The value of upsell marketing
An upselling marketing strategy aims to increase the average sales value of a customer by inspiring individual customers to purchase related, but higher-value items – or the same item, but at a higher volume.
It enables companies to boost revenue figures and increase customer lifetime value, maximizing profit margins, with minimum costs and additional investment.
Far more than a sales technique, upsell marketing is a crucial part of a customer engagement strategy that prioritizes customer satisfaction and retention.
We’ve already talked at length about the the power of customer retention and the value of personalized customer engagement, but it’s worth reminding ourselves of the facts:
91% of people are more likely to shop from a brand that provides employment database relevant and valuable recommendations.
49% are open to relevant communications on a weekly basis.
31% of people are more likely to engage with businesses that understand their preferences.
Product recommendations account for 10-30% of ecommerce site revenues.
The upsell opportunity is abundantly clear, but marketers must tread carefully.
Impersonal messages annoy 54% of people and can drive your customers to competitor brands, so a poorly conceived strategy can make your brand appear pushy and self-serving.
8 upsell best practices
Use these eight upsell best practices to provide relevant, personalized, and timely upsell recommendations to your customers and optimize your omnichannel customer engagement:
1. