Dr. Jakob Nielson, web usability expert at useit.com, has done numerous studies of obstacles encountered by users on B2B websites. One obstacle is the inability of users to find pricing on corporate websites for products and/or services. Per Dr. Nielson, "Price is the most specific piece of information customers use to understand the nature of an offering, and not providing it makes people feel lost and reduces their understanding of a product line. We have miles of videotape of users asking 'Where's the price?' while tearing their hair out."
The dilemma to publish pricing seems to be a two-edged sword. If a prospect does not find any indication of pricing then they may abandon the site in search of it, never to return. On the other hand, publishing pricing has it's own drawbacks, including; 1) may tip off competitors, 2) it may further isolate the company's sales team from engaging the prospect, 3) the products and/or services may be complex and beyond the ability of a prospect to choose a correct configuration and 4) different customers (and partners) may receive different discount levels.
I read with interest Christian Maurer's latest entry "Sales vs. Marketing Debate" about Marketing clawing deeper into the sales funnel with increased web content. It seems that pricing is one of the last pieces of valuable information that visitors need, but can't find and Marketing has no idea how to exploit the need for it. Sales management needs to keep a close eye on pricing content; if it is mishandled the consequences could be devastating.