What better example of an upsell than when you order your food choice at a fast-food joint. You state your order of one burger meal. Fast-food workers will conveniently offer you to upsize your drinks and fries. Smooth and easy, right? You can do it, too!
There are different sales strategies you can employ. There is cross-sell, bundle, add-on, and upsell. You have the option to use all four sales strategies at once. But for today, we will focus on upselling. An upsell is a sales strategy where you convince your existing customers to purchase more without making them feel that you are taking advantage of them.
We are here to help you navigate the upsell world and increase your sales. We are hoping that by reading this you will be inspired to implement creative ways to upsell among Your Customers.
1. You would need to decide what upsell to offer to your customers.
You would need to have a brainstorming session with the members of your business to decide this. You can include in your consideration the following factors: the demand of the product, the longevity of the product, and the price of the product. Remember that an upsell is when you offer to make your customer’s original purchase become better, bigger, faster, stronger, and pricier. For example, a burger is always paired with a soda and fries. Why not offer to make the soda and fries bigger?
2. You would need to always suggest an upsell.
Suggest but don’t be pushy. Being pushy would turn off and sometimes offend your customers. Customers are intelligent. They can smell it if you are only after your sales. They might decide not to purchase anything at all. And we don’t want that. We need to avoid that scenario at all.
At your physical store, aside from verbally offering an upsell to your customer, you can strategically place upsell signs near the counter. If you are a fast-food chain, you can also place upsell signs at the table. On your website, you can include upselling prompt after the customer has added it to the cart.
3. You would need to make your upsell look and feel important.
You would need to educate the customer on the benefits of the upsell without sounding too hard. After the offer of upselling, you can enumerate the pros of the upsell.
4. You would need to add a personal touch to the upsell.
Getting to know your customer is a sure way of making it easier for you to convince them for an upsell.
One good example is calling your customer by their first names. It might be awkward at first but with practice, you will get better at it. You must also remember their purchase pattern and choices so when they come back, you can readily suggest it to them. When they come back, you will have the product ready for them.
5. You offer freebies.
You offer free shipping. How does this connect to upsell? Well, before they can take the freebies or the free shipping, they would need to qualify by purchasing a certain amount of product.
Your freebies do not have to be something grand. It can be a pen, a notepad, or even a keychain.
6. You would need to show your appreciation to your customers.
You can start by asking them if it is ok to post what they have purchased on your IG or Twitter post. Once they agree, you can your appreciation by publicly thanking them online and tagging them on the post itself.
7. You would need to regulate the price of the upsell. Don’t charge them too much with the upsell.
8. You would need to use the rule of three. When you present the upsell, show your customers three options for them to choose from.
9. You need to be ready if the upsell product is out of stock. You need to be ready with your alternative offer. Don’t let the upsell opportunity pass.
10. You need to be flexible in offering the upsell. An upsell doesn’t only happen when the customer is still at the counter, paying for their purchase. An upsell can still happen after they have paid for their purchase.
11. You can always try again. If your customer will decide not to take the upsell, accept it gracefully. You can try again by sending a follow-up email offering the upsell. And while you are at it, try offering discounts to your customer as well.
12. You can offer a reward to your customer for every upsell. You can reward them with store points. For example, for every $100 purchase, your customer will earn two points. These points will be equivalent to $1. These store points can be used to purchase your products in the future. This is a win for your customer who is on a budget.
13. You can make the upsell by making it more visual. Visuals can be done for your customers by showing comparisons.
14. You can use a referral program to encourage upselling. For every referral your customer makes, an X amount of discount will be given to them every time they purchase an upsell.
15. You can incorporate in the upsell “you only live once (YOLO)” belief. Your customers will likely make that impulsive upsell purchase if you gently remind them that they need to try since they only live once.
16. You don’t make your customer forget about their cart. You don’t let them abandon their carts. This is true for online stores. Make a subtle prompt to your customers reminding them that their chosen items are patiently for them.
17. You need to keep your customers’ experience positive. The more positive experience they have with your product, the easier it is for you to upsell.
An upsell actually makes a lot of sense since it is a product that your customer will use. An upsell not only means an increase in your sales. An upsell when done correctly will not only benefit you but your customer as well. Always remember that an upsell promotes customer loyalty.
