Are you tired of watching your online sales stagnate? Don’t worry; you’re not alone. Many ecommerce businesses struggle with increasing sales, but it’s not impossible. Creating an effective upselling strategy is a great way to do just that!
Ecommerce upselling can help increase the value of each sale and boost your store’s revenue.
In this post, we’ll be sharing 6 easy and effective ways to upsell to your customers and take your ecommerce sales to the next level. We’ll also talk about why online stores need to upsell their customers to be successful.
Let’s dive in!
Table of Contents
What is Ecommerce Upselling?
E-commerce upselling is a sales technique. It encourages customers to buy a higher-end product. Instead of the one they’re considering, they choose a better one. For example, if a customer looks at a basic phone, the site might suggest a higher-end model. The goal is to increase the sale value.
Why do businesses use it? Upselling benefits both companies and customers. Companies increase their profits. Customers get a product that may offer more features or quality.
It’s important to upsell correctly. The suggested product should be relevant. It should also fit the customer’s needs. If done right, ecommerce upselling can enhance the shopping experience.
What is the Difference Between Upselling and Cross-Selling in Ecommerce?
Upselling is when a seller suggests a higher-priced or upgraded version of a product to a customer. Cross-selling is when a seller suggests related or complementary products to a customer.
Upselling aims to increase the value of each sale, while cross-selling aims to increase the number of products sold.
There’s a lot more to these two concepts. For more details, check out our recent post on upsell vs cross-sell differences.
To successfully upsell and cross-sell, you must understand your customers’ needs and preferences. Do the following:
- Offer personalized and relevant suggestions
- Use persuasive language
- Highlight the benefits of the product
It’s also important to be respectful and not push customers to make a purchase they’re not comfortable with. Implement your cross-selling and upselling strategy checklist in a way that benefits both the customer and the seller.
Benefits of Ecommerce Upselling for Your Store
Here are just a few of the many advantages that upselling can bring to your online store.
- Increased Average Order Value
By suggesting higher-priced versions of products to customers, upselling can help increase the value of each sale. This will lead to a higher average order value, which has a big impact on store revenue.
- Improved Customer Satisfaction
Some customers like to have the option to upgrade or add on to their purchase. You’re giving them more choice and control over their shopping experience. This will lead to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Better Product Visibility
You can also draw attention to certain products or lines of products in your store by upselling. By recommending better products, you help customers find items they might not have thought to buy otherwise.
- Increased Revenue
An effective ecommerce upselling strategy can help your store make more money, which is the biggest benefit. You can increase the value of each sale and boost your store’s bottom line by suggesting more expensive or better products.
6 Ecommerce Upselling Strategies to Boost Revenue
Upselling is a great way to make more money from your online store, but how do you do it effectively? Below are the six best upselling techniques for ecommerce.
We’ve included various case studies to help you better understand each concept. We’ll also provide some upselling strategy examples and best practices.
1. Offer a Side-by-Side Comparison
One way to upsell is by offering customers a side-by-side comparison of different products or versions of the same product. This can help them see the value in upgrading or purchasing a higher-priced item.
By putting the features, benefits, and costs of each product next to each other, you can help customers understand what each one has to offer. That way, they can make an informed decision.
Namecheap is a web host, and they know that their different plans can make customers confused. They want to maximize all purchases. Hence, they provide a side-by-side comparison.
This page is filled with a lot of information about their shared hosting plans. Customers can find reasons to go for the more expensive orders.
Tips:
- Highlight the features and benefits of the more expensive product.
- Use lots of numbers and figures where possible.
- Find ways to provide additional info if needed.
Example:
Imagine that a customer is looking to buy a new phone. You can show them a comparison of the basic model and the higher-end model, with features side by side.
The basic model may have 32GB of storage and 2GB of RAM, while the higher-end model may have 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM. The higher-end model may also have a better camera and a longer battery life. By showing a side-by-side comparison, you can help the customer see the obvious value in upgrading to the higher-end model.
2. Show Reasonable Alternatives
You can also present customers with reasonable alternatives to the product they are currently looking at. This helps them see the value in upgrading or purchasing a higher-priced item.
By giving prospects choices, you can help them find other products that might meet their needs or taste better.
