a former client returns for a live pricing coaching session? Mark Richman, CEO of Skeleton Key, shares how applying Mark Stiving's value-selling principles helped increase his close rate from 35% to 70% by focusing on customer outcomes instead of pitching solutions. Now, he returns to the hot seat to workshop his toughest pricing challenges in real time—from buyers who can't quantify value to outcome-based pricing and pricing for emotional outcomes.  This isn't another pricing interview; it's a front-row seat to a CEO getting his sales strategy challenged, refined, and rebuilt in real time.    Why You Have to Check Out Today's Podcast: Steal the framework that helped transform a 35% win rate into 70% — without changing his product. Find out why your prospects' "solution" is often the biggest obstacle to closing the deal. Watch Mark Stiving challenges Mark Richman's sales strategy and uncover the hidden pricing opportunities he almost missed.    "That willingness to not talk about what we do and that focus on why the client's there in the first place and how you can really help them achieve the outcome they want has transformed the way I sell. I went from about a 35% close rate to a 60 to 70% close rate."  — Mark Richman   Topics Covered: 01:30 – A Live Pricing Coaching Session Begins. Mark Richman returns to the hot seat as Mark Stiving coaches him through real pricing and sales challenges. 03:10 – Why Nobody Cares About Your Product. Mark Stiving explains why buyers purchase outcomes, while Richman shares how this mindset transformed his sales process. 05:15 – From 35% to 70% Win Rates. Mark Richman reveals the conversation shift that doubled his close rate, and Mark explains why it works. 08:45 – When Buyers Ask for the Wrong Solution. Mark Richman shares a real AI sales conversation, and Mark shows how to uncover the real problem instead. 16:20 – Pricing Emotional Outcomes. Can you charge for less stress and more time? Mark and Mark Richman debate when emotional value is enough. 19:15 – The Customers You Should Walk Away From. Mark explains why buyers who can't define success are often impossible to serve well. 27:40 – Finding the Right Pricing Metric. Mark shares alternatives to outcome pricing that let your revenue grow alongside your customers' success. 30:50 – The Pricing Opportunity Richman Almost Missed. A regulatory deadline becomes a lesson from Mark on willingness to pay and pricing confidence. 36:10 – The Biggest Lesson from the Coaching Session. Mark shares one pricing experiment every business should try, while Richman explains the sales lesson that changed everything.   Key Takeaways: "You're not exploiting the customer by charging for value. The only question is whether the customer believes the price is fair." — Mark Stiving "What matters isn't your hourly rate. What matters is whether it's a fair exchange for the value you're creating." — Mark Richman "Raise your prices. Win fewer deals at higher prices and make more money." — Mark Stiving "Helping clients uncover the value of solving the right problem changed everything about how I sell." — Mark Richman   Connect with Mark Richman: Website: https://skeletonkey.com Email: [email protected] Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markrichman/   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: You Didn't Lose the Deal. You Lost the Commitment. 07.08.2026 3dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on May 25, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/you-didnt-lose-the-deal-you-lost-the-commitment/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  Why Buyers Trust Salespeople Who Don't Need the Sale with Michael Barbarita 03.08.2026 23dk

  Michael Barbarita is the founder of Next Step CFO, strategic CFO, and author of Powerful Business Strategy. After more than four decades of helping businesses grow through smarter financial and business strategies, he's learned that the biggest pricing challenge isn't price—it's trust. In this episode, he reveals why buyers instinctively trust salespeople who aren't attached to the outcome, how transformational conversations outperform transactional ones, and the practical sales strategies that keep buyers focused on value instead of price.   Why You Have to Check Out Today's Podcast: Learn why buyers trust salespeople who don't appear desperate for the sale and how perceived indifference creates credibility instead of resistance. Discover how to shift price objections back to the buyer's transformation. Build stronger offers with upsells, cross-sells, and downsells that protect your value.   "The key is to be perceived as indifferent and transformational." — Michael Barbarita   Topics Covered: 01:40 – Why Business Owners Underprice. Why pricing based on your customer's wallet hurts your business. 04:05 – Sell Transformation, Not Transactions. Keep buyers focused on outcomes instead of products and price. 07:35 – Why Buyers Always Return to Price. The psychology behind price objections and buying decisions. 10:40 – Why Buyers Trust Indifferent Salespeople. How focusing on the buyer—not the sale—builds trust. 13:45 – Buyers Buy Futures, Not Features. Mark explains why customers pay for a better future, not product specs. 16:30 – Can CFOs Really Understand Value? Mark and Michael debate strategy, value, and finance. 19:50 – Finding What Customers Really Value.The questions that uncover why customers actually buy. 22:15 – Michael breaks down his sales framework: Captivate → Fascinate → Educate → Close. 25:30 – The Power of Upsells, Cross-Sells & Downsells. Capture more buyers without lowering your prices.   Key Takeaways: "You have to get on the same side of the table as your prospect." — Michael Barbarita "Packaging and bundling products and services together lets you add more value while increasing the price." — Michael Barbarita "No matter what you do, there's always going to be the price-sensitive people. Instead of losing them, have a downsell." — Michael Barbarita   Connect with Michael Barbarita: Website: https://nextstepcfo.net Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelbarbarita/ Book: Powerful Business Strategy (Free Download)   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: How Buyers Actually Buy (And Why AIDA Isn't The Answer) 31.07.2026 3dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on May 18, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/how-buyers-actually-buy-and-why-aida-isnt-the-answer/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  The Price of Influence: Why People Don't Buy Your Ideas with Claire Wang 27.07.2026 25dk

  Claire Wang is a pricing strategist, speaker, and author of The Price of Influence. With a background spanning insurance, consulting, and commercial strategy, she helps organizations shape willingness to pay by understanding how people perceive value.  In this episode, she shares why pricing professionals need to think beyond numbers, how empathy shapes influence, and why your next great pricing skill may have nothing to do with pricing at all.   Why You Have to Check Out This Episode: Learn why great ideas often fail—not because they're wrong, but because people don't see their value. Discover how pricing principles can help you gain buy-in, influence stakeholders, and communicate more effectively. See why empathy and perspective-taking may be the most underrated skills in pricing leadership.   "Your idea is like the product, and the person you need a yes from is your customer." – Claire Wang    Topics Covered: 02:10 – Why Claire Wrote The Price of Influence. Learn why Claire believes pricing professionals need to become better at communicating ideas—not just analyzing data. 05:00 – Your Idea Is a Product. Discover how pricing frameworks can help you persuade stakeholders and gain buy-in across your organization. 08:20 – How Buyers Build Willingness to Pay. Why willingness to pay isn't created at the moment of purchase—it grows through every customer interaction. 10:15 – The Real Meaning of Value. Claire explains why understanding another person's problems is the foundation of communicating value effectively. 13:00 – Shaping Willingness to Pay Starts Earlier Than You Think See why pricing should influence product design, sales conversations, and marketing—not just the final price. 16:40 – Why Pricing Teams Need More Perspective, Not More Certainty. Learn how collaborating with sales, marketing, and product teams leads to better pricing decisions. 19:15 – Do You Want to Be Right or Effective? Mark and Claire discuss why letting go of ego is essential for influencing others and getting ideas adopted. 21:00 – Using AI as a Thinking Partner. Hear how Claire uses AI to challenge her thinking, uncover blind spots, and improve decision-making. 24:00 – The One Pricing Skill Everyone Should Develop. Claire shares the advice she believes can have the biggest impact on every pricing professional's career.   Key Takeaways: "When you truly understand your audience, you understand their needs, you understand their hesitation, then getting a yes is almost inevitable." - Claire Wang "A good product design process should always be having pricing people involved early on." - Claire Wang "I would intentionally ask AI to be my sparring partner, challenge me, point out my blind spots." - Claire Wang   Connect with Claire Wang: Website: https://www.claire-wang.com/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-wang/    Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: What Is a Pig Worth? 24.07.2026 3dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on May 11, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/what-is-a-pig-worth/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  The Coming Age of Humanless Pricing Negotiations with Adrienne Gordon 20.07.2026 25dk

