Priceless Pricing

Listening to Jazz feels like time well spent, despite a limited understanding of this beautiful American art-form. John Coltrane and Miles Davis are especially close to heart given their affection for India's native music that also influenced how they played. Miles is recognized for paying attention to the 'space between the notes' as noted in this blog:


"Among Miles’ trademarks was his emphasis on the space between the notes as much as the notes themselves.  Silence was key to his music.  He was so cool he didn’t feel the need to jam up every measure with noise.  Sometimes it’s better to just stand there and not do something."

It is well known that silence is an important tool in the hands of an expert stand-up comedian or a novelist. In the world of ORMS, optimally scheduling working hours for airline crews is really about paying close attention to their silent periods of rest. In the world of pricing optimization, it is imperative to recognize that a customer always values something else in the product in addition to price. To usefully optimize price, we must accurately identify its priceless attributes.

Update: January 11, 2013
Richard Marcus, former CEO of Neiman Marcus:  “Price is important, but quality is remembered long after price is forgotten, as are qualities of uniqueness and originality.”

Update: February 06, 2013
Competing beyond price to maximize customer loyalty: "...“Attractive prices are an effective means to get people in the door, but it’s not enough to maintain loyalty, drive future purchases, and generate customer recommendations..."

Update: May 30, 2013
Price Perception: " ....it’s not about price, it’s about what am I getting for that price"