"Priced to sell at 9.99!"

Shops have always delighted in setting prices slightly below the full amount of a dollar or pound, and whether it’s 9.99 or 9.95 us consumers still feel it’s much better value. A new study has shown that this 1p or 5p saving still gets us by the purse strings, with a 15% increase in sales over the ‘full’ priced equivalent. But why is this? Psychologists talk about the perceived savings that affect our emotions much more than they should – and why our 40th birthday hits us more than our 39th. As emotional creatures we should not be surprised to be manipulated this way, and any shop keeper would be a fool to lose 15% of their business.

Ironically, in the US and Canada the price at $9.99 is not even accurate. Once you take your purchase to the checkout you’ll find tax has been added – around 8% in New York for example – making your purchase over the round $10.00 figure that is such a barrier. Of course by that point you already have the item in hand and you’re ready to go and as humans we hate to prove our own decisions wrong by putting the product back on the shelf.