How we change what others think, feel, believe and do

Font Effects

Disciplines > Marketing > Pricing > Font Effects

Description | Example | Discussion | See also

Description

When displaying pricing and information, attributes of the font you use may have very different effects on the perception of the person reading this. For example:

• Larger numbers or letters gain greater attention. This can be used to highlight key words and bargain prices and reduce the significance of other numbers.
• Numbers in red stand out more than numbers in black. Again, this can be used to grab attention (and maybe distract from other, less attractive items).
• The color used for the font (and the background) are affected by cultural meaning of colors.
• Serif fonts seem more formal and can be used to add a sense of reliability and tradition. They may also be seen as boring.
• Sans-serif fonts suggest simplicity and honesty. They are easier to read and so help the reader speed through the price without pausing to think about it.
• Script fonts communicate elegance and can be harder to read. They can also suggest informality.
• Unusual fonts suggest quirkiness and individuality. They may be deliberately connected with the overall brand (which itself may have significant price associations).
• Italic adds emphasis, dynamism and urgency.
• Bold shouts loudly and adds authority.

Example

A store displays a sale price in big, bold red numbers, with the 'old' price in smaller, thinner black strike-out font below.

A price list is written with a smaller font for the actual price, in order to reduce attention to this.

A restaurant uses an elegant curly font for its prices. This lettering makes the price a little harder to read.

Discussion

The size, shape and color of fonts used in pricing is often ignored, yet it can have a surprisingly significant effect, as can the font used in other product descriptions.

It is common for prices to be shown with the dollar amount in a large font and the cent amount in a smaller font. This is typically used with such as the 99 effect, where the smaller '99' is trivialized by making it less noticeable.

There are also confusing and counter-sense alternatives. For example it has been found that sale prices in smaller font than the original price lead to more sales, not less as might be expected.

See also

The 99 Effect, The Meaning of Colors, Smaller Font