Should I Put My Prices on My Website

Last Updated: 

October 4, 2023

This Podcast episode covers one of the most commonly asked questions I get during coaching sessions which is, “Should I advertise my prices on my website?”

The very short answer is, “No!” don’t advertise your prices on your website.

There are several reasons for this which I go through in the podcast episode and I’ll also outline below:

Key Takeaways: Should I Advertise My Prices on My Website? - Podcast Episode

  1. Qualifying Prospects Too Soon: Displaying prices on your website may discourage potential clients before they have a chance to understand the value of your offerings.
  2. Adjusting to New Prices: Businesses may still be in the process of testing and adjusting their pricing, so advertising them on the website could lead to confusion or discrepancies.
  3. Pricing as a Conversation Starter: Engaging prospects in conversations about pricing allows for better understanding of their needs and enables tailored solutions.
  4. Should Prices be Displayed?: The podcast episode argues against displaying prices on your website for the reasons mentioned above.
  5. Understanding Industry Practices: Learn why some companies choose not to put their prices online and explore the potential benefits of displaying prices for certain products or services.
Discover Real-World Success Stories

1. You Could be Qualifying Prospects Out Too Soon

In the example I walk listeners though in this episode of the Fearless Business Podcast, I talked about a beauty business that I worked with.

They were so focussed on getting more customers via marketing as a way to grow their business, they were ignoring just about every other metric within the business. I looked at their finances and the business wasn’t looking shabby profit wise, but growth had slowed down dramatically.

The numbers, which did look interesting to me, were on their cold leads into warm enquiries.

It transpired many of their customers were “price sensitive” and were asking for prices up front in Messenger and via email.

And my client was giving them the prices. This isn’t a big issue in its own right however it quickly became apparent that many of their prospects were uneducated buyers.

I challenged their belief that giving away prices was a qualifier. It can be used to qualify prospects, but only when demand is so high there are few other ways to qualify prospects.

They were adamant about giving the prices away as their belief was that, “If we don’t give prices when people ask then we are being dishonest!” and they believed in this quite strongly.

I suggested we focus on a campaign to get prospective buyers into their clinic before giving their prices away for 30 days and see if it made any difference. I offered to match any drop in sales if they felt strongly my way contributed to losing clients.

After 30 days their conversion from cold lead to warm prospect went up by 40% and this continued through into the profit and loss account 60-days later.

By inviting prospects into the clinic they could see how amazing my client was, how professional their clinicians were, the quality of the services they provided and above all could learn about the treatments they were interested in buying. 

There was no pressure selling, just an opportunity to experience what it would be like to visit the clinic and experience a treatment and consultation.

2. You May Still Be Adjusting To New Prices

If you’re going through a process of increasing your prices, then I’d recommend not publicising your prices.

Pricing is mostly based on mindset and confidence. Today you might not be so bullish about your prices, business or yourself and so it’s “easier” to fall back on your prices that are black and white on your website.

However, tomorrow, for whatever reason, you might be feeling really confident having listened to a podcast from Robin about increasing your prices…but you can’t increase your prices…because they are in black and white on your website.

I don’t know who made up this stupid rule about putting prices up maybe once a year and by only 5-10% if that…what a stupid rule, who decided that one?

When you’re adjusting and testing new price points for your products, you might adjust your prices 6-10 times throughout the year until you reach a natural point of supply and demand. Imagine having to do 6-10 updates on your websites and marketing material.

So, while you’re testing new prices, remove all traces of your price list from websites, social media and your email marketing so that people have to enquire about your products and prices to find out more.

If you’re worried about this then please go back and re-read my comments in the section above.

3. Pricing Is a Conversation Starter

People buy for many reasons and your prices only make up a small percentage of that buying decision, here are some example of other reasons why people buy, or at least enquire about your products:

  1. Referral - They heard someone talking about your business/brand and want to know whether your products or services can help them.
  2. Intrigue - There is something interesting they read in your marketing which prompted them to enquire about your business. They’re not educated buyers but interested to know more.
  3. Education - They know they need a service similar to yours but want to know more about how it works and most importantly will it work for them.
  4. Trust - They may trust you more or less than the competition so want to find out whether their hunch is right about your business.
  5. Speed - How quickly can you provide a solution to them?
  6. Quality - Can you do it better than your competitors?
  7. Window shopping - casually browsing potential solutions to their problems.
  8. Affordability - They like it but can they afford to buy? Do you offer payment plans to help them with this?

To find out more about Fearless Business:

Join our amazing community of Coaches, Consultants and Freelancers on Facebook:
>> https://facebook.com/groups/ChargeMore

And check out my personal business coaching website.