  Adrienne Gordon is the CEO of PriceSpace and founder of Pricing Empowered. With more than 25 years of pricing experience, she helps organizations combine pricing strategy, organizational change, and AI adoption to improve commercial performance.  In this episode, Adrienne and Mark explore what happens when pricing teams become half human and half AI. They debate whether AI can ever make pricing decisions on its own, why "humanless negotiation" may be closer than most companies realize, and how pricing leaders can use AI to strengthen—not replace—human judgment.   Why you have to check out today's podcast: Learn how to build a pricing team where humans and AI each do what they do best. See how pricing analysts, managers, and executives can use AI to make smarter decisions—not just write better prompts. Discover why AI buyers and humanless negotiations are closer than you think—and what pricing leaders should do now.   "Always offer versions. Put three things on the table so your customer chooses between you and you; not you and your competitor." – Adrienne Gordon   Topics Covered: 01:45 – AI Won't Replace Pricing Teams. It'll Redesign Them. Discover which pricing responsibilities AI can handle today—and where human judgment still matters most. 03:25 – Stop Using ChatGPT Like Google. Learn Adrienne's simple framework for turning AI into an experienced pricing partner instead of a search engine. 05:15 – The Pricing Work AI Should Already Be Doing. See how AI can clean data, uncover pricing insights, build value calculators, and automate repetitive analysis. 07:00 – How Pricing Leaders Should Use AI. Explore how managers and executives can use AI to test pricing strategies, positioning, and competitive scenarios. 09:15 – Don't Trust One AI. Make Them Debate. Why Adrienne uses multiple AI models to challenge each other's thinking and produce better recommendations. 12:05 – Building a Pricing Team That's Half Human, Half AI. Learn how to redesign pricing roles so people and AI each focus on what they do best. 15:20 – The One Decision AI Still Can't Make. Mark and Adrienne debate why accountability—not intelligence—is AI's biggest limitation. 17:00 – Humanless Negotiation Is Coming. What happens when AI buyers negotiate with AI sellers—and how it could reshape commercial pricing. 21:10 – Buying AI Isn't an AI Strategy. Why companies need a clear adoption plan before investing in more AI tools. 24:10 – The Pricing Advice That Never Gets Old. Why offering three options helps buyers compare your solutions instead of your competitors'.   Key Takeaways: "Stop using AI like Google. Give it a role, give it context, then give it a task." – Adrienne Gordon "Stay in the same thread. Keep giving it feedback. It gets smarter." – Adrienne Gordon "When in doubt, put multiple AI agents against one another and let them check each other's work." – Adrienne Gordon   People / Resources Mentioned: PriceSpace – Adrienne Gordon's pricing consultancy focused on AI adoption and commercial excellence. ChatGPT – Used throughout the discussion as an example of AI for pricing analysis and strategy. Claude – Discussed as one of Adrienne's preferred AI tools for analytics and executive presentations. Manus – AI platform Adrienne frequently uses for research and strategic intelligence. DeepSeek – Mentioned as a strong AI platform for pricing analytics. Perplexity – Mark references using it alongside ChatGPT and Claude for research. McKinsey – Referenced in discussing research predicting the growth of AI-driven negotiations.   Connect with Adrienne Gordon: Website: https://pricespace.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrienne-gordon-0a93129/    Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: The Information Trap Is Killing Your Deals 17.07.2026 4dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on May 4, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/the-information-trap-is-killing-your-deals/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/  
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  Why Buyers Don't Buy (Hint: It's Not Your Price) with Ted Olson 13.07.2026 34dk

  Most sales conversations assume buyers make rational decisions. Ted Olson argues that's exactly why so many deals stall. Ted Olson is a sales strategist who helps founders, consultants, coaches, and sales teams use behavioral science to improve how buyers make decisions. He is the author of Feel Good About Selling and the upcoming book, Distinct, where he explores what happens between a buyer saying, "This makes sense," and actually saying, "Yes."  In this episode, Ted and Mark challenge one of sales' biggest assumptions: why buyers hesitate. Is it fear or a lack of confidence? Their lively debate uncovers what really drives buying decisions and how sellers can help buyers confidently say yes.    Why you have to check out today's podcast: Learn why buyers hesitate and why it often has nothing to do with your price. Discover how great salespeople build buyer confidence instead of pushing harder to close. Understand what "We'll think about it" really means so you can reduce hesitation before objections show up.   "Indecision is fear-based. Status quo is fear-based. If you can address that fear, you can double your close rates." –  Ted Olson   Topics Covered: 02:05 – Are Buyers Rational? The Psychology Behind Every Buying Decision. Are buyers driven by logic or emotion? Ted and Mark debate how buyer psychology, perceived value, and decision-making influence pricing more than most companies realize. 05:45 – Buyers Buy Futures, Not Features. Learn why listing more features rarely wins deals. Discover how buyers imagine future outcomes and why too much information creates uncertainty instead of confidence. 09:10 – Why Buyers Say, "We'll Think About It". Is it really about price? Ted explains why buyer indecision is usually driven by fear and uncertainty, not budget or competition. 13:30 – Buyer Confidence vs. Buyer Fear. Mark introduces his Buyer Confidence Framework—payoff, probability, and anticipated regret—while Ted argues that every hesitation can be traced back to fear. 17:15 – Handle Buyer Objections Before They Happen. The best salespeople don't overcome objections—they prevent them. Learn how anticipating buyer concerns early makes closing feel natural. 23:00 – Stop Building Trust. Start Building Buyer Confidence. Ted introduces his new sales philosophy: Always Build Confidence. The goal isn't getting buyers to trust you—it's helping them trust their own decision. 26:20 – Why Buyers Push Back When You Try Too Hard. Learn how psychological reactance causes buyers to resist pressure, urgency, and traditional sales tactics—even when your solution is the right fit. 30:05 – How to Become the Obvious Choice. Ted shares the PACE Framework (Positioning, Authority, Conversion, Expansion) and explains how experts become the first choice before pricing is even discussed. 32:45 – What Really Shapes Willingness to Pay? Does willingness to pay come from ROI alone? Ted explains how context, experience, status, and perceived risk dramatically influence what buyers are willing to spend.   Key Takeaways: "If we think about pricing purely rationally, we'll miss the mark 100%." — Ted Olson "Buyers buy when they feel safe enough to buy." — Ted Olson "When I train sellers, I don't think about making them better sellers. I think about making them better decision-making coaches." — Ted Olson    People & Resources Mentioned: Matt Dixon & Brent Adamson – Authors of The JOLT Effect, referenced for their research on reducing buyer indecision and limiting information overload. Alex Hormozi – Mentioned in relation to identifying every reason prospects hesitate to buy. Charlie Munger – Referenced for his perspective that value can be viewed as reward divided by punishment (or risk). Zig Ziglar – Mentioned during the discussion about helping buyers understand their own problems more clearly.   Connect with Ted Olson: Website: https://tedolson.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tedolson/   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: [email protected]  
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  Buyer Insight: Being Chosen Isn't Winning 10.07.2026 4dk

  This is an Impact Pricing Blog published on April 27, 2026, turned into an audio podcast so you can listen on the go. Read Full Article Here: https://impactpricing.com/blog/being-chosen-isnt-winning/ If you have any feedback, definitely send it. You can reach us at [email protected].  Now, go make an impact.   Connect with Mark Stiving: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/