If You’re Going to Raise Prices, Tell Customers Why如果想漲價，原因須說明

烏特帕·M.多拉奇亞　劉妍/譯

Covid restrictions are lifting in some parts of the world and the economy is booming in some sectors. Some labor and material costs are rising due to shortages， as is customer demand. Many brands have high pricing power at the moment， making price hikes almost inevitable. Brand managers may be clued in on the size of their price increase， but its no easy matter to communicate this unwelcome news to customers.

世界一些地區(qū)的新冠限制政策正在解除，某些行業(yè)的經(jīng)濟(jì)也蒸蒸日上。與此同時，一些勞動力和材料因短缺而成本上升，客戶需求也呈現(xiàn)出同樣趨勢。目前，不少品牌擁有很高的定價權(quán)，于是漲價便幾乎勢所難免。品牌經(jīng)理們可能清楚其價格的漲幅，但要把這個不受歡迎的消息傳遞給消費(fèi)者卻實屬不易。

Many companies， and even entire industries， routinely raise prices without ever telling customers. In the consumer packaged goods space， for instance， it is common practice to reduce quantity （the grammage of a package， item count， etc.） and maintain the price. This increases the per-unit amount paid by shoppers but keeps the more visible package price unchanged. Alternatively， brands may cut down on trade promotions， couponing， and other forms of discounting， raising prices indirectly. For instance， when faced with a shortage and soaring prices for chicken， KFC recently removed in-store promotions for its crowd-pleasing $30 fill-up bucket.

很多企業(yè)，甚至整個行業(yè)，往往會在未告知消費(fèi)者的情況下抬高價格。比如，在包裝消費(fèi)品領(lǐng)域，減量（包裝克重、商品數(shù)量等）不減價已成常規(guī)。這種做法使消費(fèi)者支付的單位金額增加了，而更為顯性的一攬子價格卻維持原狀。另外，品牌可能會通過減少促銷、優(yōu)惠或其他折扣，間接實現(xiàn)商品提價。比如，面對雞肉短缺和價格飆升，肯德基近期取消了店內(nèi)促銷，推出了迎合大眾的30美元套餐桶。

However， these below-the-radar options are unavailable for products sold with subscriptions， leases， or contracts. In these cases， the manager must communicate to customers that prices have increased before the next billing cycle. This task is mined with pitfalls. When performed poorly， the news can lead to undesirable outcomes like customer complaints， social media outrage， and even worse， having to walk back the price increase， or losing customers altogether.

然而，這些悄摸摸的方式并不適用于那些通過訂購、租借或者合約來交易的產(chǎn)品。此種情形下，品牌經(jīng)理必須在下一個計費(fèi)周期開始之前告知消費(fèi)者商品價格已經(jīng)上調(diào)。這項工作往往埋藏著一些隱患，處理不當(dāng)就會帶來不良后果，招來諸如消費(fèi)者投訴、社交媒體狂噴，甚至更糟糕的是，企業(yè)不得不撤回之前的漲價，或者徹底失去消費(fèi)者。

To avoid such fiascos and to blunt customer resentment， here are three actions that managers should take when communicating a price increase. They are backed by evidence found in academic research and my own experiences working with companies.

為了避免如此潰敗和緩和消費(fèi)者的憤懣，經(jīng)理們在與消費(fèi)者溝通漲價事宜時可采取以下三種方式。這些建議既有學(xué)術(shù)研究成果支持，也是我自己在與企業(yè)共事過程中得出的經(jīng)驗之談。

Call the action a price increase， not a price adjustment， a price change， or another euphemism.

直截了當(dāng)承認(rèn)漲價，而不是采用調(diào)價、改價或其他婉約之辭。

In emails and letters to customers， well-loved brands such as Netflix， Microsoft， Sling， and YouTube TV have all referred to a price increase as “updating price” or “adjusting price” in the past. This is common practice because managers are naturally reluctant to tell customers they are raising prices. While this may seem like a small thing， euphemistic messaging can cause serious harm， fraying the relationship with loyal customers. Decades worth of consumer psychology research has consistently found that attempts to obfuscate bad news rarely pay off for brands. Customers know that brands are trying to influence their opinions and behavior and appreciate it when they use helpful， transparent， and informative influence methods.

