Pricing Question

[aLilBiteOfCute]

What do you think looks better.. prices that end with .99 or that end in an even .00?
I mean like if something cost $4.99 or $5.00, which do you think is more likely to get sales?
Sorry if it's a stupid question, but I'm just wondering what looks more 'pleasing' to people lol. And if I should change how I do my pricing.

[Former_Member]

I would prefer .00
I'm not sure why I just do! :)

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Ok thanks for your answer! :) I'll see what everyone says and then adjust my pricing accordingly. :)

[ChrisOsCreations]

if something costs 4.99 , usually we end up have in mind that we spend 4$ for that item

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Yeah that's what I was wondering. My prices are already really low. But my products appeal to tweens and teens especially, and I wonder if what might look like higher prices would turn them off (since they usually have a limited budget).

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Oh I just found this in the Etsy archives-

" As mentioned in this thread (& most of the previous ones) many artisans find that they sell more without the rounded numbers. Some change their prices to round ones after reading these threads & their sales drop. It has been documented by many people, including BlueBoxStudio above.
---------------------------

Out of the 40 posts in this thread, one person said they sell more with the price rounded off to .95.

I still say it says 'mass prouduced'. Add to that the sometimes crappy pictures, and it just makes it look even cheaper.

I'm not knocking anyone who uses .99, and I am certainly not saying their items are cheap or mass produced. That's just how it comes off to me.

Posted at 7:24 pm Jul 28, 2009 EDT"

[aLilBiteOfCute]

So I guess it comes down to possibly selling more with the .99 ending than the .00 ending.. or looking better quality with the .00 ending but selling less? =/

Does it look cheaper made and 'mass produced' with the .99 ending to you guys?

[ChrisOsCreations]

as Chris i hate .99 , it's like you want to trick me
but it's marketing so..
i would prefer .75 or .50

[kitticaps]

Well this could be looked at as the same as the argument where low prices might be looked at as cheap quality. Yes, teens/tweens are on a low budget, and they will probably go for the cheaper item, but I think that you should want customers that buy your things because they really like it, not because it was cheaper than something else!

I was selling my jewelry really cheap and I would get a lot of sales, but the effort wasn't worth how much I was selling for (was making about $2-3 an hour). Well I upped my prices and someone actually bought a bracelet that I set for $18! It felt good to know that price wasn't a problem for them, and they paid for it because they really liked it (I hope!). :)

I also considered doing the .99 ending but I decided not to. I think it does give off a sort of grocery store/factory feeling, though.

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Yeah what both of you said makes sense. What also comes to my mind is that the .99 following the dollar amount looks almost 'cluttered' (for lack of a better way of putting it). It looks 'cleaner' with the rounded numbers to me.

[ChrisOsCreations]

Michelle i did the same when i started , but not making 2-3$ an hour , not even covering my materials
i've learned since then , actually i'm still learning
pricing is the hardest thing i believe

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Yes pricing is hard. Sometimes just a dollar or two difference can determine whether something will sell or not.

[kitticaps]

It is a tough part of selling on Etsy! But keep adjusting it and it will be totally right. Go with your instinct.

People on here have to remember that this is not ebay, it's a (mostly) /hand/made marketplace. The majority of the customers on here are here for the handmade, pure product, not for cheap prices. I had a girl on Tumblr bash me for having double or triple prices for my items compared to hers (She still sells her friendship bracelets for a mere $2-4, which take at least an hour to make). Everytime I would post my item on Tumblr to advertise my shop, she would reblog it and try to start an argument about the economy and whatnot.

And Heather, your shop is very cute!

[ChrisOsCreations]

$2-4 for macrame bracelets are way tooo low
it takes time even the simplest knots

i try to be fair , not to expensive not too cheap
i'm currently revamping my store , photos - prices etc
+ creating draft listing for the winter cause i 'll be searching for a job for sure:(

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Thanks Michelle! :) Wow so someone was actually bashing you for your prices being higher than hers? How rude of her. D=

I'm just kind of wondering if my prices are ok.. with a couple of things- if I should round them to whole numbers, and if my prices are too low. Not all of my prices look to low (I don't think), but some of them I wonder if they're a little too low. I'm just worried that if I make my prices higher then they won't sell. A common question, I know.

[Former_Member]

Interesting read!

I am fairly new here. Setted my store up at start of July. I struggled with my pricing due to my items being made from Hama beads and not made from metal so I was worried I was over-pricing. I didn't get any sales in July but recently I have gotten 2 orders due to having a 'sale'. This is great for me I think as it will start some sales , I hope and at least I will get valuable feedback on my store so I have a good reputation. I have now put my prices up to original prices. I bear in mind how much my materials costed and how long some items take to make, like replica symbols like wonder woman...

I have been getting custom orders in from elsewhere recently. And I am hoping that people will end up being interested in my items at full priced.

I too considered the .99 idea but the look looks cluttered. It is better to price thinks at the price you feel is right and deserved, considering the amount of work and care you put into the item and the profit is needed to help you continue your business.

Anyhow brilliant read and loved hearing peoples opinions :) cleared my mind :)

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Sarah, Thanks for your reply. :) And yes it seems we all go through this at the beginning. D=
I started July 9th, so I'm pretty new here as well.

[ChrisOsCreations]

heather i would add 1-2$
your items are handmade, here you get a phone charm for 3euros , one made in china with a stupid light inside
also don't forget to add the fees at the prices (especially pay pal:P)

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Oh and I'm also basing my prices on the added cost of shipping. I mean like if someone goes to a store and pays about $5.00 for something, they might not want to spend $5.00 for that same thing plus the added cost of shipping. Know what I mean?
Even though since we're artists and crafters, our items won't be found in the stores. But I'm just pondering everything.

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Thanks Chris. :) I do kind of add my fees in (Etsy, Paypal, etc.) in my shipping. I charge $1.99 shipping for most of my items, but the actual cost is usually $1.64. So I am making up for the fees anyway, or partially. :)

[ChrisOsCreations]

don't think about it
if your shipping cost is fair priced they won't have a problem

also when the shipping cost is more that the item's cost ( Europe here) , i don't know ,it's not that appealing

[aLilBiteOfCute]

Yeah I've never had anyone complain about my shipping cost. Because it's just a little more than the actual price but nothing outrageous. :)

Also I like the Paypal feature of being able to hide the cost of shipping on the shipping label lol. :P

[ChrisOsCreations]

i've added at my policies that the extra pennies go for envelopes /bubbles/boxes etc (usually i end up paying a little extra, but that's ok)

ow also add measurements on your listings:-)
for example i don't remember how large a sent is (the last time i was at usa ,was 21 years ago) :P, so probably there are more ppl like me:-)

[aLilBiteOfCute]

That's a good idea to write that in the policies. I should probably add that too.

lol I was adding measurements at first, then I got lazy! Then I just started taking a picture next to a dime or nickel. :D I didn't think about that people from outside of USA might not know the size of our change here lol! But yes, I should probably start putting the measurements in again.

[ChrisOsCreations]

it's the worst thing:P

anyway i'm off (i have to rest my wrist)
gl :-)