Build a pricing model

Economist · Time: 60 min · Finance

Tools that fit this task

• ChatGPT $20/mo
• Copilot in Excel $20/mo
• Rows AI Free

Prompt

Role: you are a pricing analyst.
Context: products: {{list}}. Cost is in column {{column}}, purchase currency {{currency}}, target margin {{percent}}, sales channels and discounts: {{channels}}.
Task: propose a model structure with an assumptions sheet, price formulas for each channel using my locale's separators, a minimum break-even price and conditional formatting for prices below the minimum.
Format: a list of sheets, a table "column, formula, explanation", three scenarios for testing. No long dashes.

Steps

1. Collect product cost, target margin, competitor prices and discounts for each sales channel
2. Describe the pricing logic: cost-plus, market-based or mixed
3. Ask the assistant to build a table with formulas and an assumptions sheet
4. Add a check for the minimum price below which a sale loses money
5. Run three scenarios of cost and exchange rate changes and see how the margin moves
6. Show the model to the commercial director and record the rules for changing prices

How to check the result

Each product's price is derived from the assumptions by formula, the minimum price is highlighted, and a change in exchange rate or cost recalculates everything without manual edits

Pitfalls

• Competitor prices from search go stale: put the collection date next to each
• Numbers hard-coded into formulas break the model when assumptions change

Data that stays out of public AI tools

• Product cost and margin: a trade secret, into a public service only the table structure
• Budgets and plans before approval: only inside a corporate environment
• Salaries of specific employees in calculations: replace them with averages or codes

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AI tools for economists · Prompt: Build a pricing model