Everyone loves a bargain, and searching for the lowest price among a sea of offers is a core motivator for customers to browse when shopping online. However, when it comes to having your brand represented by a number of sellers, it is best practice to restrict them from setting offers below a Minimum Advertised Price (MAP).
A thorough MAP policy helps to establish and protect the integrity of your brand by setting a value on your product, in turn providing consistency in brand messaging. Furthermore, the policy puts sellers across marketplaces, online as well as brick-and-mortar, on equal footing - engendering a trust spanning from the manufacturer to the seller, and on to the customer.
Reasons to have a MAP policy:
Brand Protection By creating a MAP policy, your brand presence retains consistency across all marketplaces, allowing it to compete against brands of similar quality.
Customer Trust Without a MAP policy, resellers can undersell each other until any vestige of value has virtually disappeared. While a bargain is always nice, inconsistent pricing creates a sense of chaos within a listing and mistrust is the result on the customer’s side. Maintaining consistent pricing will establish trust between your brand and the customer.
Warranties Some products offer warranties, increasing value and drawing the attention of customers. However, when the product is sold at inconsistent prices , it can create issues over the validity of the warranty. With a MAP policy, specification can be given that any warranty is only included with products that are sold at MAP.
Quality Control By establishing a MAP policy, you are able to oversee and maintain those who have access to selling your products.
Important Steps:
Do your research When establishing a brand’s MAP, understand who competitors are and what their pricing strategy is. By evaluating and understanding competitors’ pricing, you will be able to determine the best strategy for your brand and which platforms work best for your type of product.
Consult a lawyer MAP policies are an important asset of every brand. To make sure your MAP policy is unilateral and doesn’t violate any laws, consult a lawyer. A lawyer can help establish a policy that abides by all laws and is set up to protect your brand for re-selling violations. By having set a clear MAP policy, you will be able to maintain good, consistent relationships with retailers.
Be consistent with enforcement Once you have established your pricing strategy, you must be proactive in monitoring and enforcing your policy. It is common for unauthorized sellers to violate established MAP policies and to undercut prices. When there is active monitoring of a MAP policy, there is more control over who is allowed to sell the product and ultimately more control over sales margins.
Another important step: Ask for help!
We understand how difficult it can be to keep up with all the different e-commerce platforms. That’s why we’re here to help! Ripcord Brands offers MAP violation audits and can inspect and protect your brand from price cuts. Need an extra hand? Give us a call: 303-536-5505 or send us an email: inquiries@ripcordbrands.com.
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