Additional SaaS pricing strategies to counteract Stagflation --

May 27, 2023

     The presentation was originally made in the past on SaaS pricing fees and packaging to combat stagflation in 2022. This article, however, was based on the presentation, which was updated in March 2023, by David Vogelpohl. To find out more information or to view the prior presentation, check out the additional details at the close of the article.

Pricing the price of the software you offer as services (SaaS) isn't easy enough in the good of times. But figuring out how to establish the right pricing to drive greater revenue when there is stagflation is even difficult.

This article offers tips on optimizing pricing and packaging of your SaaS services in a weak market

What exactly is Stagflation?

In simple terms, stagflation is an economic event which is affected by three major variables:

  • Low growth rate.
  • The inflation rate is very high.
  • The unemployment rate is extremely high.

There's more pressure than ever:

  • Prospects' wallets are the people you'd like to impress.
  • Current customers' wallets you'd prefer to upgrade.

That's why carefully considering the SaaS pricing structure is crucial in order to keep expanding your business, even in an economic climate that is tight.

Using Your SaaS Pricing Model to Fight Stagflation

It is the simplest solution to increase your price, and you wouldn't be alone if you did so.

Over a third of SaaS software, software, or digital goods clients have cut rates in the past year.

Graphs showing that over a third of  companies raised prices recently.

Incredibly, SaaS businesses tend to increase prices over the rate of inflation.

The pull of this lever -- no surprise -- usually results in increasing revenue, although it's difficult to pull off at a time where customers aren't having as much money for spending in a depressed economy.

The need to reconsider pricing and package is one of the few levers that are not optimized in SaaS.

What is the reason prices are rising? Do you want to test something different?

There are many ways you can make more money when the market is restricted, and that's not just making the prices rise.

An increase in acquisition, an increase in conversion rate and reducing the rate of churn may be the options.

All of those options take a lot of work in terms of the time and energy required for their implementation.

Consider the amount of time and money to be invested to increase sales or reducing the rate of churn using strategies like PLG, also known as Product-led Growth (PLG) or more effective initiatives that improve the customer experience It can be an unwieldy and overwhelming process as illustrated using medium and large sized T-shirts.

Table with headers Strategy, Acquisition, and Churn, then rows labeled PLG, Customer Success, and Pricing and Packaging. Each cell includes a t-shirt of Small, Medium, or Large.

Every one of the large and medium t-shirts represents the work, time, as well as the money. the effort required to implement PLG and customer success strategies to improve customer retention and reduce the rate of churn.

However, making changes to pricing for products takes minimal effort and can be done very quickly, as signified by a t-shirt sporting an incredibly small size higher.

Like Patrick McKenzie points out, it's as easy as replacing the smaller number by an even larger number.

A screenshot of a tweet quoting Patrick McKenzie.

The final decision is to alter your prices could be the easiest, simplest option to make when you're in the situation to increase your revenue rapidly.

Optimizing your SaaS Pricing Strategy to Meet the new MRR requirements and. net revenue retention: Growing Mustache

If you're contemplating different pricing strategies, a different aspect to consider is if or not you'd like to optimize for the future MRR or net revenue retention or both.

Then there's"the "growth mustache."

A graphic of a sideways bracket with Growth at the top and New MRR and NRR at the bottom.

The"grow" mustache is a bracket that has an angled slant to the side that an ex-CFO from my past often was referring to. (I included the "mustache" designation, since it resembles a mustache for me.)

It is driven by the growth of the monthly recurring revenue (MRR) and new clients entering the market and net revenue retention (NRR) which is the amount of your current customers' MRR or ARR you're retaining or increasing.

In the event your NRR is greater than 100% it means that you will earn more income. The same is true for the worth of your business.

There is generally a leverage for operations with different pricing and packaging however, you must also be aware of the conditions where customers are placed could result in lesser money entering the retail store, and even more going out. What you do with the price of your product can affect your capacity to gain new customers, maintain and grow existing customers as also, so bear this in mind when you alter your prices.

Explore a new pricing model for SaaS that is Creative Combinations to increase the potential for revenue

Once you've decided that switching price plans would be the most effective choice, there's many ways that to test. Plans that charge per feature, with pay-as-you-go and freemium pricing models with flat rates versus usage-based pricing and per-user plans -- which is right for your SaaS enterprise?

There are several alternatives to take into consideration, and for instance:

  • SKUs:
  • Platform tiered plans
  • Product(s) tiered plans
  • Persona tiered plans
  • Single add-ons
  • Bundles of accessories
  • Entitlements:
  • Features
  • Use
  • Support
  • Pricing:
  • Price
  • Recurrence
  • Geography
  • The method of payment
  • Discounts
  • Free trials

Check out those possibilities for methods to increase the leverage you have in your operation.

Some customers may require creating a model based on personas that will yield an extra amount of the average amount of revenue per client (ARPU).

In the case of others, this means adding a new feature that will allow them to raise the price.

If you're unsure about the possibility of switching from a flat-rate structure or user-based pricing, towards an alternative built around characteristics or utilization.

Examine the effect of any Changes to Your SaaS Pricing Strategy.

If, for example, customers are able to see their base shrinking due to an increase in cost but the rest of them pay a greater price and earning higher overall certain companies may appreciate the new price point.

Make sure you are aware of modifications that will affect your business strategy. An established SaaS business may have different goals than one that is a brand new company will.

The word "success" is written using three S's

If we consider packaging and pricing, we couple our ability to generate more profits along with our capability to think of new ideas.

For instance, consider the For instance, consider the S curve, which is a curve that states: we develop something; it grows in acceptance; it then stalls. It's easy to get stuck in the idea that the only way to come up with a completely new source of revenue is to develop a brand new product.

After that, we stop thinking and look at how new earnings S curves might be created by modifying packages, plans, and additions and through providing customers with fresh ways to purchase from your company, as well as to utilize your services.

When we also take into account a measure of usage based on the value metric that includes overages, these plans and additions can boost ARPU with time.

SaaS Price and Packaging Accessories

They can also be an opportunity to boost the amount of revenue that users earn in both new and existing customers on an income-based budget because they have the option of choosing what products they want to buy from you instead of having to pay such as flat-rate prices for larger packages with a range of features they don't want or don't need.

In other words, do you have an existing set of entitlements you could offer as an add-on without having to create additional engineering tasks? Are there any of these capabilities that can be separated to form the new SKU but without having create a brand new product?

The add-ons available are in numerous varieties, so you can include a variety of accessories, or build bundles.

There is a risk that they pose - they can lower upgrade MRR in the event that fewer users upgrade to a bigger package. Accessories can play a major role in the NRR.

To minimize the possibility to minimize the risk, it is important to carefully consider the speed of your upgrade and upgrade before you start making changes to your add-ons and packages products.

However, you can hold off pitching other features up to the time that users have signed up to your main product. After they've used the item they purchased and have enjoyed itwhen they've made all their purchases are deemed to be upsells that can boost your sales retention rates You can pitch these add-ons that would further enhance users' experience using your product.

Customers are able to purchase the SaaS product at a reasonable price, allowing you to boost your MRR and ARPU with those revenue.

Also, a cheaper initial cost will also give you an edge when pursuing market share. This is especially true if you're able to lower the prices of your competitors by just an amount.

The creation of a new pricing level to drive Average Revenue per User (ARPU)

It's likely that the ARPU level you require exists between your existing plans?

If, for instance, you're using a tiered pricing model with a choice of $25, $150, and $300 choices, perhaps the ideal price level to generate more sales can be located somewhere in between the three of them, roughly 75 dollars.

Segmenting SaaS Plans can assist you to understand the Value of Your Product and increase ARPU

Another possibility is to split the packaging according to individual customer demands.

In this case, WP Engine is a managed WordPress platform which handles a range of kinds of sites, but they noticed the possibility of focusing on WooCommerce customers specifically, and so they created an application that was targeted at this particular audience.

A screenshot of the WP Engine pricing page for a segmented pricing plan for WooCommerce users.

It allowed them to emphasize the needs of their clients specifically in this segment, to draw their attention and also to encourage sign-ups. As time passed, WP Engine was able to increase the value of their product to the users who were using it and increase revenues from WP Engine.

The Payment Frequency increases leverage

The annualized pricing model offers buyers the benefit of saving money by committing to a calendar year in advance but it also gives customers the advantage of cutting down on the rate of churn as well as increasing the total value of a client's lifetime this is also known as LTV.

To further reap the benefits of this method to further leverage the strategy, you may give special discounts on annual fees to new subscribers, or for those who wish to move from monthly fees to annual rates.

Intro period pricing can also assist in the process of gaining acceptance to customers.

Tip When you offer the Enterprise plan and the cost begins to look a bit more expensive in the event of a payment every year make sure to keep the amount under $5000. Many procurement departments have a policy of requiring employees to obtain approval on purchases that are higher than this, and when you keep costs under the limit, it will be possible for customers to payment with a credit card, with no hassles within their organizations. Different rules may apply and aren't a rule, but it's a good idea to test.

It's not flat: Adjust Your Strategy

As you consider making changes to the way you handle your SaaS company's pricing policy and potential clients' desire to pay for your services isn't the only one issue to think about. Inflation rates can vary dramatically over a short duration. The rate of change can be different across every region or nation.

An inflation graph of the annual percent change in consumer price index in Brazil, US, India, Germany, and China from 2008 to 2022.

The financial headwinds that relate to different geographical areas can be a sign of the importance of localization when you are selling your Saas product internationally.

Eliminate unnecessary purchase tensions by implementing Localization

The process of localization generally includes a variety of elements that may comprise, but need not be limited to:

  • Accepting the preferred payments of the regions which you're selling your product into.
  • The cost is localized.
  • The currency is a local currency.

Each of them comes with each of them having each its own advantages, not only for the buyers but also your profit margin as well.

The conversion rate used for pricing localization is two times that in B2C SaaS firms. Make sure that you provide solid reasons for your various prices across various countries and regions should a prospective client comes across several pricing.

Local currency is easier to be approved for as well as people who are on the market to comprehend. When new customers see your SaaS prices in format they know and can comprehend, it's simpler for them to shop and removes the hassle of maths required to convert before they take a decision.

How Can help?

This article was presented recently by David Vogelpohl in a webinar hosted by Cumul.io. The presentation can be viewed in its origin on YouTube. YouTube channel.

David Vogelpohl For more than 25 years, David Vogelpohl has led teams building elite engines of development as well as applications for major brands such as WP Engine, Genesis, AWS, Cloudflare, and various other. David is a practical-insights presenter who focuses on practical strategies you can implement to boost expansion.

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