Pricing is the most powerful lever in any business, yet it’s often the one Australian small business owners are most afraid to touch. If you get it right, you can significantly boost your margins; get it wrong, and you risk scaring off your best leads and stalling your growth.
A/B testing your pricing page isn't just about changing numbers; it's about understanding how your customers perceive value. This guide will show you how to run these experiments safely, ensuring you gather data without compromising your bottom line.
Prerequisites
Before you start, ensure you have the following ready:- Google Tag Manager installed on your site.
- A testing tool like VWO, Optimizely, or a WordPress-specific alternative like Nelio A/B Testing.
- Sufficient Traffic: You generally need at least 500-1,000 visitors per month to your pricing page for results to be statistically significant.
- A Baseline: Know your current conversion rate and Average Order Value (AOV).
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Step 1: Define Your Primary Metric
Before changing a single digit, decide what success looks like. Is it more total customers, or a higher total revenue? Sometimes, raising prices leads to fewer customers but higher overall profit. What you should see: A spreadsheet or document clearly stating your "North Star" metric (e.g., Revenue Per Visitor or Monthly Recurring Revenue).Step 2: Segment Your Audience
To minimise risk, never test pricing on your entire audience at once. Use your testing tool to segment your traffic. Australian Context: You might want to exclude existing customers who are logged in to avoid "price shock" or complaints if they see a lower price than what they are currently paying. Focus your test on new visitors only.Step 3: Test Presentation, Not Just Price
One of the safest ways to "test pricing" without actually lowering your margins is to change how the price is presented. This is called 'Price Anchoring.' Action: Create a variation where you highlight a 'Most Popular' plan or change the order from highest-to-lowest price.Step 4: The 'Grandfather' Clause Setup
If you are testing a price increase, you must decide your policy for existing customers. To avoid a PR nightmare, ensure your test is configured so that existing users (tracked via cookies or login state) do not see the experimental pricing.Pro Tip: In Australia, the ACCC has strict guidelines on 'drip pricing' and misleading representations. Ensure the price shown in your test includes all mandatory fees and taxes (like GST) to stay compliant.
Step 5: Choose Your Variable
Pick one (and only one) element to change. Common variables include:- The Number: $99 vs $109.
- The Cadence: Monthly vs Annual (Annual billing usually improves cash flow).
- The Layout: A 3-column grid vs a single-column list.
- The Currency: If you sell internationally, test showing AUD vs USD based on IP address.
Step 6: Set Up Your Testing Tool
Log into your chosen A/B testing platform. Create a 'Split URL' or 'Visual' test. Screenshot Description: You should see a dashboard where you enter your 'Control' (the current page) and your 'Variation' (the new version). Ensure the traffic split is set to 50/50 for the fastest results, or 90/10 if you are particularly risk-averse.Step 7: Quality Assurance (QA) Check
This is the most critical step. Open your pricing page in an Incognito/Private browser window. Check for:- Does the 'Buy Now' button still work on both versions?
- Does the checkout page reflect the price shown in the test?
- Does the page look correct on mobile devices?
Step 8: Calculate Your Sample Size
Use an online A/B test duration calculator. Input your current conversion rate and the 'Minimum Detectable Effect' (how much of a change you want to see). Warning: Don't stop the test early because you see a 'win' in the first three days. This is a common mistake called 'peeking' that leads to false positives.Step 9: Launch and Monitor
Hit 'Publish' on your experiment. During the first 24 hours, monitor your backend sales closely. What you should see: A steady stream of data flowing into your testing dashboard. If sales drop to zero, stop the test immediately—you likely have a technical bug in your checkout integration.Step 10: Analyse the Qualitative Data
While the numbers tell you what is happening, tools like Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity (which record user sessions) tell you why. Action: Watch recordings of users on the experimental pricing page. Are they hovering over the price and then leaving? Are they clicking the 'FAQs' more often? This suggests price resistance or confusion.Step 11: Determine Statistical Significance
Wait until your testing tool reaches at least 95% statistical significance. This means there is only a 5% chance the result happened by luck.Step 12: Implementation or Iteration
If the variation won (e.g., higher revenue per visitor), implement that change permanently on your site. If it lost, don't delete the data! You've just learned what your market won't pay for, which is equally valuable.---
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Testing too many things at once: If you change the price and the button colour, you won't know which one caused the change in sales.
- Ignoring GST: For Australian B2C businesses, your displayed price must include GST. Ensure your test variations don't accidentally display 'Ex-GST' prices to some users and 'Inc-GST' to others.
- Short-term thinking: A lower price might get more sign-ups today, but if those customers churn (cancel) faster, you're losing money in the long run.
Troubleshooting
- Results are 'Inconclusive': This usually happens if your traffic is too low or the change you made wasn't bold enough. Try testing a more dramatic price difference.
- The 'Winner' didn't translate to more profit: Check your checkout data. Sometimes people click 'Buy' but drop off when they see the final total. Ensure your test covers the entire funnel.
- Technical Glitches: If the pricing page looks 'broken' (flickering), it’s likely a 'Flash of Original Content' (FOOC). You may need to move your testing script higher in the
of your website code.
Next Steps
Now that you've mastered pricing tests, the next step is to look at your checkout flow. Small frictions at the payment stage can undo all the hard work you've done on your pricing page.If you need help setting up advanced tracking or need a professional audit of your conversion funnel, contact the team at Local Marketing Group for a strategy session.