When you walk into the local shoe store to buy a pair of dress shoes, you usually walk out with a few extras. Why? Because the salesman talks you into buying an extra set of shoelaces, shoe shine, a horse-hair shoe buffer (only the finest!), and so on. That’s called cross selling and is something all good sales people do.

Furthermore, the pair of shoes you originally looked at isn’t the pair you walked out with. Again, the salesman talked you into purchasing the much more expensive shoes, convincing you that you had a need for the space-aged polymer material that does amazing things to your feet. That’s called an up sale.

Up selling and cross selling work well in the world of brick and mortar retail stores where a high-pressure salesman can convince just about anybody into buying stuff they originally didn’t want. But how do we take advantage of this well known tactic online? While you won’t ever be able to slam a super high-pressure pitch to shoppers online (the lack of pressure from salespeople is just one of many reasons why consumers choose to shop online), there are several things you can do to increase your per-order revenues.

Show similar items on each product page

This is a way to both up sell as well as cross sell. Visit the website of any large online retailer and you’ll quickly see what I’m talking about. At the bottom of each product page, you’ll often see a list of recommended accessories or similar items.

This gives the buyer an opportunity to see what else is available, and shows them accessories they may want, but might not buy if they weren’t reminded that they’re available.

Imagine that you sell two different models of automotive GPS units. They are identical, but the more expensive model is Bluetooth capable. On the product page for the less expensive model, including a small image next to a line such as, “Try it with Bluetooth for hands free calling!” or something similar is a good example of an up-sell attempt.

Links to accessories, such as a windshield mounting device, additional map software, extended warranty, and so forth are examples of cross selling.

Recommend accessories on the shopping cart or checkout page

The perfect opportunity to recommend additional items to a customer is when they add an item to their shopping cart. By taking this action, the shopper is showing that they intend to make a purchase. While they are in the buying mindset, you’ll want to take the opportunity to make recommendations on additional related items.

For example, if a shopper adds a camping tent to their shopping cart, provide links on the shopping cart page to tent stakes, waterproofing spray, sleeping bags, and so on. In addition to potentially increasing your sales, you’ll also be doing your customer a huge service. There’s nothing worse than forgetting to order an important accessory, especially when you’re buying online.

Capture their contact information

During the checkout process, ask for your customer’s email address. This should always be done so you can email order confirmation information anyway, and is something online consumers expect. However, it also gives you the opportunity to market to that person in the future. Doing so helps keep your company name in the minds of your customers, vastly improving the odds that they’ll return to you again for future purchases.

Cross selling and up selling is something that many small internet retailers fail to do. Some just don’t believe there is any effective way to do it online. But by implementing these three quick and simple tactics you’ll see a rise in your overall sales, dispelling the myth about the impossibility of an online up sale/cross sale.

Short Version

Up selling and cross selling is a vital part of increasing store revenues for any retailer. But how does this method translate onto the World Wide Web?Without the advantage of a salesperson that can interact with your customer, the online up sale / cross sale happens a little differently Link to similar items on each product page Recommend accessories on the shopping cart or checkout page Capture their contact information for email marketing Read the full article…