Perception-based pricing strategies for mobile services in customer marketing context

Abstract

Traditional pricing research has focused on analysing price setting procedures and cost or competition based pricing strategies. Customer- or perception-oriented pricing strategies have been left on little attention among business practitioners and academics. The need for development and investigation of these new pricing strategies has occurred after the emergence of new electronic and mobile services; traditional pricing strategies have resulted unsatisfactory results. With this study we have concentrated on elucidating the unobserved fields of perception-based pricing in mobile services business. The focal point of the study consists of analyses of the customers’ price perceptions of mobile services, and the analyses of the differences in the perceptions between the three predefined customer segments: mobile segment, combined segment, and fixed-line segment. Four latent customer-based factors were constructed which were expected to explain and predict the differences in the customers’ price perception levels: service satisfaction, price sensitivity, innovativeness, and investment readiness. And for providing practical solutions for pricing problems, the present study examined also the applicability of the bundle pricing strategy for mobile services. These analyses disclosed that customers in the each segment perceived mobile services to be rather expensive, though differences between and inside the segments were notable. Out of the four analysed factors especially customers’ innovativeness and the price sensitivity were accurate indicators of the customers’ price perception levels. Customers also seemed to prefer acquiring mobile services in bundles rather than separately, and a positive relationship between the customers’ bundle preferences and price perceptions were found

Munnukka on tutkinut havaitun hinnan mukaisten hinnoittelustrategioiden sovellettavuutta mobiilipalveluiden liiketoimintaan, jossa päähuomio on kohdistettu asiakkaiden hintakäsityksiin. Hän pyrki selvittämään, kuinka eri asiakasryhmät eroavat hintakäsitysten suhteen toisistaan sekä, kuinka hintakäsityksiin voitaisiin vaikuttaa hinnoittelumenetelmien avulla. Munnukka selvitti myös, kuinka tyytyväisyys operaattorin palveluihin, hintaherkkyys, innovatiivisuus ja investointivalmius selittävät asiakkaiden hintakäsitysten eroja. Lisäksi hän tutki pakettihinnoittelun sovellettavuutta mobiilipalveluihin.Selvittämällä asiakkaiden hintakäsitysten tason palveluiden tarjoajat voivat tehostaa toimintaansa tarjoamalla asiakkaille hinnoittelu- ja palveluvaihtoehtoja, jotka parhaiten vastaavat heidän tarpeitaan.