Cross selling, is the process of selling complimentary products in addition to the one in which the consumeris already interested in. It is one of the easiest and most effective sales strategies as the likelihood of a consumer choosing a complimentary product is quite high.
When used strategically, cross selling provides an excellent opportunity to promote your sales. Here are three most important strategies that will help you to plan an effective cross selling strategy.
Personalise the selling experience
Studies indicate that customers are generally interested in a product only when they get a personalised selling experience. For example, ads or promotions with words like You, your and Yours will help the consumer to associate better with the products that are being displayed. It makes it more interesting and engaging if we try to use the shoppers name also.
Here are a few examples to show how Amazon tries to cross sell by personalising product recommendations for us.
- Recommendations basing on the product that I have shown interest. Do notice the usage of the word youve or simply you have
Source: amazon.in
- Recommendations basing on our shopping trends, with emphasis on your.
- Recommendations basing on our wish list. Again emphasis on the word your.
Show relevant suggestions
- As far as possible, show similar or complimentary products. For example, we searched for a canon dslr camera on Amazon.in. Now, Amazon shows us two different instances where they are trying to cross sell me.
- Amazon shows us other products that also related to the product in which we expressed interest. In this case, we searched for a Canon DSLR camera and Amazon displays all the other camera accessories.
- Amazon displays some sponsored products that are also relevant to my search.
Persuade with a Evidence
Consumers show interest on the recommendations made by others who have used or bought a product similar to the one they consider for purchase. Under the Frequently Bought Together category, Amazon shows all the products that other bought along with a Canon DSLR camera or its accessories.
One can use user ratings, frequently bought together items or price discounts to make these recommendations and it often helps when the consumer is considering high valued products like Televisions, Sofa Sets etc.
Conclusion
When used strategically, cross selling can yield phenomenal sales benefits. However, by bombarding the customer with too many cross selling attempts there might be a chance of annoying the consumer. So, we hope these suggestions will help you to make an informed decision on your cross selling strategy.