Stats
Actions
Tags
From gtm-skills
Guides pricing decisions, tier structure, packaging, and monetization strategy for SaaS products. Covers value-based pricing, pricing research, discount frameworks, and pricing experiments.
How this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/gtm-skills:pricing-strategyThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
Read bootstrap context before asking questions: `strategy/brand.md` for brand, audience, offer, channels, tools, constraints, and metrics; `about/me.md` for personal voice; `content/ideas.md` and `content/calendar.md` for content planning. Use legacy product-marketing context files only as fallback. Save generated drafts to `content/<platform>/drafts/YYYY-MM-DD_short-topic-slug.md`, and route d...
Read bootstrap context before asking questions: strategy/brand.md for brand, audience, offer, channels, tools, constraints, and metrics; about/me.md for personal voice; content/ideas.md and content/calendar.md for content planning. Use legacy product-marketing context files only as fallback. Save generated drafts to content/<platform>/drafts/YYYY-MM-DD_short-topic-slug.md, and route durable learnings back to strategy/brand.md, about/me.md, or content/ideas.md.
This skill is self-contained for its frontmatter scope: use its local instructions, references, scripts, and assets as the playbook; ask only for missing task-specific inputs; hand off to adjacent skills instead of expanding scope; and return an actionable artifact, decision, plan, draft, or diagnostic.
Expert guidance on SaaS pricing, value metrics, tier structure, pricing research, and monetization.
Gather: product type, target market (SMB/mid-market/enterprise), GTM motion (self-serve/sales-led/hybrid), primary value delivered, competitive pricing, current conversion rate and ARPU, pricing goals (growth vs. revenue vs. profitability).
Three axes: Packaging (what's in each tier) + Value metric (what you charge for) + Price point (the amount).
Core principle: 1% improvement in pricing = 11% improvement in profit (McKinsey). Price to value, not cost.
Value-based pricing: Price between the next best alternative and perceived value. Cost is a floor, not a basis.
Perceived value of your solution: $1,000
Your price: $500 ← capture value here
Next best alternative: $300 ← your floor
Your cost to serve: $50
Value calculation template:
Time savings: [hours/week × hourly rate × 52]
Revenue impact: [additional deals × deal value × 12]
Cost avoidance: [errors prevented × cost per error × 12]
Total annual value: $____
Suggested price: $[10% of value] – $[20% of value] / year
| Model | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Flat Rate ($99/mo, unlimited) | Simple to sell | Leaves money on table |
| Tiered (Starter/Pro/Business) | Captures segments, clear upsell | Anchor pricing matters |
| Usage-Based ($0.01/call) | Perfect value alignment, low barrier | Unpredictable revenue |
| Hybrid ($49/mo + $0.50/extra user) | Predictable base + scales | More complex to explain |
The value metric is what you charge for — it should scale with the value customers receive.
| Metric | Best For | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Per user/seat | Collaboration tools | Slack, Notion |
| Per usage/consumption | Variable workloads | AWS, Twilio |
| Per contact/record | CRM, email tools | Mailchimp, HubSpot |
| Per transaction | Payments, marketplaces | Stripe, Shopify |
| Flat fee | Simple, bounded products | Basecamp |
| Revenue share | High-value outcome tools | Affiliate platforms |
Choosing your metric: Analyze which usage patterns predict retention and expansion in your highest-LTV customers. If "more of X = more value," X is your metric.
Ask 100–300 respondents four questions:
Key intersections:
Acceptable range: PMC → PME. Optimal zone: OPP → IDP.
Show sets of 4–5 features; ask "most important" and "least important." Results rank features by utility score:
| Utility | Packaging Decision |
|---|---|
| Top 20% | Include in all tiers (table stakes) |
| 20–50% | Use to differentiate tiers |
| 50–80% | Higher tiers only |
| Bottom 20% | Cut or premium add-on |
The Rule of 3: Starter (50–60% of customers) → Pro/sweet spot (30–40%) → Business/Enterprise (5–10%).
Anchor pricing: Middle tier 3–4× starter price; top tier 2–3× middle. This makes the middle tier the obvious choice.
Starter: $29/mo — core features, 5 users, email support
Pro: $99/mo — everything + integrations, 20 users, priority support ← Most Popular
Business: $299/mo — everything + SSO, unlimited users, dedicated support
| Tier | Purpose | Price | Target |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good (Starter) | Remove barriers to entry | Low, accessible | Small teams, trial converts |
| Better (Pro) | Where most customers land | Anchor price | Growing teams |
| Best (Business) | Capture high-value customers | 2–3× Better | Larger teams, power users |
What to gate:
Never gate: core functionality, security features, data export.
| Freemium | Free Trial | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | PLG, wide top of funnel | Sales-led, high-ACV |
| Conversion | 2–5% free → paid | 15–25% trial → paid |
| Risk | Free riders, support cost | Shorter window to prove value |
| Use when | Network effects, viral growth | Complex product needing onboarding |
What to A/B test: Price points, tier packaging, billing frequency, free trial length, anchor tier.
Sample sizes: ~1,000 visitors/variant to detect 10% change; ~5,000 for 5% change.
Metrics to track: Conversion (trial → paid), ARPU, CAC, LTV, payback period.
Price increases: Raise every 12–18 months as you add value. Communicate 30+ days in advance. Grandfather existing customers for 12 months or offer annual lock-in at current price.
Upsell triggers:
Add-ons (use when a feature has standalone value not everyone needs):
Base plan: $99/mo
+ Extra users: $10/user/mo
+ Advanced analytics: $49/mo
+ White label: $99/mo
+ Priority support: $199/mo
| Segment | Price Point | Sales Motion | Decision Maker | Sales Cycle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SMB | $29–99/mo | Self-serve | End user/team lead | Minutes–days |
| Mid-Market | $99–999/mo | Self-serve + light touch | Dept head | Days–weeks |
| Enterprise | $1,000+/mo | High-touch sales | VP/C-level | Weeks–months |
| Metric | Healthy Benchmark |
|---|---|
| Trial → Paid conversion | >15% |
| MRR Growth (early stage) | >10%/month |
| Churn Rate | <5%/mo (SMB), <1%/mo (enterprise) |
| LTV:CAC | >3:1 |
| Payback Period | <12 months |
| Net Revenue Retention | >100% |
| Type | Trigger | Range |
|---|---|---|
| Volume | Commitment to scale | 10–30% |
| Term | Annual commitment | 15–25% (2 months free) |
| Competitive | Switching from competitor | 20–40% |
| Strategic | Reference customer / logo value | Up to 50% |
Never discount when: customer hasn't articulated value, no competitive pressure, early in negotiation, or deal doesn't meet minimum size.
Alternatives to discounting: extended payment terms, additional services/training, extended trial, success milestone unlocks, multi-year lock-in.
Launching pricing:
Optimizing pricing:
Deep-dive on pricing models, discount structures, and services pricing: see references/pricing.md
npx claudepluginhub manojbajaj95/claude-gtm-plugin --plugin gtm-skillsHelps design SaaS pricing and monetization strategy, including packaging, value metrics, and price points. Useful when figuring out what to charge or how to structure plans.
Guides SaaS pricing and monetization strategy with value-based pricing, packaging, tiers, metrics, and competitive analysis using gathered business context.
Helps design SaaS pricing, packaging, and monetization strategy using value-based pricing frameworks. Use when figuring out pricing tiers, value metrics, price points, or freemium/free trial decisions.