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Understanding Context-Driven Pricing: The Key to Maximizing Willingness to Pay with Mark Stiving

Impact Pricing

Release Date: 06/09/2025

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Mark Stiving is a pricing expert and the host of the Impact Pricing podcast, where he explores the intricate relationship between pricing, value, and context. With a wealth of experience in pricing strategies, Mark is passionate about helping companies maximize their revenue through effective pricing techniques.

Steven Forth is the co-founder and Managing Partner at Ibbaka, a leading pricing strategy consultancy. With deep expertise in B2B SaaS pricing and value-based pricing models, Steven has been at the forefront of pricing innovation for over two decades. He's passionate about the intersection of pricing strategy, customer value, and emerging technologies like AI agents.

In this episode, Steven turns the tables on Mark to explore context-driven pricing – Mark's revolutionary framework that's changing how pricing professionals think about willingness to pay. Together, they dive deep into the four contexts that drive every pricing decision, the three-layer business framework that organizes pricing strategy, and why perfection is the enemy of progress in pricing.

 

Why you have to check out today’s podcast:

  • Discover the concept of context-driven pricing and its significance in today's market.
  • Learn how different contexts, such as environmental and customer factors, influence pricing decisions.
  • Understand the importance of defining the problem to effectively implement pricing strategies.

 

“Willingness to pay is contextual.”

– Mark Stiving

 

Topics Covered:

01:37 – What motivated Mark to think about Context-driven Pricing?

03:15 – The four categories of context: problem, customer, behavioral, and environmental.

04:52 – How environmental factors influence willingness to pay?

06:01 – The role of competitors in shaping pricing strategies.

08:13 – Understanding the foundational problem and its impact on pricing decisions.

14:01 – The intersection of context-driven pricing and AI.

24:58 – Key takeaways on implementing context-driven pricing effectively.

 

Key Takeaways:

“Pricing is about understanding the context in which a buyer operates.” – Mark Stiving

“Defining the problem is crucial to determining willingness to pay.” – Mark Stiving

“Perfection is impossible; focus on being better every day.” – Mark Stiving

 

Resources and People Mentioned:

 

Connect with Mark Stiving: