Compel More Purchases with Better Price Displays

When it comes time to decide on a purchase, shoppers can be swayed by a variety of factors. Some of these are internal, such as mood and existing beliefs/values, while external factors, such as price and sales, can impact the buyer’s decision as well.

When shopping online, users typically rely on imagery, product descriptions, and price to inform their decision. Much research has gone in to ways to increase conversions by changing the actual price (à la Walmart’s prices ending in .97), but the online solution could be as simple as changing the way the numbers are displayed.

Pay Attention to What Your Font is Saying

First and foremost, legibility is important. Spending money is a risk-taking behavior, which means customers that feel supported and comfortable will convert more often.

Since consumers are more likely to purchase if they feel happier or more secure, making sure your font is large enough and easy to read is crucial.

Also, remember that your font should match your branding and products or services. Slightly more ornate fonts can be useful when in a luxury setting; these ‘fancier’ typefaces have been shown to give the impression that the product is more complex, and therefore ‘worth’ a higher price.

A prime example of this can be found on upscale restaurant menus. A slightly unusual font, coupled with a detailed description of the “maritime medley of OSTRAS, CAMARONES and CHOROS A LA CHALACA, served on tiered platters, with a duo of cebiches: conchas y maracuyá and pulpo al ají panca” on Andina's menu works together to give the appearance of complexity. 

Reduce Font Size

Prices are often made to be eye-catching or a large part the screen. Whether this is due to a general understanding that price is important and hence should be made large, or it's just for clarity, it’s pretty common for eCommerce sites to use large or bold font to display their prices.

However, displaying the price in smaller font has actually been shown to result in better conversions.

Again, this could be related to our basic instinct to associate large sizes with larger values. If something appears to be large on screen, we tend to see it as bigger than it is.

 On the other hand, perhaps a smaller font size understates the price, making it less of a factor to the customer’s subconscious, forcing the focus to tilt more toward the actual value of the product. Notice how the second example [above] causes the eye to pay more attention to the product imagery and details, rather than immediately pausing on the price.

Large fonts can also elicit greater emotions and eliciting a strong response to price is often not the best way increase purchase likelihood. Either way, when displaying your product price, try A/B testing different font sizes to make your prices more palatable while maintaining legibility (remember that older audiences will require larger font for clarity).

Remove Dollar Signs

Besides the physical size of the product, how the price is actually typed out matters as well. Prices shown without a dollar sign (00.00) have been shown to fare significantly better than those same prices presented with a dollar sign ($00.00) or written-out (zero dollars).

Removing the dollar sign may be another way to take the emphasis away from the price. The dollar sign tends to elicit a specific emotional response, and once again draws attention to the monetary value of the product.

Removing the dollar sign takes away some of the meaning attached to the number, allowing customers to see past the price for a moment and instead focus the benefits of the product. Removing the dollar sign will likely be more beneficial for products with a higher price that may need justification, as it reduces the emotional response (or sticker shock for big ticket items) and gives your customers enough time to convince themselves they can’t live without your product.

Find Your Price Match

Subconscious thoughts ultimately guide our final actions, and it’s worth finding ways to reduce potential roadblocks to customer conversions as much as possible. Great websites help their users quickly achieve their desired actions; don’t let an unfortunately displayed price be the hang-up for online customers and abandoned shopping carts. 

These price presentation options are all great possibilities for A/B testing; try a combination of techniques to see what works for you and your business.