Value Is More Than Price: What Consumers Actually Care About
Before defaulting to price cuts, brands should understand that consumers are split between price- and quality-driven shopping — and long-term growth comes from strengthening perceived value, not just lowering cost.
It's one of the most common reflexes in marketing - sales slow down, so the price comes down. But here's the thing: price discounting is not a viable long-term strategy. It erodes margins, trains consumers to wait for deals, and often fails to address why they're hesitating in the first place.
What makes this especially worth examining is what IMI Pulse© data tells us about how consumers actually shop. 64% of consumers shop exclusively on quality, compared to 63% who shop solely on price. That's essentially a dead heat. So if you're leaning entirely on price reduction to drive volume, you're ignoring half the market — the half that's making decisions based on something else entirely.
Know your category before you cut
Every category behaves differently. In some, price sensitivity is genuinely high and promotional pricing plays a legitimate role. In others, quality perception, convenience, or brand trust carry far more weight in the purchase decision. The challenge is knowing which levers matter most in yours — and resisting the impulse to default to discounting simply because it's the fastest move available.
What actually drives perceived value
When consumers evaluate a product or service, price is only one input in a much larger equation. Our research consistently shows that perceived value is shaped by a combination of factors that brands can actively influence.
Quality and performance. Reliability, durability, and effectiveness all contribute to how consumers assess whether something is worth what they're paying. A product that works consistently and lasts longer creates value that a discount simply can't replicate.
Customer experience. Ease of use, convenience, and responsive support all shape how consumers feel about a brand — often more than the price tag does. If your product is difficult to access or frustrating to use, no amount of discounting fixes that perception gap.
Innovation and personalization. Unique features that competitors don't offer, or products tailored to individual preferences, create differentiation that holds value over time. This is the kind of competitive separation that doesn't require a price cut to justify.
Accessibility and speed. Multichannel availability, fast delivery, and quick response times all contribute to perceived value. Consumers increasingly weigh how easily and quickly they can get what they need — and they'll often pay more for it.
Time savings. Products and services that make consumers' lives more efficient are consistently perceived as more valuable. Efficiency is its own form of currency.
Where this gets strategic
The brands that build lasting value aren't choosing between price and quality, they're stacking multiple value drivers on top of each other. They're making the product easy to find, fast to receive, reliable to use, and supported when something goes wrong. Price becomes one factor among many, not the entire proposition.
This is where cross-category intelligence becomes critical. Understanding how value perception shifts across demographics, categories, and markets gives brands a clearer picture of which levers to pull and which ones are already working harder than they realize.
The takeaway
Before defaulting to another round of discounts, take a step back. With quality-driven shoppers matching price-driven shoppers almost exactly, the opportunity isn't to go lower - it's to go deeper. Build value across the dimensions consumers actually care about, and give them a reason to choose you that outlasts the next promotion.