Grocery stores and supermarkets have this upselling strategy down pat. They group products together with their alternatives.
As customers walk down the aisle looking for specific items, they can easily spot alternatives. The setup may also include labels offering discounts and deals. This gives shoppers a reason to choose the alternative.
Tips:
- Use persuasive language to show the benefits of the alternative.
- Use images to help customers visualize the alternative product.
Example:
Let’s say a customer is looking to buy a dress. You can present them with a similar dress that is made of higher-quality material or has additional features.
The original dress may be made of cotton and have a simple design, while the alternative dress may be made of silk and have a more intricate design. Chances are, they will develop a desire for the silk dress.
3. Display Upgrades
Showing upgrades is another great ecommerce upselling strategy. By giving people the option to buy a more expensive version of a product, you can make each sale worth more.
Upgrades offer customers more options and make it easy for them to add more value to their purchase.
Apple is a master at displaying upgrades to prospects in order to upsell them.
Even if you’re trying to buy the iPhone 13, Apple still shows you their latest entries (currently the 14 series). In the screenshot above, they call it “the ultimate iPhone,” leaving no doubt that it’s the best upgrade.
Tips:
- Highlight the benefits of the upgraded product.
- Use case studies.
- Use testimonials.
Example:
If a customer wants to buy a laptop from your store, you can show them an upgrade to a model with more RAM or a better graphics card. Both laptops are of the same brand. However, they may consider the better product if it’s within their budget.
4. Subtly Mention Similar Products
By mentioning similar products in a subtle way, you can help customers find other items they might be interested in.
The items you show them don’t have to be better than the first product. They may be comparable, but they are more expensive and popular.
The ASOS fashion company uses a similar ecommerce upselling strategy. If you try to buy, say, a jacket, the site displays similar jackets.
This is subtle upselling because they claim these are products “you might also like.” They also try to provide a wide range of pricing. However, the discount offer happens to be on the most expensive jacket.
Tips:
- Don’t oversell but make it seem like you’re simply providing useful info..
- Highlight the major selling points; e.g “trending now”.
Example:
Imagine that a prospect is looking to buy a new pair of shoes. You can display a similar pair beside or below it. You may indicate that it has additional features, like water resistance or added support. The customer will understand why they cost more.
5. Offer Alternatives with Better Ratings
By giving customers options with better ratings, you can help them find products that other customers liked a lot.
This can help increase trust and confidence in the product and lead to higher sales.
Let’s take Amazon’s ecommerce upselling strategy as a case study. Every time you open a product’s main page, you get a separate list of alternatives.
This listing is marked “4 stars and above,” which means that it has some items with higher ratings. So, how do you gather ratings effectively?
One way to gather simple feedback is to use a shipment tracking tool like Trackmage. TrackMage helps you get reviews from customers after each delivery.
If you notice some items tend to attract higher ratings, you can use them as upsell offers. Trackmage also provides a product feed feature for order tracking pages. You may use it to upsell customers while they track their shipments.
Tips:
- Highlight the ratings of the alternative product.
- Make the data as objective as possible
Example:
A customer is looking to buy a new camera. You can offer them a different camera that has better ratings on the page where they place their order. You can also send these offers via email. We recommend using one of the best proven email templates to boost upsell.
6. Show a More Popular Option
By showing a more popular option, you’re helping customers discover products that are more likely to sell well. This upselling strategy will improve your lead conversion rate.
Much like Amazon, AliExpress shows you special listings on every product page. The list includes information such as the number of orders and star ratings.
The list uses tags such as “top selling” and “choice” to indicate popularity.
Tips:
- Highlight the number of orders for the product.
- Focus this strategy on items with low conversion rates.
Example:
Consider the following scenario: A customer visits your store’s category page. They want to buy a specific item in that category. By highlighting one of the products in that category with a “most popular” tag, you draw their attention towards it.
Conclusion
By using the strategies above, you can increase sales and make your customers happy. Feel free to automate as much of the implementation as you can.
We recommend using automation to carry out some of the above strategies with a tool like Trackmage.
Remember, the key is to understand your customer’s needs and make the ecommerce upselling strategy beneficial for both you and your customer. Happy upselling!
