Chief Pricing Officer

Many hearty congratulations to Dan Ariely, who was just named one of Fortune’s “10 New Gurus You Should Know.” Very good stuff, and the article concludes with Ariely’s research into pricing issues:

Ariely, 41, also studies the logic behind spending patterns - what consumers are willing to spend on a product vs. their understanding of its value. And that will make him a very popular man in this economy.

Ariely, of course was the keynote speaker at our SIGNALS 2008 event, where he talked about negotiations and the role of human weakness in making decisions. We’ve talked about him before in this space, and it’s nice to see him get even more recognition for his work from a well-respected publication like Fortune. So, again, congratulations Dan, and keep up the good work.

SignalDemand customer, Hormel, was featured in The New York Times yesterday. In fact, the article was the 4th most emailed story on the NYTimes.com site. According to food reporter Andrew Martin, Hormel is working overtime to supply the nation with what many think of as the most economical of all proteins: Spam.

Though Martin doesn’t name prices or get into marketing strategy in the article, the gist is that, in times of economic belt-tightening, consumers are reaching for the foods they think of first when it comes to penny-pinching. In fact, the Times refers to Spam as “the most emblematic hard-times food in the American pantry.” Here’s a little more from the article, just for fun:

“Spam holds a special place in America’s culinary history, both as a source of humor and of cheap protein during hard times.

Invented duing the Great Depression by Jay Hormel, the son of the company’s founder, Spam is a combination of ham, pork, sugar, salt, water, potato starch and a ‘hint’ of sodium nitrite ‘to help Spam keep its gorgeous pink color,’ according to Hormel’s Web site for the product.

Because it is vacuum-sealed in a can and does not require refrigeration, Spam can last for years. Hormel says ‘it’s like meat with a pause button.’”

Though Hormel President Gary Ray wasn’t quoted in the New York Times story, he shared candid and upbeat “lessons learned” in pricing strategy with other major manufacturers at SIGNALS last month in Las Vegas.