Cross-selling and up-selling – effective sales strategies

Do you own an online shop? Discover two marketing techniques that can help you maximise your profits.

How can you increase the value of the shopping basket?

Cross-selling is a sales strategy that involves making a related sale. As part of cross-selling, the salesperson suggests that the customer purchase additional products or services that are thematically related to the goods they are selling.

For example: a customer buys a desktop computer, so the sales assistant offers them complementary items such as a mouse or a keyboard. The customer feels they are getting a good deal, as they can get more for a small extra charge or at a promotional price.

The value of the shopping basket increases as a result of information about added value. This method aims to maximise profits, as well as to attract and ‘retain’ customers, who will not switch to competitors because they will purchase everything from a single retailer.

Up-selling: how to sell more?

Up-selling is a technique also known as complementary selling. It involves offering the customer a product of better quality, greater value and a higher price compared to the chosen base product. As part of up-selling, the salesperson expands the range of services on offer – presenting a premium version, suggesting additional features, or informing the customer about an attractive warranty.

This method is used before the purchase is finalised, with the aim of increasing the value of the shopping basket. The sales assistant’s role is to identify the customer’s preferences and suggest more effective, slightly more expensive options. Importantly, the way the offer is presented should not be pushy. It is better for the customer to feel that they are being looked after by a specialist than that they are talking to a self-serving tout.

How about some more chips to go with that?

The difference between cross-selling and up-selling can be explained most simply using the example of placing an order at McDonald’s. When you order a burger and the staff member asks you if you’d like some chips, that’s cross-selling. However, when you order a burger and the cashier tells you that, for a small extra charge, you can get the whole meal – you’re benefiting from up-selling.

These two methods are often used in combination. Their advantage lies in the unobtrusive way in which information is provided, with the aim of helping the customer choose the offer best suited to their needs.

Cross-selling in e-commerce

The upselling strategy is also applied in the e-commerce sector. In a well-planned shopping journey, the consumer should be presented with suggestions for products or services related to the items they have added to their basket or recently viewed. A properly designed e-commerce platform will not overlook options such as: ‘Other customers also bought…’, “See similar products”, or “Customers who viewed this item also viewed…”.

The presentation of products in an online shop plays an extremely important role. When we show a customer similar or complementary products (cross-selling), the value of their basket may increase. Conversely, recommending alternative products with better ratings may encourage the customer to make a higher-value purchase. Using cross-selling and up-selling techniques therefore helps to achieve a higher e-commerce conversion rate.

See the guide to effective sales in an e-shop based on example of our project for the brand Nino. If you run your own online shop and want to achieve better results from sales, we’d be happy to advise you. Discover the features, which will boost sales in your shop – Please feel free to get in touch.