2024 Pricing Survey

Lightspeed is conducting an anonymous pricing benchmarking survey. Usage-based pricing has become increasingly common in the past couple of years. This survey seeks to explore how startups view the trade-offs of usage-based economics and its effects on revenue models and customer preferences.

Upcoming PLG Workshop

Join us at our upcoming Product-Led Growth Workshop with PLG expert Hila Qu on August 30, 2023.

Looking to lease sublet space?

Share details about the space you are looking for or have available and we'll match you with relevant portfolio companies.
May 1, 2025
 | AT 
9:30 am
 (
BST (GMT+1)
)

Cracking the Code on Pricing - EMEA

Deep-dive discussion on pricing approaches in EMEA with Northlane's Saagar Mehta.

Hosts

No items found.
No items found.

Speakers

No items found.
No items found.

Event Recap & Takeaways

This session, led by Saagar Mehta Co-Founder of North Lane (a boutique advisory firm for VC-backed startups), focused on building effective pricing strategies at the early stages of company grwoth. The discussion covered how to align pricing with business goals, evolve your strategy as you scale, and implement practical models for packaging, value metrics, and pricing structures.

Key Principles

Pricing Is Strategic, Not Just a Number

Pricing must align with company goals (adoption, monetization, retention), customer segments, distribution models, and GTM strategy. Strong pricing starts with clear business alignment.

Pricing Evolves as You Grow
  • Adoption Phase: Prioritize ideal customer acquisition over monetization.
  • Differentiation Phase: Segment and differentiate offerings.
  • Monetization Phase: Optimize pricing once product-market fit is achieved.
    Companies should plan for a "land and expand" approach early.

Packaging Models (Least to Most Flexible)

  • All-You-Can-Eat: One-size-fits-all, good for early adoption (e.g., early OpenAI).
  • Good-Better-Best (Recommended): Drives trade-offs and positioning; standard in SaaS.
  • Platform Plus Modules: Sell a base platform with add-ons (e.g., HubSpot).
  • Use Case Packages: Package by buyer persona or department (e.g., LinkedIn).
  • À La Carte: Feature-by-feature pricing, best for complex enterprise sales (e.g., Oracle).
Use the "Happy Meal" Framework
  • Burger = Lead feature that drives purchase
  • Table Stakes = Essential competitive features
  • Fries = Nice-to-haves
  • Coffee = Niche features (use sparingly)

Value Metrics (From Basic to Advanced)

  • Access Metrics: Per seat/user (e.g., Salesforce)
  • Technical Metrics: Based on infrastructure usage (e.g., AWS)
  • Activity Metrics: Based on user actions (e.g., API calls)
  • Output Metrics: Outcomes from activity (e.g., successful transactions)
  • ROI/Outcome Metrics: Based on customer business impact (e.g., payments volume)

Pricing Models

  • Subscription: Fixed recurring fee; predictable for vendor, higher customer risk.
  • Usage-Based: Pay for what you use; better alignment, less predictable for vendor.
  • Hybrid (Recommended): Combine subscription base + usage to balance predictability and value alignment.

Implementation Best Practices

Early-Stage
  • Start simple to avoid friction in adoption.
  • Talk to 10+ customers about willingness to pay.
  • Know your competition but don't blindly match pricing.
  • Track pricing objections and lost deals.
  • Treat pricing as a product — test, measure, and iterate.
If You Have B2C Components
  • Use A/B testing (with sufficient volume).
  • Only test one or two variables at a time.

Key Takeaways

  • Design for both land (adoption) and expand (monetization).
  • Good-Better-Best is the go-to for most B2B SaaS companies.
  • Tie pricing to customer-perceived value as you scale.
  • Hybrid pricing models often work best.
  • Pricing is a living product — evolve it based on real customer feedback and company growth.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

No items found.