#106: SaaS Pricing Expert Shares Useful Strategies for Practical Founders – Dan Balcauski

Dan Balcauski is the founder and principal consultant of Product Tranquility, a SaaS pricing consultancy. Dan shares the core building blocks of SaaS pricing, including customer segments, value, competition, and positioning strategy. Dan also describes the common mistakes in pricing and the importance of having structured pricing conversations with customers.

In this expert interview, Dan shares his perspectives on key SaaS pricing challenges:

• Why CEOs need to be involved in pricing decisions as pricing and packaging affect everyone in the organization.
• How understanding customer segments, value drivers, competitive alternatives, and differentiation are key building blocks of SaaS pricing.
• Why choosing the right pricing metric and offer configurations can help target multiple customer segments.
• Why having pricing conversations with customers can provide valuable insights into their perception of value and willingness to pay.
• How pricing plays a role in positioning and branding.
• How AI is impacting pricing strategies in the SaaS industry.

Quote from Dan Balcauski, Principal at Product Tranquility

“One of the healthiest ways to think about pricing is that price is a thing, but pricing is a process. Like any other process in your company, it probably will have a process owner and some sort of document to describe it.

“Your first pricing iteration is probably not going to be your best iteration. You’ll keep improving it. You don’t prevent your team from answering customer support tickets until you have the perfect customer support process. It’s the same with your pricing.

“You’re going to make mistakes. Those mistakes will be way less fatal than you imagine they will be in your head. But as long as you’re committed to improving that process over time, you’re going to start moving in the right direction.”