Posts by: Tim J. Smith, PhD
Imagine, your executive just read an article that said she can expect at least a 1% improvement in her bottom line profit if she introduces a pricing initiative. Now, she wants to know what steps you will follow to create a new pricing function with the goals of implementing value based pricing and stopping margin leakage. What resources do you need to be successful and where do you focus first?
MoreThe Wall Street Journal has reported that Proctor & Gamble Co.’s new CEO, Robert McDonald, is “slashing prices” and warns of an impending price war in the branded consumer packaged good (CPG) industry. Yet, Mr. McDonald states, “In my mind there’s not a price war going on.” Is the Wall Street Journal guilty of hyperbole or is Mr. McDonald blithe to the profit destruction of price cuts?
MoreJim Berger’s latest (9th) intellectual property survey article (July, 2010 Intellectual Property Today) focuses on a newly developed hybrid telephone/Internet survey technique.…
More“Grilling, broiling, barbecuing – whatever you want to call it – is an art, not just a matter of building a pyre…
MoreHow much is a brand worth? For Rick Norsigian, a garage sale hunter and public school building painter, it represents the difference between a $45 set of nice glass negative plates and a rare $200 MM find of Ansel Adams’ art.
MoreHow much is a brand worth? For Whole Foods, a premium grocer, it represents the difference between a $3.49 canister of Quaker Oats rolled oats and $2.99 canister of 365 store brand oats.
More“What business are you in?” Theodore Levitt, 1925-2006. First to market doesn’t make you the winner, the best offering does. A growing…
MoreThe classic product lifecycle theory predicts that prices fall as competitors enter. Well, do all prices fall? Similarly, many pundits like to talk about first-mover advantage. Well, does it really exist?
An examination of e-reader market demonstrates some serious flaws in a cursory acceptance of these premises. In this article, we look at the price and product evolution of the Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, Barnes & Noble Nook, and Apple iPad to demonstrate some finer nuances of the product lifecycle.
More“All I Really Need to Know I learned in Kindergarten.” Robert Fulghum “Say you’re sorry when you hurt someone.” Toyota should have…
MoreGoing into the great recession, many commentators suggested and corporations undertook across the board price cuts. Many, but not all. Nordstrom took a different route. The results of their approach are in: better customer attraction, better profits, better post-recession positioning.
In this article, we will examine some key strategic decisions made by Nordstrom which enabled their counter-trend approach to triumph over the oft quoted “best practices”.
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