The Selling Power of 9

What is the power of the number nine when it comes to selling? If you head out to the shops you’ll see the number nine everywhere, but why is that?

The same is true if you shop online, the number nine is king.

You know the kind of thing we’re talking about, instead of something being £100 its marked down to £99. This is to make the price seem more attractive and, therefore, generate the sale.

The really interesting thing is that we all know about this.

It is quite possibly one of the most overused and widely understood pieces of selling psychology.

So, with its mass proliferation does the power of nine really remain effective selling strategy?

Well, yes.

Termed “charmed prices”, this tactic has been tested and studied by some of the world’s best research institutions. In fact an experiment by MIT and the University of Chicago compared a standardised item of woman’s clothing at three different prices. The prices used were $34, $39 and $44, which one do you think the researchers were able to sell most of?

You got it, the $39 item sold the most in spite of there being a cheaper option available.

What can outsell the powerful number 9?

Before you marketers and salespeople go and change all of your pricing to reflect the power of the number nine you may want to consider that there’s been some research into a pricing structure that seems to outshine the number nine.

In studies where the powerful number nine was tested against a sales price that emphasise the original value of the item, they emphasise original price won.

For example, there are two items one for sale at £89 and the other one for sale and £90 with an original price of £100. The research shows that people are more likely to go for the reduced £90 price even though it is more expensive, and goes against the regular power of nine sales psychology.

However, don’t abandon all hope in the power of nine.

In another side-by-side test sales items with reduced prices were tested, this time one without the number nine in the final reduced figure and one with the number nine in the final reduced figure.

When used in conjunction with a price tag emphasising the original price, the number nine wins again.

Is there anything quite as powerful as the number nine when it comes to sales psychology?