By mbretous@hubspot.com (Martina Bretous)

Inflation has been a big topic of conversation in recent months, with the cost of just about everything going up. From gas to groceries to household goods.

As a result, many companies are notifying customers of price increases. If that sounds like your company, keep reading to learn how to address price changes and key things to avoid.

How to Address Price Changes

1. Be truthful.

A 2022 survey by Gartner revealed that nearly 40% of consumers want detailed and honest explanations for price hikes.

Specifically, they want clarity – no jargon, blame, or redirection.

In recent years, consumers have asked for more transparency from brands. Back in 2017, a report by Nosto (formerly Stackla) revealed that authenticity is one of the main factors impacting consumers’ purchasing decisions.

This authenticity builds trust, which is key to maintaining customer loyalty. In fact, a 2022 Edelman report shows that trust ranks above product quality, convenience, and reputation. Brand trust is even more important than consumers’ interest in the product.

With this in mind, being truthful about the reasons for the price changes is key in preserve that delicate customer relationship.

2. Share proactive steps to manage pricing.

In the same Gartner study, respondents revealed that they want brands to share the practical steps they’re taking to minimize the pressure on customers and avoid future price hikes.

This can look like reexamining packaging strategies, adjusting to smaller profit margins, and offering more sales and discounts.

According to the study, nearly 40% believe companies should be absorbing some or all of the inflation-induced costs instead of passing them to customers through price increases.

The more active the company seems in remedying this situation, the more loyal customers will be.

3. Personalize your message.

Receiving notification of a price increase is difficult news to get. Brands should soften that delivery by personalizing their message.

This means no mass email. Instead, send an email to each customer that addresses them by name. For both small and large businesses, this is easy to accomplish using personalization tokens available on email marketing platforms.

Another way to personalize this message is by making the sender a representative from the company, instead of a generic email address like “info@yourcompany.com.”

Seeing a message signed by the CEO or someone from the executive team will add a personal touch that shows care to the customers.

4. Notify as early as possible.

The earlier you can notify your customers of a price increase, the better.

Think about it from this perspective: If you were renting a home, how would you feel knowing that in a couple of days, your rent was going up? That would probably be jarring and make you question renewing your lease.

A general rule of thumb is to notify them at least one month in advance. This way, they can take advantage of current prices or make the proper adjustments.

However, how early you notify your customers will vary greatly on the type of …read more

Source:: HubSpot Blog

Author: Aaron