More sales through up-selling and cross-selling

In e-commerce, there are two sales techniques worth looking at: upselling and cross-selling.According to a Forrester analyst, about 10-30 percent of e-commerce sales are attributed to additional product proposals. But to properly use up-selling and cross-selling, it's important to know the difference. Trustedshops explains why upselling and cross-selling is also worthwhile for online retailers:What is up-selling?Up-selling is the tactic of suggesting the more expensive (better, newer, etc.) product of the same category to the customer. This includes upgrades such as more power for the new laptop. Many airlines offer the option of more legroom when an airline ticket is purchased. U.S. airline JetBlue made nearly $190 million in additional revenue in 2014 with its "Even More Space" option. Many customers would spend more money on a better or additional product if it gave them an advantage.That means, conversely: If you don't offer your customers up-sell options, you can't generate the maximum revenue. However, it is important to make sure that the up-sell product fits the customer's needs. So if a customer puts a cheap 400 euro TV in the shopping cart, it makes much more sense to offer a TV that is a little bigger or more modern and costs only 50 euros more. Offering a 4k curved TV for 1500 euros, on the other hand, would be an inappropriate up-sell offer because the customer is interested in a cheaper model. Rule of thumb: The upsell product can be up to 30 percent more expensive than the one the customer selected first, without scaring them away.What is cross-selling?Cross-selling is a sales technique in which an additional product is suggested to the customer that matches the one he has already chosen. For example:- Additional batteries offered to the customer when buying a new digital camera during the check-out process.- The HDMI cable to go with the new TV.- The potting soil when buying flower pots.- Coffee beans or descaler when the customer adds a fully automatic coffee machine to their shopping cart.Amazon states that 35 percent of its sales are due to cross-selling. The industry average is about 10 percent. So adding statements like "is often bought together" or "customers interested in this product also bought..." to an online store helps customers store better and has the potential to increase sales at the same time.Why is upselling and cross-selling particularly worthwhile? Unlike cross-selling tactics, where there is almost always an opportunity to sell more, not every product is suitable for an up-sell. That's why the rule is: tend to offer only the most popular and best-selling products (many product reviews) for up-sell. Products that are already popular and relevant with other customers have greater up-sell potential. Cross-selling and upselling works especially well with existing customers. According to a study by Marketing Metrics, the likelihood of selling something additional to someone who is already a customer is 60-70 percent. In contrast, the probability of convincing new customers of one's own goods is 5-20 percent. Likewise, upselling and cross-selling help increase conversion rates, sell more products, present customers with a wider range of goods, and ultimately make them happier.When should cross-selling and up-selling be used?There are basically three ways where cross-selling and up-selling can be offered:-. Before buying: On a product page, other products from the same category can be presented under the product or in the sidebar. During the purchase: Offering cross-sells during the checkout process (in the shopping cart and during/just before the checkout process) increases sales by three percent.-. After purchase: Even after the purchase, follow-up emails can still generate new cross-sell sales.The five best tips for upselling and cross-selling1. show a choice, but do not overdo it. Offering too many choices will only confuse potential customers. Better to show a smaller, but more relevant number of products.2. Only show products that fit together and also support the customer's purchase intention. Offering the latest SLR camera to a customer who is looking for a cheap camera would be wasted potential. Additional batteries or a small camera bag are the better choice here.3. Make it palatable to the customer to spend more money by offering suitable products directly as a bundle with a small discount. Offering a camera directly with a bag, extra battery and memory card makes sense for the buyer, since he might buy these products anyway.4. Although the product price is an important decision factor when buying, the idea that "customers won't buy a more expensive product" remains a myth. Other decision factors include special offers, any coupons, shipping costs, customer reviews and product reviews. Which means that a customer tends to be willing to pay more if the upsell product has better reviews and meets their needs better.5. Show the customer why upsell or cross-sell makes sense to them. This can be done either with an emotional reason, "You can take great pictures longer with this extra battery," or with a logical reason, "If you choose this memory card with it, shipping is free." Giving emotional and logical reasons for the purchase increases the likelihood of ordering.