What is Upselling and the Right Way to Do It?

A few years ago, I was part of another business and had to meet upsells very often. Interesting thing is – no one thought of me. Because everybody wanted to do it and get an advantage, meaning no one wanted me to be good at it. But sometimes, it’s a skill you learn by yourself and get better with no need. However, I am here now to share with you what is upselling and tips to master it.

The business I was talking about is hotel management. Let me ask you if this ever happened to you:  You planned a vacation somewhere, you booked a room in a nice hotel and prepaid it. Or you didn’t – it doesn’t really matter.

Then, it’s finally time for you to start your vacation. Check-in at reception is fast and good and the person behind the desk is so positive! After a while, the smiley person, asks you if you want to make your vacation even better and get a room with a view for just a few dollars more! Sure, why not! It’s your long-awaited vacation.

That, my friends, is called upselling. The charming receptionist only wanted you to give extra money and pay for something you originally didn’t think you need. Turns out you were persuaded to buy more than you really need. It’s not necessarily a bad thing. You’re getting a room with a view, after all.

 

What is Cross-Selling

Now, to be honest, these two techniques are both used very often and soon there will be an article for cross-selling only. But until then, here’s shortly what it means.

As I already explained what is upselling, hopefully, you understood that I’m talking about getting customers to buy something more than they need. And something probably more expensive. It brings more income to you but is rarer compared to cross-selling.

The reason is, that cross-selling is getting people to buy more, but close to the first price they prepared to pay. This means you are not asking them to spend more money. You’re simply reminding them that they need something with what they are either way getting.

Personally, I understand these definitions with examples. What is upselling is easier to understand, but here is what is cross-selling:

You are in a nice restaurant. You’re ordering food and you think that you’re done but then the waiter asks if you want something to drink with it. That’s cross-selling. But if he asked if you wanted the special pasta instead of the pasta on the menu – that’s upselling.

Cross-selling is not recognizable as much as the other by regular customers, but sometimes it’s more efficient because it’s far more likely to happen. Just like adding fries to your order in McDonald’s or buying earplugs for your iPhone.

 

What are Upselling and Cross-Selling in the Web Hosting?

To make it easier for you when talking about website hosting, I’ll share with you the following graphic. You can now easily see what’s the difference between the hosting plans and the definitions of the two selling techniques. Upselling is going from Free Hosting to Shared Hosting (or any other upgrading plan). And cross-selling is buying a Domain name when you get free website hosting.

 

 

How to Upsell

Different areas have different subjects and this means every product or service presumes a different way of upselling. As I already explained it’s important to learn for yourself and your own area what is the best possible. However, it’s always good to start with getting your customers to believe they need something and not understand that you’re trying to sell. Sounds difficult?

Try to think of it this way. You are convincing someone that they need something. You don’t have to tell them “buy”, “get”, “upgrade”, or “grow”. You can simply tell them “Hey, you’re doing great! How are you still able to fill all your customers in this old small office? Don’t you deserve a bigger one? Your clients must need space because they’re so much!”. Of course, I’m exaggerating. But I hope you get my point.

Furthermore, you have to offer them something close to what they originally needed. You can’t offer them organic juice, if they came to drink tequila, right? But offer them a bottle and they might think about it.

Keep in mind, that when you offer an upsell, your customer’s first question on mind will be “How much” for the price they have to pay. So, try to lower the upselling price. If it’s just a regular price it won’t be something extraordinary and desired. This is not possible always, but just make sure you think about it before starting persuading.

Don’t rush! The most common mistake that people do is to offer an upsell before the original order was completed. Some people might decide to cancel all if they think you’re about to take their money and rush them into prices and payments. Just wait for them to check out and start using your product first.

 

Final Tips

You now know what is upselling and what is cross-selling in general. For your business, you need to try both of them and compare which one works better for you. Only this way you’ll know which one to use more and which one is more effective for your own business.

Be confident about the connection between your customers and what you’re offering to them. always make sure it’s relevant, useful, and convenient. Otherwise, you won’t get anywhere close to your final goals.

Be honest. This is always one of my favorite pieces of advice to give. Sure, easier said than done, but still. Upselling with lies or promises that won’t happen, is not how you run a business. No one wins then. Not you, and not your followers.