Member Article

Top tips for upselling

What is upselling?

The ability to know when an opportunity is available to benefit both you and your customer is a valued one in any business. Upselling – not to be confused with cross selling, whereby a completely different product is offered to customers – is the upgrade to a better product, or the offer of an additional product that will complement the one already on offer.

There are many upselling techniques that can be employed to ensure a successful sale, including knowing when the most appropriate time is and how best to approach one. See our top tips on upselling below.

Have a plan

Like most things in life, being prepared can take you a long way – and upselling is no different. To improve your rate of success and ensure your sales strategy comes across as natural as possible, preparation is key. Knowing your customer is a start, but knowing what they need and matching that to an available product or service that you can offer is the beginning of a successful sale. You have to be prepared to explain what the additional offer is and, specifically, how it can benefit your customer. Without preparation, it can often wrongly portray that the upsell is for your benefit only, which is not what you want.

Learn when the time is right

As a sales strategy, upselling relies on the ability to make an offer to a customer at the perfect time. That time is the small window between having agreed on a purchase and the end of the transaction. By its very nature, it’s impossible to upsell something before an initial purchase of a product or service has been made. Once the customer has agreed on purchasing a service, they are in the most likely period of accepting an additional product or service. Learning when and where an upsell can be introduced to a conversation is a crucial skill that can benefit you and your customer greatly if done correctly.

Be convincing

Preparation and timing are pointless if you find yourself perfectly positioned in the sale lane, but stall when it comes to explaining why the product or service on offer can specifically benefit your customer. Knowing exactly how it can add value to your customers’ current purchase is paramount to a successful sale. Remembering that upselling is for your customers and not merely for your profits can keep your motivations in the right place. Would you buy this additional service? Place yourself in the shoes of the consumer and it’ll soon help you decide if making the sale is the appropriate action to take.

Consider your customer’s budget

Understanding what your consumer can afford will give you the quickest indication as to whether the transaction is going to be successful. As a rule, the cost of an upsell should never exceed more than 25% of the value of the original purchase. Offering products any higher than this becomes counterproductive and can reduce your chances of success dramatically. Consumers want to feel as though they’re getting an additional or extra feature, not an entirely separate purchase.

If you’ve been wondering how to increase sales and see upselling as a viable option for you, then ensuring that you observe these basic tips for upselling can prove a successful sales strategy, whatever your business.

See www.sales-i.com for more information and tips on benefiting your business.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Chris Bourne .