Should I increase my prices due to tax and wage increases?

A survey by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) reveals that over half (55%) of UK companies plan to increase prices within the next three months, a significant jump from 39% in the previous survey. This comes as businesses face a “pressure cooker” of rising costs and taxes, leading to a “slump” in business confidence to a two-year low.

The BCC’s survey of nearly 5,000 firms found that nearly two-thirds expressed concerns about taxes following the Budget, particularly the upcoming rise in national insurance contributions (NICs) for businesses starting in April.

This planned price increase by businesses risks further fueling inflation, which, despite falling from its 2022 peak, has recently seen upward movement in both October and November. This is particularly concerning given the current cost of living challenges faced by many.

While the Treasury maintains that the Budget provides stability for businesses and that over half of employers will see either a cut or no change in their NI bills, the BCC’s findings suggest widespread concern and a likely wave of price increases.

When did you last increase your prices? Are your current prices competitive? Is the lack of price increases impacting your profit margins?

In today’s dynamic business environment, staying on top of your pricing strategy is crucial. Understanding your costs and setting competitive prices are essential for success. This blog post will explore key strategies to ensure your pricing accurately reflects your value proposition and helps you achieve your business goals.

Despite these challenges, the reluctance to raise prices is a common concern, driven by fears of customer resistance or potential loss of business. The apprehension often stems from questions like: What if we come up against stiff resistance from customers? Or what if they take their business elsewhere? What if they are less accommodating because inflation is decreasing now?

In reality however, price increases are still happening everywhere due to the increase pressure on businesses and are something you should be forecasting and reviewing every single year. We’ve had some interesting conversations with clients over the past few months regarding pricing and we’ve found many businesses are facing increased costs now which will have to be passed on to their customers in order to stay afloat.

We’ve found that many of our clients fall into three categories:

• Customer Perception: Some owners have taken a stay back, reviewed their pricing and realised they haven’t been charging enough for years. Many haven’t increased their prices since the economic crash of 2008 for fear of “upsetting” customers and losing business.
• Increased Demand: The demand for some services has increased and therefore consumers will be willing to pay just that little bit extra.
• Increasing Costs: The cost of living, materials, employees has increased drastically in the last few years meaning the price of what you do has ultimately increased and needs to be passed on.

Setting prices can be as complex or as simple as you make it. Below we explain a formula and some tips that can help you increase your pricing without upsetting your customers.

How to increase prices without upsetting your customers 

Step 1 – Do your research and play the numbers game 

Do your due diligence and gather as much information as possible on past price increases you’ve made. You need to learn how customers have reacted to price changes in the past and what prompted these changes. Review what impact this had on your customers and your profits. This way you know how to deliver the news to your customers.

Also take the time to research the demand of your products and services in your customer base and the market. This way you can adjust your prices per service / product rather than just a blanket increase across the board. You may also find some services / products see little sales, so you could bundle them together! Or you could offer different options. For example, if you usually sell a 10-pack of toner cartridges for £100 but need to raise the price to £120, create some additional, different-sized packages, such as a five-pack for £70 and a three-pack for £45. This makes the 10-pack seem like a deal, even at the new, higher price.

We can produce reports for you with all of this information so you can make informed decisions here. Just get in touch with us at enquiries@a4g-llp.co.uk. 

Step 2 – Tell your team!

Don’t just inform your marketing team of price changes, you need to educate your whole sales team on how the price increases will affect them. Educate them on how to pass this on without upsetting your customers (we’ll come onto this next!).

This is a great opportunity to remind them of the value proposition and how you may have improved the products or added new features.

You want to start the internal communication process at least three months ahead of the effective date for the price change. This gives the sales team time to equip themselves with the right message for the best customers and can actually help conversion of current prospects as there’s now a deadline for current pricing.

Step 3 – Communicate with your customers 

If you haven’t increased prices by an inflationary amount in recent years then it can cause difficulty because your regular customers are not expecting the increase. The communication with your clients and customers has to be clear and requires preparation to minimise debates and ensure a successful outcome.

The point to bear in mind is that your customers and competitors face the same challenges and some of them will be, or should be, contemplating a similar strategy. This can help in how you communicate to your customers as you will need to be prepared to explain the reasons behind your price increase, and no one should be embarrassed to stand by such a decision. Ultimately a business has to make money otherwise it would be called a charity.

If you have a policy of incremental price increases each year, then your customer base will be used to this policy and a consistent and fair approach to pricing will remove some of the inertia felt in comparison to a business that is nervous about its pricing.

The best ways to tell your customers about a price increase without upsetting this is to:

• communicate with your customers transparently
• provide a meaningful explanation for the price increase
• choose the best timing to increase prices – ideally when you’ve just completed work for them they’re happy with
• regularly change and increase prices (when necessary and justified)
• amend your marketing strategy to highlight improvements in product or service quality