Price changes in eCommerce happen frequently. It is normal to see an online store modify its prices multiple times on the same day! That applies to small and big companies. But for large businesses, it is more complicated to manage products’ prices because they have many products in their catalog. Staff members have to spend more time monitoring the prices of their competitors and changing prices. But if one of your staff members or you make a mistake writing the wrong price, that leads to a problem. 

Nobody is exempted from making a pricing mistake. Companies like Amazon, Walmart, and HP are just a few examples that made pricing mistakes in the past that hurt their profits and caused customers to go on a shopping spree. 

How severe can a pricing mistake be? If your store makes a mistake and resolves the issue quickly, your profits will be okay. But if you do not catch the pricing mistake on time, your store will be in big trouble because the news spreads fast, and many people will buy the wrongly priced item. While you are making more sales, of course, you are losing money.    

There are different causes for the pricing mistake. One of the causes is human errors by you or your team. The second could be a technical error with your pricing software. Whatever the case, your company must be quick and efficient to prevent more damage. These are the steps your company must follow when you detect a pricing mistake:    

1- Take a screenshot or picture 

For the purpose of keeping track and as proof, take a screenshot if you are on your computer or cellphone and send it to the person in charge. Or, if you can’t take a screenshot, take a picture. Also, that picture can help you with future analysis. 

2- Alert your team  

Once you discover the pricing mistake, it is time to alert your sales team and everyone inside the company. Your team can then confirm the issue and follow the steps for this event. Also, they (or the customer care team) must be prepared to face the customers’ claims regarding the price situation. 

3- Change your prices 

After it is confirmed that a product has an incorrect price, you must change it back to the original price you established. Companies like Walmart have special clauses in their terms and conditions that allow them to cancel orders when there is a mistake in the pricing information. Post a text on your social media channels and your website explaining the situation to customers trying to take advantage of this pricing error.   

Conclusion 

Pricing mistakes can happen at any time. One of the ways to prevent pricing mistakes is by using price monitoring software to keep track of your competitors. PriceTweakers is the best solution for this problem because we accurately and automatically monitor your competitors. That allows you to focus on other tasks. Our software works nonstop (24/7), and you can create perfect pricing strategies because you will always have the best information regarding your competition.    

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