Every business wishes to improve its marketing campaigns to have better sales and improve the customer base. Using the cross sell, you can get better results, getting closer to your goals, in developing your business.
However, convincing customers to spend more money on your additional products requires strategy and a tactical approach. Besides, it's a skill you need to acquire for results-driven cross-selling.
It's important to have a good approach so that you don't appear salesy, but user-centric. Therefore, giving value other than focusing on closing a deal, goes a long way in making the process a success.
A popular way to boost your sales while remaining relevant other than company-centric is applying cross-selling methods. Before we dive into the tips and strategies, let’s understand the meaning what is this all about.
Cross-selling Definition
Cross-selling is a sales method that involves selling an additional product to a customer to complement the product in their original purchase. It’s a clever way of selling since you’re suggesting new products that will complete the customer’s first purchase.
Ecommerce shopping: Image courtesy Pixabay.
In this case, the products have to be closely related. Big names such as Amazon use this tactic by applying the "bought together with" in every product page to enhance your purchase process.
Fortunately, this trick convinces more customers to buy additional products, that make the original product a whole package. Surprisingly, Amazon increases its sales by 35% by offering additional products on each product page.
Cross-selling and upselling appear to be similar, but there’s a significant difference between them. That brings us to the next point.
Cross-selling Best Examples
Many companies have adopted cross-selling as a method to attract customers by offering them value and relevant products. The main idea is to get more sales and revenue. Since this marketing drive sees to it that you get value in exchange for your money, you can depend on it for excellent results.
In addition, cross-selling assures the customer with a complete package. Therefore, it's a must-have business practice for any business that wishes to realize significant growth. So, what examples describe cross-selling the best?
- A beauty company offering you make-up brushes after buying make-up powders, serums, and creams;
- Adidas suggesting some outfits you can match with your new sneakers, in order to complete the look;
- A waiter at a restaurant suggesting a burger to eat with fries;
- A mobile phone dealer selling you a phone case to protect the new phone when selling to you;
- A SaaS company offering you web design services and later copywriting services.
Best Strategies For Cross-selling
As mentioned earlier, cross-selling works best when you sell relevant products to your customers. As your wish is to give your customer value and complement their product, you should work smart in order to achieve this.
At no point you should make the user feel as if you're taking advantage of their desperation. Use this as an opportunity to show them the added value they can get in a related product. Below are some strategies to use for successful cross-selling.
#1. Listen To The Customer’s Current Needs And Wants
Before starting your cross-selling, you need to understand your customers' paint point. Listen to them carefully and ask them what they want exactly and what is the problem they want to solve.
This way, you'll understand the most suitable product combination. As a result, you'll make an informed decision on what to cross-sell them.
#2. Educate Customers On The Need For The Additional Product
Letting your customer understand the benefits of the additional product goes a long way in making cross-selling work. In such a situation, you give them the value they will get from the complementary product.
Better still, you can get an email series that help your customer learn about the product in bits. When the customers get education on how the extra products help them, they will most likely make a purchase.
#3. Apply The Behavioral Segmentation Pattern
It's always wise to mark your customers' purchase patterns to target them when cross-selling. Use the last purchase details to understand when they used the product, the time taken, and then reach out slightly before their next purchase date. This way, you're likely to make a sale since it's the opportune time for them to make a purchase.
#4. Do Follow-Ups For The Past Purchases
To gain customers' loyalty, you need to check on them and how the products are helping them. Not only do follow-ups retain value but they also cultivate a trust culture between you and your customer.
Besides, following up allows you to know if the customers were happy with your products. If yes, you can tactfully use this chance to cross-sell a related product.
#5.Provide Your Services As A Bundle
Products in bundles are grouped such way, that they are sold in pairs. This way, your buyers are ready to make a complete purchase when they approach you.
Bundling products spark interest in your customers since they see the products appear as one. Trying beneficial products never goes out of style in cross-selling.
#6.Offer Additional Services
Offering additional services closely related to your product is a sure way to cross-sell. It's easier to convince a customer to purchase a product that's readily available than the one that's not. Let's say you offer SEO services, you can suggest PPC campaigns to complete the package.
#7.Incentivize Your Services
Offering your customers incentives such as loyalty perks, discounts, offers, and occasional deals goes a long way in increasing your sales. Target these offers to your past customers as this motivates them to purchase any other later offer.
It also assures them that you're not up to making money but also mind about them saving in their purchases. Taking advantage of loyalty deals is an excellent way to apply your cross-selling efforts.
#8.Time And Context
Staying relevant in cross-selling is non-negotiable. As a rule of thumb, never bombard customers with additional products without an explanation of the benefit. Make sure that you provide value.
