The Psychology of Price

How you present the price of a product can significantly affect how people perceive it and hence how likely they are to buy. Here are a number of important points about the psychology of price that will help you decide on your approach to pricing.

The 99 Effect: Use just under a price boundary.

The 95 Effect: Not as annoying as the 99 effect.

The Brand Effect: We value what we trust and admire.

The Change Effect: Getting change can seem good.

The Coinage Effect: More coins (or notes) seems more expensive.

The Comma Effect: Commas make prices seem higher.

Contrastive Purchase: Customers choose by comparison.

The Credit Card Effect: Seems less than cash.

Discounting: How to charge less but not lose out.

Distance Effects: Proximity of price to product affects association.

Easy-Pay Pricing: Make it easy to find and hand over the money.

First Digit Anchoring: Left digit is basis for contrast.

Font Effects: Bigger, bolder grabs attention.

Free: The ultimate motivator.

Nearby Words: That suggest good value.

No Currency Symbol: Don't show dollar sign.

Number Complexity: Confusion can put people off or move their thinking off price.

The Odd Number Effect: Odd numbers are arousing.

Pay by Instalments: Looks cheaper than total price.

Preferred Number Pricing: Use numbers people like.

Previous Price: Show previous price as well as current price.

The Price Anchoring Effect: First time counts.

Price Boundaries: We understand by edges.

The Price Length Effect: Longer numbers seem more.

The Price-Quality Heuristic: We think price indicates quality.

Price Rounding Effect: We round prices to boundaries.

Pricing Add-Ons: Extra Costs: Include or exclude tax, shipping, handling?

Rising Strike-Out: Cross out from bottom left to top right.

Round Numbers: Use easy numbers for emotional purchase.

Smaller Font: Smaller sale price font actually sells more.

The Sound Duration Effect: Longer sounds seem more.

Time and Pricing: Time is money and vice versa.

Unique Number Pricing: Use an unusual price.

The Value of Context: Where you buy affects price.

The Veblen Effect: Buying expensive goods to impress others.

Weber's Law: Sensitivity is proportionate to price.

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The Psychology of Price

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Disciplines

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Theories

And