Stop unauthorized discounting before it kills margins

What you need to do: Document and submit the pricing change you want to make, along with a clear justification for it.

Required information:
• Current price - The existing price point you're changing
• Proposed price - The new price you're requesting
• Reason for change - Cost increase, market conditions, competitive pressure, or strategic repositioning
• Affected products/services - Every SKU or service line that's impacted
• Revenue impact - How revenue changes at current volume
• Margin impact - What happens to your gross and contribution margins

Supporting documentation to attach:
• Market research or competitor analysis
• Cost structure changes (if cost-driven)
• Customer feedback or demand signals
• Historical pricing data for context

Deadline: 1 day from workflow start

What you need to do: Calculate and validate the financial impact of the proposed pricing change so you can protect your profitability.

Margin analysis checklist:
• Gross margin before - Current percentage and dollar amount
• Gross margin after - Projected percentage and dollar amount
• Contribution margin impact - Effect on variable cost coverage
• Break-even volume - Units needed to maintain current profit levels
• Overall profitability - Net effect on your bottom line

Threshold review:
• Compare against minimum acceptable margin thresholds
• Flag any changes that drop margins below policy limits
• Identify whether senior leadership escalation is needed

Important: If margins fall below acceptable thresholds, document your business justification or recommend rejection.

Deadline: 2 days from workflow start

What you need to do: Evaluate how the proposed price change affects your market positioning and competitive dynamics.

Competitive analysis:
• Competitor pricing - Compare your proposed price against the top 3-5 competitors
• Market position - Where does this put you (premium, mid-market, or value)?
• Price-to-value ratio - How does your offering compare at this price point?
• Win rate impact - Expected effect on deal closures against alternatives

Strategic considerations:
• Does this support or undermine your brand positioning?
• Will customers feel they're getting fair value at this price?
• Are you inviting a competitive response?
• Does this align with your target market segment?

Your recommendation: Document whether the competitive positioning supports going ahead with the price change or suggests you should make modifications.

Deadline: 2 days from workflow start

Purpose: Make the formal approval decision based on all submitted documentation and analysis.

Review Checklist Before Deciding:
• Pricing change request is complete with justification
• Margin impact analysis shows acceptable profitability
• Competitive positioning supports the change
• All supporting documentation is attached

Decision Options:
• Approve - Proceed to implementation
• Reject - Document reason and close workflow
• Request modifications - Send back for revisions with specific feedback

Escalation Requirement:
If the discount or price reduction exceeds standard approval thresholds, escalate to senior leadership before approving.

Audit Documentation:
Record the approval rationale, any conditions attached, and the decision date for compliance records.

Automation: Upon approval, the implementation step becomes visible.

Deadline: 3 days from workflow start

Push the approved pricing change through all your business systems and customer-facing channels. You'll need to update the master price list, ERP/billing system, sales quoting tools, any e-commerce or website pricing, and customer-facing materials like brochures and rate cards. Set the effective date, verify all channels reflect the new pricing consistently, test quote generation, confirm billing charges correctly, and archive old pricing docs.

Make sure your sales team is fully prepared to sell at the new price points before the change goes live. Put together talking points for customer conversations, updated quote templates, old vs. new comparison sheets, and an FAQ document. Cover why the price changed, value justification, handling objections, and competitive positioning. Don't forget transition guidance - deals in progress, grandfathering rules, and escalation paths for special requests.