According to Wikipedia:
“A commodity is a good (product)…. which is supplied without qualitative differentiation across a market…. the market treats it as equivalent, or nearly so, no matter who produces it….one of the characteristics of a commodity good is that its price is determined as a function of its market as a whole.”

As you drive along looking for gasoline, and you see multiple gas stations, how do you choose which service to use? Most people chose the least expensive, thereby treating gasoline as a commodity. Quality is considered equal across the suppliers and, as a result, is not a part of the shopper’s decision making process.
No matter what you are selling, you don’t want your product or service to be treated like a commodity. Without differentiation, you are like driftwood and have no control over your sales. Product or service differentiation is what gives you control over the market.

The best way to differentiate yourself, and what you are selling, is to begin with the awareness that the shopper is looking for a solution, not a price. The shopper cannot evaluate prices without first understanding the solution options.

Consider the game show “The Price is Right”. A contestant has to choose between Door Number 1 or Door Number 2, without knowing what is behind the doors. The decision is a hard one if the only thing you have to work with is price. This is why it is not a good idea to start any sales pitch with price. You are forcing the shopper to think commodity.

When you start by trying to understand the need and present a solution that fits that need, the shopper is now focused on differentiation. What you are trying to get to is relevancy. When the shopper can say “yes” to what you are saying (even if silently in their mind) you are moving toward a closing opportunity because you are in tune with them.

Next, understand that the solution and the price are related. Once the solution options are understood, the price becomes relevant. For example, if I say that I can sell you a calculator for $100.00, your first question is what kind of calculator is it and what can it do. You are not in a closing situation. If I tell you that I can sell you a calculator that can evaluate and trade stocks with a single key stroke based upon an algorithm used by Warren Buffet, and it only costs $100.00, you are in a closing situation.

Here is the formula to avoid being a commodity. Find out what the shopper needs, offer them a solution that fits their need, then price the solution accordingly. Always be pricing is a bad strategy. Always be closing is a good strategy.