Case Study: Value-Based Pricing Strategy for Nonprofit and Mission-Driven Organizations
How Keene Advisors built a data-driven pricing model for a nonprofit client that prioritizes sustainability and mission
Pricing remains one of the most critical, yet stressful decisions for any organization. Potential clients are constrained by budgets and overwhelmed with options. How do you stand out, connect with your potential customers, and deliver products and services that align with your overarching mission?
The answer?
Value-based pricing.
Our client, a leading nonprofit essential-skills training provider, was facing mounting competitive and pricing pressures, similar to those faced by the rest of the training and workforce development industry.
U.S. training expenditures fell by 3.7% in 2024, even as spending on outsourced learning products surged by 23%. Simultaneously, public-sector customers (a large part of our client’s customers) experienced shrinking budgets following the expiration of federal ESSER funding, while nonprofits faced rising operating costs.
Additionally, the pricing model our client was using was confusing and bespoke to an individual customer. This, combined with external competition from low-cost, digitally scalable platforms, further intensified the pressure to find a pricing solution for sustainable financial growth.
Shifting from Cost-Based to Value-Based Pricing
Against this backdrop, our client turned to us for help. Their existing pricing model was inconsistent, and often opaque, which confused customers, slowed down the sales cycle, and limited the organization’s ability to scale while serving budget-constrained partners.
Why You Should Shift from Cost-Based to Value-Based Pricing
| Challenges with Cost-Based Pricing | |
|---|---|
| Doesn’t account for what customers actually value | By focusing only on internal costs plus a markup, you miss opportunities to price in alignment with results your customers are willing to pay for |
| Limits growth potential | Cost-based models struggle to scale because they fail to capture the premium customers may pay as your solution grows in reputation, reach, and proven ROI |
| Leaves money on the table | If your costs are low but your impact is high, you risk underpricing and reducing your profitability |
| Product-Extension | The acquisition of a business with complementary products or services to enter adjacent markets, expand the customer-base or cross-sell products to new and existing customers. |
| Obscures ROI in customer conversations | When inputs rather than outcomes are used to justify pricing, it’s harder for CFOs, executive boards, or procurement managers to see the connection between your price and your impact |
| Opportunities for Value-Based Pricing | |
|---|---|
| Aligns price with customer outcomes | You capture revenue based on the measurable impact delivered, not just inputs or costs |
| Unlocks margin expansion | Customers who recognize products or services with a high ROI are often willing to pay a premium, creating healthier margins |
| Drives scalable growth | As customer outcomes improve and your reputation grows, your pricing can scale alongside the value delivered |
| Supports long-term customer relationships | Pricing tied to outcomes fosters trust, transparency, and alignment with your clients’ strategic goals |
| Strengthens sales conversations | Anchoring pricing to value delivered makes it easier for your salesforce and procurement teams to justify the spend as an investment rather than a cost |
Get the Case Study: Sustainable, Forward-Thinking Pricing
Keene Advisors recommended a value-based pricing strategy designed to align pricing with outcomes, streamline internal operations, and reward revenue-driving customer behaviors.
By emphasizing the most critical metric, actual value delivered, the new model brought transparency to customers, simplified decision-making, and positioned the organization for sustainable growth while staying true to its mission.
Are you struggling with developing a pricing strategy that captures the full value of the products and services that you offer?
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