Frequently Asked Questions about Prices on Your Website

You've got a website, and that's great. You've done all the hard work, created an amazing product or service, and now it's time to reap the rewards of your efforts. But what do you do when someone comes along and wants to know how much it costs? Do you say "it depends" or give them an answer?

In this article we'll take a look at whether or not it makes sense to display pricing on your website in order to convert more sales. We'll also talk about some of the advantages of doing so and why some companies choose not to put their prices online at all. In addition, we'll discuss who should use this strategy if they want more conversions from their site visitors into actual buyers:

Should Prices be Displayed?

The first question to ask yourself is what the purpose of your website is. Is it for advertising, or are you trying to sell products and services?

The second question is what the purpose of your business is. Are you looking for new customers, or do you want repeat business from existing customers?

The third question is what are you trying to achieve with your website?

Why Do Companies NOT Put Their Prices Online

For many businesses, the decision to put prices online is a difficult one. The main reason that companies don't make their prices available online is because of how sensitive the topic can be. For example, if you're selling an item at $100 and someone from another country comes along and asks for it at $80 (a 20% discount), they're likely going to feel like they got a good deal. But if you were selling that same item locally and someone asked for it at $90 (a 10% discount), then there's less incentive for them to purchase from your business over someone else's!

Another reason why companies don't put their prices online has to do with how frequently those prices change: often times we will see our competitors change theirs daily or weekly based on demand fluctuations in different regions; this makes it difficult for us as consumers because we never know what price we should expect when making an inquiry about something over email or phone call - so why would anyone want me knowing more than just what I need?

What's In It For Me?

If you're not already displaying your prices on your website, then it's time to start. Here are some of the benefits:

  • You can attract more customers. Pricing information is one of the first things that visitors look for when they visit a new site, so if yours is missing or doesn't include all of the important details (like shipping costs), then you're losing potential customers right off the bat. This can be especially problematic if they've been searching specifically for products within a certain price range--they may decide not to buy from you at all if they don't see what they want in their price range!
  • You'll save time updating prices as often as necessary without having to manually input them into every single product listing on each individual page of your eCommerce site every time there's an adjustment made by either yourself or an external supplier/vendor involved in bringing those goods into existence before reaching consumers' hands through channels like Amazon FBA programs where fees apply per item sold through third party sellers like myself :) ."

Benefits of Pricing Your Products Online

  • Price your products online, and you'll see an increase in sales and conversions.
  • Price your products online, and you'll see an increase in brand awareness.
  • Price your products online, and you'll see an increase in customer satisfaction with the product or service that they purchased from you.

Who Should Use This Strategy?

If you're a small business owner and want to get more sales, this is the strategy for you. It's also great for people who sell a variety of products or services, as it allows them to showcase their prices in an easy-to-read format. If your competition has already implemented this strategy on their website and yours hasn't yet, then it's time for you to get on board!

If you're looking for ways to grow your business by getting more exposure online--or even if it isn't currently profitable--this may be one way that could help increase traffic while also giving potential customers reasons why they should choose YOU over everyone else out there (including those who have been using this tactic longer).

How to Make Sure It Works for You

Before you decide to put your prices on your website, make sure you have a clear pricing strategy. You can choose one of the following:

  • Fixed-price model - This is where the customer pays a set price for an item or service. They know exactly what they're getting and how much it will cost them before they buy it.
  • Value-based pricing - This type of pricing means that customers pay based on how valuable they think something is to them. For example, if someone wants a new TV but doesn't really care about having 4K resolution or HDR compatibility, then their VPA would be lower than someone who does care about those things because those features are valuable to him/her (and therefore worth paying more money).

When SHOULD You Put Your Prices Online?

If you're a small business, then you should put your prices online. This is because it's a great way for potential customers to see what your product or service costs. It also means that if they want to buy something from you, they can do it quickly and easily without having to call in or email first.

If your business is new and still growing, putting prices online will help get more people aware of what you do so they can start buying from you!

You should also consider putting your prices online if:

  • You're selling a product or service that's in high demand (like an app developer).
  • The market has many competitors but yours is better than theirs! For example: if there are many dentists nearby but yours offers free whitening treatments every six months for life when people sign up for dental insurance with them - then maybe this would be worth advertising on social media channels such as Facebook Ads where there are already millions of users who could benefit from this offer? Just keep in mind though...you'll need more than just advertising alone because otherwise these ads won't convert enough phone calls into actual appointments made by real customers coming through our doors every day.

Conclusion

If you're looking for a way to increase sales and build trust with customers, putting your prices online can be an easy win if you have plenty of latent demand. If you don't have a lot of demand or you are testing out new prices, we would recommend leaving your prices OFF your website and elicit an enquiry instead.

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