Vat conversion rates (UK)
-
Does anyone have any evidence about the impact of displaying or not displaying prices including VAT on your website on conversions?
A client wants to show prices excluding VAT so the prices look competitive with their competition who also display excluding VAT (20% UK sales tax). I have explained that the sudden 20% increase to the basket cost will put off a lot of customers (even if all prices are marked as excluding tax) but they will not listen.
We have previously displayed both prices but this looked messy and customers got confused. What I really need is some research that shows what the impact of doing this is (ignoring the fact that it is not even allowed by HMRC).
Any thoughts welcome!
-
Dirk, I perhaps was not clear enough - I am not suggesting that prices are displayed without VAT alone. We would display both (for the reasons you point out).
The point is that many non B2B customers get confused by 2 prices, particularly those from overseas and it makes the site look a mess.
My recommendation is emphatically to display just the inc VAT price as that is what everyone pays and it removes any confusion.
I guess this discussion proves that there is little evidence to show the impact of this on conversion rates.
-
I stand corrected! Thanks Dirk, this is great! =]
-
Read this, it's obvious
If you are selling to B2C customers in the UK you have to include the VAT in the price your list - it's a legal obligation (this is the case all over Europe)
Quote: Any <abbr title="Value Added Tax">VAT</abbr> due is already included in the price of something you buy in a shop. No tax is added when you pay.
Source; https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-shopping
rgds
Dirk
-
This is fair. I really like Tom's answer as well - lots to think about.
Have you considered surveying your audience or checking into what are your competitors doing? The issue is, this isn't an obvious yes or no, there are factors and you have to consider the audience, the industry, and how your site is set up. In my opinion, you're betting off testing these sorts of things as no two sites/audiences are the same.
-
Both valid answers of course - just was hoping for someone to say "read this - its obvious". It is such a common discussion with clients who serve trade and consumers but data seems thin on the ground. A/B testing hard to do on a small site and get valid results.
-
I think the biggest influencer in this decision would be what the client is advertising.
If they're advertising mainly B2B, exclude VAT. If it's B2C, include it.
There are exceptions to the rule - for example, websites like Scan.co.uk and eBuyer.com will typically show ex VAT prices more prominently, but that's because, while being a retail website, most of their bigger orders come other businesses.
So I would ask who is it that your client typically serves - businesses or individuals?
If it is individuals you are obliged to show the VAT price before the purchasing decision (add to basket) has been placed, pretty sure that's a legal requirement. You can display both, as Scan and Ebuyer too, and that will suffice. And if you're paying for Google Shopping inclusion, Google is sophisticated enough to know which price is your VAT and non-VAT price and will show the VAT prices in its results (if applicable).
Nothing wrong with showing both - but if you plan on showing one, it all comes down to who the website is intending to serve.
-
Hi there
This really could go either direction - showing the VAT or not. Some users might appreciate that sort of thing, but you should really A/B test this sort of thing instead of choosing one side or another.
You can take advantage of testing these scenarios:
VWO
Optimizely
Google ExperimentsTesting will give you a clearer picture of what route to take in this situation based on your audience. Every site and audience is different, so testing is the best route to go. You should check out VWO Resources section - it's packed with ideas and stats based on industry and the types of tests you want to run.
Hope this helps! Good luck!
-
Hi,
I am sharing my personal experience on my website with .uk extension. In categories pages I am showing excluded price. When customer click on 'buy now' button they go to product page where I am showing both price including & excluding vat both but I have highlighted included price with bold & some graphics. For me it is working well & conversion rate is fine.
Thanks
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Any General feedback or Experience on Page Titles and Click Through Rates ?
Moz, I have managed to climb onto page one for a couple of keywords i am really happy with, Just looking for any feedback on page titles and different effects on CTR The page i am working with is product pages I tried a simple headline which was a branded product keyword, this way when the keyword matches the user search it will stand out as the the majority of the title is bold because of this match,, Example below <title>Jeffs<strong> Lollipops</strong></title> and my other option is to look at testing a more descriptive title to fit the limit <title>A selection of sweet Strawberry and Cherry<strong> Lollipops</strong> from Jeff<//Title></p> <p>has anyone looked into this and tested for results in CTR ? i can see there being a youmoz about it somewhere?</p> <p>Alot of people i assume will just say test test test, but any feedback on how other moz users tackle title tags for CTR would be great,</p> <p>Thanks</p> <p>James</p> <p> </p> <p> </p></title>
Conversion Rate Optimization | | Antony_Towle0 -
Conversion Rate boost - Website Feedback
We are a relatively young company with an Okay conversion rate of around 2% across several different sales channels. I am mentioning this because our website with the same type of products has a very low conversion rate of under 1%. I know this is a deep topic, involving different analytic metrics, but would like to ask MOZ community members if there's anything obvious that needs improvement on this website www.cherrywalls.com that would help to increase conversions. I will be happy to answer any additional questions or to clarify things! Thank you for your time! Any suggestions and/or critique are greatly appreciated!
Conversion Rate Optimization | | CherryW1 -
Landing page experts, for lead gen conversion
If I am wanting to hire a conversion expert, especially for PPC landing pages in the insurance space. Do you think that the expert should be specific to the insurance space or just to landing pages to get the maximize conversion optimization?
Conversion Rate Optimization | | jdcline0 -
What is the best way to reduce bounce rate from Pinterest Traffic?
Hi, Our bounce rate is very high on incoming traffic from Pinterest. What can we do to redirect the traffic to more than single product page and/or convert them to sign up for newsletter, etc? Anyone know if there is an average bounce rate from Pinterest traffic? Thanks.
Conversion Rate Optimization | | stats440 -
Can someone give me some good articles about conversion?
I finally bought the seo moz pro version. I consider myself pretty knowledgeable in seo, content/social media marketing, but I am a rookie at conversion optimization. HELP PLEASE! I am trying to convert traffic into phone calls and/or contact forms.
Conversion Rate Optimization | | SwanJob0 -
How important is Conversion Rate Optimisation?
Silly question I know but just wanted to talk about it, more of a discussion then anything. How important is CRO to you? Anyone have any stats before and after? Cheers
Conversion Rate Optimization | | activitysuper0 -
How to improve my conversions
Hey all, As always thanks in advance to any help given. So I think we haven't done a bad job, but I know there is always more that can be done with conversions. We have a website which provides guestlist to clubs in London, we are competitive on our keywords and ppc and get the clicks through with very very relevant adverts and meta descriptions.... The questions is 'How do I improve our conversion rate on page?' The said pages are setup like the examples below: www.capitalalist.com/movida-guestlist/ www.capitalalist.com/chinawhite-guestlist/ www.capitalalist.com/mahiki-guestlist/ The conversion comes when the click 'join guestlist' and fill out the form. Any help with be GREATLY appreciated!
Conversion Rate Optimization | | AdenBrands1 -
Lookiing for examples of local "small biz" sites with phone or contact form conversion points
Hi Guys, I'm looking for any good examples of small business sites that you've come across that do a good job at converting potential visitors to clients. I'm primarily thinking about service oriented business such as Doctors, Dentists, Salons, Clothing stores, small restuarants, car detailing services, local photographers, etc. I'm just trying to digest other examples and look for new inspirations.
Conversion Rate Optimization | | DotCar0