許多廣受歡迎的品牌，比如奈飛、微軟、Sling和優(yōu)兔影視，以往在發(fā)送給消費(fèi)者的電郵和信函中都稱漲價為“價格更新”或者“價格調(diào)整”。這種做法很常見，因為經(jīng)理們自然不愿意明晃晃告訴客戶產(chǎn)品漲價了。這么做看起來似乎無傷大雅，但其實這種含糊其辭的做法很可能招致嚴(yán)重后果，一舉摧毀品牌與忠實客戶的關(guān)系。消費(fèi)者心理研究數(shù)十年來的相關(guān)成果都發(fā)現(xiàn)，有意模糊化壞消息的行為幾乎不能為品牌贏得什么收益。消費(fèi)者深知品牌方總是想方設(shè)法來影響他們的想法和行為，他們其實樂意接受對方所采取的有益、透明且能提供有效信息的切實措施。

Authenticity and honesty matter to customers， especially for bad news. When a brand uses a euphemism to convey a price increase， it does not distract customers or dilute the negative impact of the news， as managers may believe. Instead， it arouses suspicion， making recipients more vigilant and critical of the information contained in the announcement. Some customers may interpret the euphemistic phrasing as talking down to them. It may stoke indignation in others， leading to venting on social media and the potential to snowball into widespread anger. Even customers who are on the brands side may feel that they are being deceived or patronized. Where communicating price increases， it is best to call a spade a spade.

消費(fèi)者看重真實和誠信，尤其在面對壞消息時。企業(yè)關(guān)于漲價的委婉說辭并不能如經(jīng)理們所愿轉(zhuǎn)移消費(fèi)者的注意力或沖淡該類信息的負(fù)面影響。如是做法反倒會引起消費(fèi)者猜忌，使他們對企業(yè)公告中所包含的信息更為警覺和挑剔。一些消費(fèi)者可能會將這種婉轉(zhuǎn)措辭視為居高臨下的言論。其他消費(fèi)者也可能會因此感到忿忿，蜂擁至社交媒體上宣泄，這種不滿還會像滾雪球一樣膨脹為廣泛的憤怒。即便品牌的忠粉也可能感到自己被欺騙或怠慢。所以，在告知消費(fèi)者價格上漲時，最好的做法就是直言不諱。

Explain the reasons for the price increase clearly.

解釋清楚漲價原因。

When it comes to communicating a price increase， many otherwise confident managers become reticent and shaky. They see this as an unpleasant task to be gotten over with a minimum of fuss and attention—and detail. Consider this announcement from a major software company：

很多原本自信的品牌經(jīng)理一談到漲價事宜就變得沉默寡言、惴惴不安。他們認(rèn)為這是項不討喜的任務(wù)，想盡可能低調(diào)、粗略地處理。比如某大型軟件公司發(fā)布的告示是這樣的：

“[Brand] periodically assesses its pricing to ensure reasonable alignment with the needs of customers， partners， and the marketplace， and may make changes in response to that assessment and feedback. Effective [date]， the annual price of [the product] will change from [$X to $Y].”

“（品牌）會定期評估自身定價以確保客戶、合作伙伴和市場三者需求的合理協(xié)調(diào)，并根據(jù)評估和反饋的結(jié)果做出調(diào)整。（產(chǎn)品的）年度價格將從（X美元）調(diào)整為（Y美元），自（具體日期）起生效?！?/p>

For years， the company has used the same cookie-cutter explanation to communicate price increases of different products it sells in markets around the world. At best， the brief explanation is baffling. At worst， it will alienate customers. Another problem with the message： using the third person instead of “we，” reinforcing the lack of empathy conveyed by the rest of the announcement.

多年來，該公司一直用相同的陳詞向全球消費(fèi)者傳達(dá)其不同產(chǎn)品價格上漲的信息。最好的情況是，這則簡短的公告只是引起困惑；最糟的是，會疏遠(yuǎn)消費(fèi)者。它的另一個問題是：主語用的是第三人稱而不是“我們”，這凸顯出公告其余內(nèi)容缺乏同理心。

Research shows that after the size of the price increase， the perceived fairness of the motive for it is the second-biggest driver of how customers react. The prospect of inflation， widespread shortages， rising input costs， and the return to normalcy after the pandemic are on everyones mind these days. Under such circumstances， when customers receive word that the brands price is increasing， it simply confirms what theyve been expecting. It is worth making the effort to craft a short and forthright explanation for why the brand is raising prices.

有研究表明，企業(yè)漲價動機(jī)的公平感是影響消費(fèi)者做出反應(yīng)的第二大因素，僅次于漲價幅度。當(dāng)前人人都在考慮通貨膨脹、普遍短缺、投入成本上升和疫情后恢復(fù)常態(tài)的前景。如此環(huán)境下，當(dāng)消費(fèi)者獲得品牌價格上漲的信息時，也只是證實了他們一直以來的預(yù)期。所以，花些工夫針對品牌漲價的原因做一個簡短又坦誠的解釋很有必要。

Link the price increase to a customer-centric value narrative.

