SmartPrice is not a suggestion. It is a precise calculation that follows your exact rules, applied to real-time competitor data, with built-in safeguards to protect your margins. Here is how it works, step by step.
Step 1: Build the competitive landscape
The calculation starts by assembling the competitive landscape for each product. PryceScan collects the most recent price from every tracked competitor - including shipping costs where available - to create a total price comparison.
Two important filters apply at this stage:
- International seller exclusion. If your rule has "exclude international sellers" enabled, grey market listings from overseas sellers are removed before any calculation happens.
- Outlier detection. If a competitor price is less than 30% of the median price, it is flagged as a likely wrong product match (e.g., an accessory instead of the main product) and excluded.
The result is a clean set of validated competitor prices.
Step 2: Apply the position rule
Your pricing rule defines your desired competitive position. The most common configurations:
| Rule | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Match cheapest | Set your price equal to the lowest competitor | Competitor at $699 -> your price = $699 |
| Cheapest minus 5% | Undercut the cheapest by a percentage | Competitor at $699 -> your price = $664.05 |
| Match average | Set to the market average price | Average $800 -> your price = $800 |
| Above cheapest + $10 | Position slightly above cheapest | Cheapest $699 -> your price = $709 |
Rules can also reference the most expensive competitor, a specific percentile, or a named competitor.
Step 3: Apply minimum and maximum bounds
Bounds are the safety net. Even the most aggressive pricing rule should never sell below cost.
Minimum bound protects your margin. Example: "Cost + 20%". If your cost is $600, the minimum price is $720. If the rule calculated $664, SmartPrice snaps up to $720.
Maximum bound prevents overpricing. Example: "RRP minus 5%". If the RRP is $999, the maximum is $949. If the rule calculated $960, SmartPrice snaps down to $949.
Both bounds are optional. You can set one, both, or neither.
Step 4: Apply custom decimal rules
Most retailers want consistent price endings. If you set a custom decimal of ".95", a calculated price of $721.33 becomes $721.95. If you set ".99", it becomes $721.99.
The adjustment is always to the nearest matching decimal that does not violate the bounds from Step 3.
Step 5: Apply price change limits
Price change limits prevent dramatic swings. You can configure:
- Maximum increase: e.g., no more than 10% increase per cycle
- Maximum decrease: e.g., no more than $50 decrease per cycle
This protects against data anomalies. If a competitor accidentally lists a product at $1 instead of $100, your SmartPrice will not blindly follow.
Step 6: Queue for approval
The final SmartPrice is saved and queued in Price Approvals. You can review every recommendation before it takes effect.
For each product, you see: the current price, the recommended SmartPrice, the price change amount, and which rule produced it. Approve individually, in bulk, or set up auto-approval for rules you trust.
A worked example
Product: Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Headphones
- Your current price: $449
- Your cost: $280
- Competitor prices: $399 (Amazon), $419 (JB Hi-Fi), $449 (Harvey Norman), $469 (Bing Lee)
Rule: "Match cheapest competitor, minimum cost + 25%"
- Cheapest competitor = $399 (Amazon)
- Rule calculates: $399
- Minimum bound: $280 x 1.25 = $350 -> $399 is above $350, so no adjustment
- Custom decimal (.95): $399 -> $398.95
- Price change limit (max 15% decrease): current $449, limit = $381.65 -> $398.95 is above $381.65, so no adjustment
SmartPrice: $398.95 (was $449, saving the customer $50.05 while maintaining 30% margin)
This calculation runs automatically for every product, every day, without any manual intervention.