Your Pricing IS Your Marketing — A Founder Lesson

I learned something counterintuitive about pricing: it speaks louder than any ad campaign.

The £699 Problem

Dragon NaturallySpeaking charged £699/year for voice dictation. For 20 years, that told the market: voice AI is premium. Enterprise only. Not for regular people.

Then they got discontinued. Millions of users — especially people with RSI and accessibility needs — were stranded.

The £40 Statement

When we priced Genie 007 at £40 one-time, it was not just a business decision. It was a statement: accessibility should not be a luxury. Voice AI should be for everyone.

That price communicates more than any marketing copy: we are for real people, not enterprise budgets.

What Founders Get Wrong

Most founders price based on what competitors charge. That is backwards. Price based on who you want to serve. If you want to serve students, freelancers, and people with disabilities — price for them.

The volume play wins long-term. 1,000 customers at £40 beats 50 customers at £699 — and those 1,000 customers become your marketing team.

The Lesson

Your pricing tells customers who you are before they ever use your product. Make sure it says the right thing.

— Bill Kiani | genie007.co.uk

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