In Australia, New Zealand and the UK, consumers expect the headline price to include tax and compulsory fees. Drip pricing loses trust and can breach consumer law. Clear pricing is also one of the simplest ways to look more premium.
The total price is the price
Australian Consumer Law requires businesses selling to consumers to show a single total price that includes GST and any compulsory charges, where the business can calculate them. UK consumer pricing must include VAT, and the CMA has focused on drip pricing, where compulsory fees are revealed late in the purchase. In New Zealand, the Commerce Commission has taken action against misleading pricing under the Fair Trading Act.
Business-to-business pricing is often quoted excluding GST or VAT, which is normal. The issue is clarity. If the customer has to work out what they will really pay, you have added doubt to the sale.
Clarity reads as confidence
Businesses often hide prices because they worry about scaring people off. In our work, a clear starting price usually does the opposite. It filters out poor-fit enquiries and tells good-fit customers that you know your value.
The Studio approach is to publish a clear from price for each core offer, state what is included, and name the things that change it. A wedding venue might show a total package price per guest including GST, with the few optional extras listed below it. Nothing is hidden, so nothing feels like a trick.
| Instead of | Try |
|---|---|
| Price on application for everything | A from price for each core offer |
| Fees added at checkout | All compulsory fees in the headline price |
| Unclear whether tax is included | State inc. GST, incl. VAT or ex. GST clearly |
| A long list of add-ons | Three optional extras that genuinely matter |
Put it to work
A practical next step
Look at your website and your last quote as if you were the customer. Could you tell what you would pay in total within ten seconds? If not, rewrite the top line so you could.
Explore the toolsSources and method
- ACCC on displaying prices
The single price requirement in Australia.
- CMA on drip pricing
UK guidance including the requirement to include mandatory fees in the headline price.
- Commerce Commission New Zealand on pricing
New Zealand guidance on misleading pricing.
The methods in this article are Maurice Studio recommendations. External sources inform the underlying principles and rules referred to. They do not validate the Studio approach or guarantee commercial results. Rules change, so check the current position for your business and get specialist advice where it matters.