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Survey Reveals That B2B Companies Are Turning to Pricing Professionals and Enterprise Software to Increase Profitability

Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) January 23, 2008 -- In B2B companies around the globe, pricing practices are becoming a larger and more influential part of improving profitability, according to the 2007 Global B2B Pricing Benchmark Survey. Conducted by the Professional Pricing Society (http://www.pricingsociety.com/), the world?s largest association of pricing professionals, and Zilliant, the leading provider of price optimization (http://www.zilliant.com/price_optimization/zpps_price_optimization.html) and management software for B2B industries, the annual survey reveals trends in pricing practices and capabilities across industries and around the world. More than 500 pricing professionals participated in this year?s survey.

?The 2007 Global B2B Pricing Benchmark Survey confirms several trends we?ve observed over the last few years ? namely, that B2B pricing groups have become larger and more influential, have taken on more strategic responsibility, and as a result are investing in better processes, tools and capabilities,? said Eric Mitchell, president of the Professional Pricing Society.

The survey results establish a cross-industry benchmark on how B2B organizations approach pricing, the effectiveness of common processes and tools, and what initiatives drive improvement. The survey revealed the following:

1. Pricing and profitably go hand-in-hand: Most respondents (72%) cited ?improved profits/margins? as the principal driver of their pricing strategy, and a correspondingly high 82% cited a ?high? or ?very high? level of executive attention to the pricing function.

2. Advanced pricing techniques require more powerful software: Companies have increasingly adopted more sophisticated price setting methods such as price optimization (44%) and rules-based formulas (39%), though simplistic approaches like meet competition (50%), cost-plus (44%) and past experience (42%) remain prevalent. While price setting techniques have become more diverse and complex, the vast majority (70% of respondents) still rely on spreadsheets as their primary pricing tool. Not surprisingly, the companies that continue to depend on spreadsheets reported lower levels of overall pricing effectiveness compared with those running commercial pricing software (http://www.zilliant.com/index.html).

3. Pricing improvement initiatives are widespread: Very few respondents (6%) describe their current pricing processes and tools as ?very effective,? explaining why 73% have active price improvement initiatives under way and almost half (48%) are currently considering, evaluating, or deploying price management software.

4. Better decision-making is the goal: The majority of companies surveyed (72%) see ?better decision making? as the primary benefit of price management software ? not ?process efficiency gains? (34%).

"Price is one of the most effective levers for immediately improving profitability,? said Andy Dvorocsik, vice president of pricing excellence at Zilliant. "Our survey confirms that the ever-increasing focus on the pricing discipline is driving widespread adoption of sophisticated pricing software tools like price optimization to take full advantage of the opportunity to maximize margins.?

For more information about the survey and its results, please join the Professional Pricing Society and Zilliant for a webinar, ?Challenges, Practices, and Trends in B2B Pricing: Results of PPS/Zilliant Global B2B Pricing Benchmark Survey?, on January 24, 2008 at 12:00PM EST. To register, please visit www.pricingsociety.com/webinars.

About Professional Pricing Society

Founded in 1984, the Professional Pricing Society serves thousands of members, representing leading industries all over the world. The Society?s mission is to nurture a growing community of professionals committed to disseminating pricing expertise throughout the business world. PPS produces three annual conferences in Europe and North America and offers certification with its Certified Pricing Professional (CPP) program. Publications distributed to members include an eight-page monthly newsletter and a 36-page quarterly journal. Further, the PPS website (www.pricingsociety.com) is a central resource for state-of-the-art pricing knowledge and hosts a job site where professionals can post or review new opportunities in the industry. For more information visit www.pricingsociety.com.

About Zilliant

Zilliant is the leading provider of price optimization and price management applications for manufacturing, distribution, high-tech, and industrial service companies. Zilliant Precision Pricing Suite (ZPPS) uses existing transactional data to improve decisions across all facets of price analysis, setting and execution. ZPPS applications combine powerful price segmentation and optimization science with easy-to-use business applications to help companies achieve the best pricing possible on every deal, increasing profits by tens of millions of dollars. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Zilliant is a privately held company. Investors include Austin Ventures, Cardinal Ventures, JP Morgan Partners, SMH Capital and Trellis Partners. For more information contact Zilliant at 877.893.1085 or visit www.zilliant.com.

Media Contacts:

Erica Stephens

For Professional Pricing Society

770-429-1958

Lori Piening

Zilliant

512-531-8530

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