How Cross Selling Rewards Your Business

Cross selling is another process that, like upselling, means that your business receives more sales. Unlike upselling, cross selling focuses on selling an additional product to your customers. For example, if the customer is looking at buying a surfboard, you can offer them surfboard wax as well. Instead of buying the one product they came to buy, they end up buying additional items that they feel as though they need. They’re happier because they feel as though they are thoroughly prepared; you, as the business, succeed in making more sales.

How can you prepare to cross sell?

Here are several ways that you can prepare and cross sell correctly to gain the most benefit for your business.

1. Arm Yourself With Knowledge – Be prepared to know what products go well together and why a buyer should be convinced to take that extra item. You need to prepare your business’s website thoroughly so that common products are paired together. Know why a customer would want to buy that extra item. If you do not know why, they will not either, and you will not be able to make the extra sale.

2. Automate – Automate cross-selling by setting your website to show what other buyers have bought. You can influence a buyer by letting them see what a majority of people are buying together. If they are looking at a sweater and they see a large amount of people are also buying boots with that sweater, they may be tempted to at least look at the boots if not add them to their cart. You can set your website to automatically do this depending on the percentage of customers clicking over or purchasing a certain item. Periodically check through to make sure that recommendations are related. However, most of the time your customers will take care of that by buying related items. This is a hands-free tool that does not require maintenance once set up, but allows your customers to view similar items.

3. Saving Money – Show your customer how much money they will save. Demonstrate how if they buy these two items packaged together, they will save $10, etc. The customer may not have even known that the second item was something they needed. However, after looking at it, they may decide that they really would like to have that item. They see that they will save money by buying them together, and the customer decides to buy both items. This is cross selling, because the customer
   only came to originally buy one item. Another way to display how your customer can save money is through a discounted second buy. You might advertise saying “If you buy another you will receive $x off.” The customer sees it as an opportunity to save money by buying two. You, as the company, also win because you will be selling two products when you might have only sold one.

4. Offering Best Results – To really catch a customer’s eye, offer them the best results…if they buy another product that is! Shampoo bottles are a common example of this. They often say that best results can be obtained through purchasing the accompanying conditioner as well. For some products, this step may not apply. However, with products such as electronics, cleaning products, or in-home improvement, this step will work very nicely. Recommend, either on the packaging or website or both, that best results can be obtained through using Product B as well.

5. Be Active – Do not simply disappear when your customer is not on your website. However, do not be overly active either. Find a nice balance. Email savings to your customers. If they were recently looking at buying a highchair, for example, offer baby chewing rings or baby walker toys. If a customer is interested in one product, they might be interested in another that you offer. However, they need to know that your product exists. Put expert recommendations on your website. People always like seeing those to spur them into action. Email periodically but refrain from sending mail every day. Only send emails that catch the customer’s eye, such as a discount on the high chair if you buy the chewing rings as well. This can motivate a customer to take their step in purchasing the product.

Cross selling will help your business grow, and you will be rewarded in the long run with more sales and happier customers.