For instance, you don't suggest related products to a customer who's obsessed with saving extra money. Instead, you'll sell them products with discounted prices, offers, and deals.
6 Cross-selling Tips You Should Consider Adopting
In order for you to succeed in cross-selling, applying the right tips is a must. Leverage relevance and make sense throughout the process for an overall successful marketing process. Below are the best cross-selling tips you should consider.
Take Advantage Of "abandoned carts"
It's not unusual for customers to spend reasonable time searching for a product then adding it to the cart but not finalizing the purchase. Not all the abandoned carts mean that the customer was no longer interested in the product.
Checkout at: Kenneth Cole.
Sometimes, customers abandon the cart because of distractions. Therefore, using this opportunity to cross-sell them additional items is an excellent way to remind them about potential purchases.
Build Relationships First
Customers are most inclined on a product they've used before, so building relationship matters. Establish a rapport such that you seem to provide value and help from the beginning. Doing so, makes it easier for you to sell compared to selling to first-time customers.
Introduce Your Customer To Drip Campaigns
A marketing campaign succeeds when you involve the customers in the complete sales cycle. Introducing drip campaigns let your customers learn about your products and how they can successfully combine them.
Email series with detailed information on the product should be a priority in cross-selling.
Tie Your Services With The Client’s Goals
Putting in mind your customer's goals and tying them with your sales enhances your cross-selling. To do this, you have to look intently at the user's urgent needs for better product targeting.
If the buyers feel that you're focused more on their goals and your supplemental products draw them near to the goal, they'll make a purchase.
Wait until you have results to show
Cross-selling works better when you have something to show. Before trying to sell additional products, make sure you have a history and good results to show. Convincing a customer when you have results at hand proves to work best in increasing your sales.
Remain Relevant
Selling your products bearing in mind the relevance they bring to customers is your best bet in cross-selling. If it makes sense, there's no way your product is resistible. That's why you have to do your best to stay relevant throughout your cross-selling process.
When Is The Best Time To Cross-Sell
There's no appointed time to start your cross-selling services. As long as you remain relevant and make sense, your cross-selling can always work. In addition, checking the context also dictates the perfect time to suggest complementary products to your customers.
It would also count to make your offering at the end of a sales cycle. This rule applies as this is the time that the customers have already established sale patterns. This helps you understand their behaviors better so that you can target the additional products successfully.
For instance, you sell hair products and a customer purchases hair shampoo occasionally. Use your records to learn how much time it takes for them to make the next order. You can use this information to cross-sell an additional product. However, this has to be within the sales cycle to increase success rates.
As you can see from the example above, cross-selling is not depending on time, but on a particular situations. Your sales team needs to understand this, in order to increase the chance of success in cross-selling for your company.
What Are The Benefits Of Cross-Selling
Implementing cross-selling to your business brings benefits to you and to your customers. It's a mutual relationship that works perfectly in the long run. As long as it's targeted right and uses the right strategies, cross-selling always works. These are some of its advantages:
- Cross-selling builds customer loyalty. In this case, you're walking in a trustworthy sales journey with your customer. As a result, this cultivates your brand loyalty as customers feel that you're their solution for related problems;
- It increases sales and revenue. Consequently, there's a reasonable increase in your business profits;
- Cross-selling fosters customer satisfaction. By looking to satisfy all the needs at a go, cross-selling increases customer satisfaction. Your customers can count on your company to give a solution to all their problems;
- It improves Customer Lifetime Value (CLV). Since customers have built a rapport with you, you can retain them for a lifetime, providing the thing that you satisfy their wishes. In addition, providing value means that your customer retention efforts will come true;
- Cross-selling personalize customers by giving them a tailor-made purchase idea. Addressing each customer's problems singlehandedly makes them feel better. It also ensures that you get help picking a product that helps you meet your goals in real-time.
Why You Should Use Cross-Selling To Boost Your Sales
Cross-selling is your best bet in marketing to increase sales for your company. However, it yields results if you stay in perspective and offer value from the start. Applying the right tips also count to leverage your complementary products.
For instance, you can decide on starting email series with detailed explanations of the product benefits. Making your customer understand how well the product suits them, improve the cross-sell.
Besides, involving your sales team in this business, put your company at a competitive edge and benefit both, you and the customers. After making sure that you've put in place the best cross-selling strategies, go ahead and grow your business.
Last but not least, cross-selling increase the revenue and provide more sales in the long term run. The next time you wish to make reasonable sales, make cross-selling your best marketing option.
Tags: boost, cross sell, ecommerce