將價格上漲與以消費(fèi)者為中心的價值敘事聯(lián)系起來。

The most effective price increase communications are customer-centric. They provide a value narrative—a vivid and compelling story for why the price is being increased that focuses on customer value. As an example， when United Airlines raised prices of its United Club membership， the company provided this explanation：

與消費(fèi)者溝通漲價事宜最有效的就是以消費(fèi)者為中心進(jìn)行溝通。這樣的溝通會提供一種價值敘事——用一個生動又吸引人的故事來解釋漲價原因，強(qiáng)調(diào)對消費(fèi)者的重視。比如，美聯(lián)航在抬高其貴賓室會員價格時做出了如下說明：

To provide a more productive and relaxing experience， were investing more than $100 million in renovating existing locations and building new spaces with expanded seating areas， more power outlets and upgraded Wi-Fi. Were also investing in a brand new complimentary food menu that you can now find at most of our hub locations across the U.S. and will be available soon at the rest of our locations.

為了提供更加高效、輕松的用戶體驗，我公司投資超過1億美元翻新現(xiàn)有場所并建造新空間，用戶將會擁有更大的座位區(qū)域、更多電源插頭和升級的無線網(wǎng)絡(luò)。我們還制定了一份全新的免費(fèi)食單，各位現(xiàn)在可在全美大多數(shù)美聯(lián)航貴賓中心享用到這些食品，其余的貴賓中心也會很快落實。

This explanation tells United Club members that prices are increasing to give them more benefits theyve been asking for. A compelling value narrative establishes the sequence of actions for the price increase. It starts with customer feedback， then leads to identifying unmet needs， followed by a significant investment by the brand， which results in new features， and finally culminates in the delivery of benefits that customers value.

這則公告向美聯(lián)航貴賓室會員解釋，漲價是為了給他們提供更多他們所一直要求的利益。一項令人信服的價值敘事可確立品牌為實現(xiàn)提價而采取的系列行動順序：由獲取消費(fèi)者反饋開始，然后確認(rèn)尚未滿足的消費(fèi)者需求，接著進(jìn)行重大投資來打造新亮點(diǎn)，最后讓消費(fèi)者獲得其看重的利益。

As the United Airlines communication illustrates， the value narrative is concise—only a few sentences long. But it provides a credible explanation for the price increase that resonates with core customers. Most importantly， it places the customer at the center of the price increase story， linking the price increase to substantial added customer value. A well-crafted value narrative conveys to customers that the brand has undertaken the effort to understand how its customers derive value and factored this knowledge into the pricing process.

正如美聯(lián)航的公告所展示的，價值敘事貴在簡潔——幾句話足矣。但它可為品牌提價提供可信的理由，從而在核心客戶群中產(chǎn)生共鳴。最重要的一點(diǎn)是，這個提價敘述要以消費(fèi)者為中心展開，將漲價與大幅增加消費(fèi)者價值關(guān)聯(lián)起來。精心策劃的價值敘事向消費(fèi)者傳達(dá)的信息是，品牌已全力以赴了解消費(fèi)者如何獲取價值，并將這一信息納入定價過程。

A value narrative can be effective even when the price increase is predominantly due to an increase in input costs. In such cases， tell customers that the brand can only continue to provide the current level of benefits if it raises the price， and is choosing to do so rather than degrade the products quality is a powerful argument. It reinforces the brands values to the customer. Such a value narrative works in the same way as the renewal of wedding vows， as an opportunity to remind customers why they started the relationship with the brand in the first place.

即便價格上漲主要是基于投入成本增加的因素，價值敘事也依然能行之有效。在此情況下，告知消費(fèi)者，品牌只有提高價格才能提供當(dāng)前水準(zhǔn)的各種福利，選擇直言提價而非降低產(chǎn)品品質(zhì)，才具有強(qiáng)大的說服力。它向消費(fèi)者強(qiáng)化了品牌價值。這樣的價值敘事與重溫婚禮誓言有異曲同工之妙，企業(yè)可趁此機(jī)會提醒消費(fèi)者最初緣何同該品牌牽手。

The crux is that managers should approach the unpleasant task of communicating a price increase to customers with the same degree of sincerity， attention to detail， and customer focus that they bring to other brand-building projects like introducing new features or extending product lines. Such effort will be rewarded with a price increase that sticks and customers that feel like valued partners of an authentic brand with their interests in mind.

關(guān)鍵在于，品牌經(jīng)理在向消費(fèi)者傳遞漲價這一令人不快的消息時，應(yīng)該像對待其他品牌建設(shè)項目（諸如推介新功能或者拓展產(chǎn)品線）一樣，付出同樣的誠意、對細(xì)節(jié)的關(guān)注和顧客至上的努力。這樣的努力換來的不僅是讓漲價得到普遍接受，消費(fèi)者還會覺得自己是一個可靠品牌有價值的合作伙伴，且己方利益得到了對方的重視。

（譯者單位：對外經(jīng)濟(jì)貿(mào)易大學(xué)）