In technology, media, and telecommunications markets, the ability to differentiate on relevance to the customer is everything.
Many companies still offer monolithic plans or bundles that are overstuffed with new innovations. But different customer segments often engage with products in totally different ways, and each needs a tailored experience. Differentiation should come not just in terms of price but in how features are surfaced and supported. When packaging is aligned to those specific needs or use-cases, it becomes a growth lever instead of a retention challenge.
This is a hot take, but if a team building products only for its ideal customer profile (ICP), then features may land flat for important customer segments. In contrast, if the roadmap is informed by the actual pain points and usage patterns of each target segment, it becomes much easier to prioritize what's truly valuable. It also opens the door for tiered offerings, not just meaning "more features for more money" but rather a "better fit for your use case".
Customer-centric strategies key to growth and retention
Solving for high churn isn't just a retention play; it's a growth strategy. Because if a business can reduce churn among volatile segments, it's essentially recovering revenue that would otherwise walk out the door. That's often a faster and more cost-effective route to growth than pouring money into acquisition channels, especially in saturated TMT markets where customer acquisition costs keep climbing.
What's compelling about this approach is that churn tends to reveal a lot about product-market fit, or rather misfit. If you're losing customers, it's usually not just price sensitivity. It’s unmet expectations, unclear value, or friction in usage. Addressing those issues through packaging, onboarding, feature enhancements, or better support not only saves accounts but can create advocacy and increase customer lifetime value.
All of this starts with a deep focus on customer needs. Not just what customers say they want, but what they do, what they fail to do, and what they wish they could do with your product. That’s gold for strategy, but it takes effort and a mindset shift to really act on it.
The shift to customer-centricity
Over the years, customer needs have shifted and become increasingly specific and nuanced. We’re living in a “precision economy,” where customers have learned to expect tailored solutions, not just from luxury or enterprise players but from everyone.
The days of blanket offerings that try to be everything to everyone are numbered, especially in TMT where the speed of innovation makes it easier for nimble competitors to peel off niche segments. With numerous options available in the market, customers can shop around to find the most impactful product that meets their business needs and use cases.
Generic blanket solutions also fail to address the specific challenges customers face, leading them to perceive the product's value as not worth the price. It's the classic value perception problem. When customers don’t see their specific needs reflected in what they're paying for, whether through irrelevant features, lack of clarity, or mismatched pricing, they disengage. And that disengagement isn’t passive anymore; it’s active. They’ll churn, they’ll tell others, and they'll find something that does feel built for them.
This is where strategic packaging and modularity become critical. Instead of trying to build entirely separate products for each segment (which quickly becomes unsustainable), companies can build flexible cores with optional layers, such as feature toggles, configurable experiences, or use-case bundles. This can be paired with sharp positioning and messaging that speaks directly to each segment’s pains and goals.
Benefits of customer-centric packaging strategies
- Enhanced satisfaction: Focusing on customer needs leads to more relevant solutions, higher satisfaction rates, and increased retention.
- Increased loyalty: Satisfied customers are more likely to remain loyal, engaged, and expand their relationship with your business.
- Competitive advantage: Excelling in customer centricity differentiates companies in crowded markets.
Align use-cases with packaging and feature development
At Simon-Kucher, we’ve developed a simple framework for becoming more customer-aligned without overengineering the process. This repeatable model can scale up or down depending on your company’s size and maturity.
1. Understand needs differentiated by willingness to pay
This is the foundation, and it's often skipped or done superficially. By engaging directly with customers through interviews, usage data, or even in-product behavior analysis, you get to the root of why people use your product and where they struggle. It shifts the conversation from generic personas or assumptions to real, contextual insights.
This step is crucial not only for product strategy but also for internal alignment. It creates a shared language across product, sales, and marketing about what matters most to customers. Many companies get stuck by either not talking to customers enough, or by failing to structure what they learn into scalable insights. This step outlines the commitment to closing the gap.
2. Tailor packaging
This is where customer understanding becomes operational. Tailoring packaging means reflecting the differences in needs you’ve uncovered in your pricing, bundles, and messaging. Done well, it ensures each customer segment feels like your solution is built for them, which is a huge driver of perceived value and adoption.
It also prevents overengineering. Rather than building one giant platform with a bloated feature set, you offer modularity, optionality, or focused plans that make the product more digestible and cost aligned. It also can reduce sales friction, support tickets, and post-sale dissatisfaction, while helping you from a "volume-based" strategy to a "value-based" one.
3. Prioritize features
This closes the loop beautifully. By feeding customer needs directly into the roadmap, you ensure you're building with purpose. It strengthens customer trust because they see their feedback reflected in the product. It also helps internal teams avoid wasteful development by focusing on what truly moves the needle.
This is an especially powerful lever for companies trying to transition from founder-driven to customer-driven product strategy, or from "growth at all costs" to sustainable, high CLTV relationships.
How Simon-Kucher can help
Customers demand more than a product. They expect tailored experiences that speak to their unique pain points, usage behaviors, and evolving customer expectations.
At Simon-Kucher, we specialize in helping TMT companies navigate the complexities of modern pricing and package design with a laser focus on customer centricity. Our proven strategies align your offerings with real-world use cases, unlocking value through packages that drive both customer satisfaction and long-term loyalty.
Whether you're enterprise SaaS, a media and entertainment brand adapting to shifting content consumption, a social media platform exploring new business models, or a telecom provider rethinking supply chain economics, we help you stay ahead of fast-changing market trends. By elevating the customer experience and refining your brand messages, we position you to not only meet customer needs, but exceed them, building trust and relevance in crowded markets.
Contact Simon-Kucher to design pricing and packaging strategies that resonate.
