--- name: suede-pricing description: "Suede-owned pricing and packaging discipline. Use when deciding what to charge, structuring tiers, choosing a value metric, comparing free trials with freemium, researching willingness to pay, or planning a price increase. NOT FOR: in-product upgrade screens (use suede-paywalls), offer bonuses and guarantees (use suede-offers), or executing billing changes." metadata: version: 2.0.1 --- # Suede Pricing & Packaging Suede Pricing turns verified product economics, buyer evidence, and commercial constraints into testable prices, value metrics, tiers, and migration plans. It produces a decision brief and measurement plan while keeping billing changes behind explicit approval. ## Before Starting **Check for product marketing context first:** If `.agents/product-marketing.md` exists (or `.claude/product-marketing.md`, or the legacy `product-marketing-context.md` filename, in older setups), read it before asking questions. Use that context and only ask for information not already covered or specific to this task. Gather this context (ask if not provided): ### 1. Business Context - What type of product? (SaaS, marketplace, e-commerce, service) - What's your current pricing (if any)? - What's your target market? (SMB, mid-market, enterprise) - What's your go-to-market motion? (self-serve, sales-led, hybrid) ### 2. Value & Competition - What's the primary value you deliver? - What alternatives do customers consider? - How do competitors price? ### 3. Current Performance - What's your current conversion rate? - What's your ARPU and churn rate? - Any feedback on pricing from customers/prospects? ### 4. Goals - Optimizing for growth, revenue, or profitability? - Moving upmarket or expanding downmarket? --- ## Pricing Fundamentals ### The Three Pricing Axes **1. Packaging** — What's included at each tier? - Features, limits, support level - How tiers differ from each other **2. Pricing Metric** — What do you charge for? - Per user, per usage, flat fee - How price scales with value **3. Price Point** — How much do you charge? - The actual dollar amounts - Perceived value vs. cost ### Value-Based Pricing Price should be based on value delivered, not cost to serve: - **Customer's perceived value** — The ceiling - **Your price** — Between alternatives and perceived value - **Next best alternative** — The floor for differentiation - **Your cost to serve** — Only a baseline, not the basis **Key insight:** Price between the next best alternative and perceived value. --- ## Value Metrics ### What is a Value Metric? The value metric is what you charge for—it should scale with the value customers receive. **Good value metrics:** - Align price with value delivered - Are easy to understand - Scale as customer grows - Are hard to game ### Common Value Metrics | Metric | Best For | Example | |--------|----------|---------| | Per user/seat | Collaboration tools | Slack, Notion | | Per usage | Variable consumption | AWS, Twilio | | Per feature | Modular products | HubSpot add-ons | | Per contact/record | CRM, email tools | Mailchimp | | Per transaction | Payments, marketplaces | Stripe | | Flat fee | Simple products | Basecamp | ### Choosing Your Value Metric Ask: "As a customer uses more of [metric], do they get more value?" - If yes → good value metric - If no → price doesn't align with value --- ## Tier Structure Overview ### Good-Better-Best Framework **Good tier (Entry):** Core features, limited usage, low price **Better tier (Recommended):** Full features, reasonable limits, anchor price **Best tier (Premium):** Everything, advanced features, 2-3x Better price ### Tier Differentiation - **Feature gating** — Basic vs. advanced features - **Usage limits** — Same features, different limits - **Support level** — Email → Priority → Dedicated - **Access** — API, SSO, custom branding **For detailed tier structures and persona-based packaging**: See [references/tier-structure.md](references/tier-structure.md) --- ## Pricing Research ### Van Westendorp Method Four questions that identify acceptable price range: 1. Too expensive (wouldn't consider) 2. Too cheap (question quality) 3. Expensive but might consider 4. A bargain Analyze intersections to find optimal pricing zone. ### MaxDiff Analysis Identifies which features customers value most: - Show sets of features - Ask: Most important? Least important? - Results inform tier packaging **For detailed research methods**: See [references/research-methods.md](references/research-methods.md) --- ## When to Raise Prices ### Signs It's Time **Market signals:** - Competitors have raised prices - Prospects don't flinch at price - "It's so cheap!" feedback **Business signals:** - Very high conversion rates (>40%) - Very low churn (<3% monthly) - Strong unit economics **Product signals:** - Significant value added since last pricing - Product more mature/stable ### Price Increase Strategies 1. **Grandfather existing** — New price for new customers only 2. **Delayed increase** — Announce 3-6 months out 3. **Tied to value** — Raise price but add features 4. **Plan restructure** — Change plans entirely --- ## Pricing Page Best Practices ### Above the Fold - Clear tier comparison table - Recommended tier highlighted - Monthly/annual toggle - Primary CTA for each tier ### Common Elements - Feature comparison table - Who each tier is for - FAQ section - Annual discount callout (17-20%) - Money-back guarantee - Customer logos/trust signals ### Pricing Psychology - **Anchoring:** Show higher-priced option first - **Decoy effect:** Middle tier should be best value - **Charm pricing:** $49 vs. $50 (for value-focused) - **Round pricing:** $50 vs. $49 (for premium) --- ## Pricing Checklist ### Before Setting Prices - [ ] Defined target customer personas - [ ] Researched competitor pricing - [ ] Identified your value metric - [ ] Conducted willingness-to-pay research - [ ] Mapped features to tiers ### Pricing Structure - [ ] Chosen number of tiers - [ ] Differentiated tiers clearly - [ ] Set price points based on research - [ ] Created annual discount strategy - [ ] Planned enterprise/custom tier --- ## Task-Specific Questions 1. What pricing research have you done? 2. What's your current ARPU and conversion rate? 3. What's your primary value metric? 4. Who are your main pricing personas? 5. Are you self-serve, sales-led, or hybrid? 6. What pricing changes are you considering? --- ## Boundaries - Do not create or change billing products, prices, subscriptions, or customer migrations without verified live state, a maximum-cost check, and explicit approval. - Do not present willingness-to-pay, conversion, churn, or revenue impact as measured unless current research or product data supports it. - Do not publish pricing copy, choose grandfathering policy, or commit the business to a price; return a recommendation, assumptions, and validation plan for the user to decide. ## Routing - Use `suede-paywalls` for in-product upgrade and paywall experiences. - Use `suede-offers` for bonuses, guarantees, and offer framing. - Use `suede-ab-testing` to validate pricing-page or packaging hypotheses. - Use `suede-revops` for approved deal-desk and pipeline implementation.