The Psychology Of Pricing: Part 2 - RD265

<p>Last week I shared the first nine psychology of pricing tactics from <a href= "https://www.nickkolenda.com/psychological-pricing-strategies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nick Kolenda's article</a>. This week I continue the series with more great pricing tactics.</p> <h2 class="p1">Tactic 10: Position Low Prices Toward the Left</h2> <p class="p1">According to a 2002 study, when designing a layout, you should position prices on the left if you want them to appear smaller. Here’s the reasoning.</p> <p class="p1">Research shows that people associate directional cues with certain concepts. Up is usually associated with good, whereas down is usually associated with bad. You give a thumbs up to things you like and a thumbs down to things you don’t. In the Christian faith, good people go up to heaven, and bad people go down to hell.</p> <p class="p1">This notion of up being good and down being bad triggers a spatial association. A 2004 study found that people recognized positive words faster when those words are positioned at the top of a layout. They recognize negative words faster when positioned near the bottom of a layout.</p> <p class="p1">This same principle applies to numbers, including prices.</p> <p class="p1">When people conceptualize numbers, they imagine a horizontal like with numbers going up from left to right. The smaller numbers on the left, the larger numbers on the right.</p> <p class="p1">Since people associate smaller numbers as belonging on the left, positioning prices on the left side of a layout can trigger someone to associate it with a smaller value. The opposite works with larger numbers. If you want a number to appear large, position it on the right of a layout.</p> <p class="p1">For example: for a message saying, “Receive a $20 credit for every person you refer.” you’ll want to place the $20 towards the right of the layout so that those seeing it will associate it with a large number making the offer more appealing.</p> <p class="p1">The whole point of this tactic is to change the percept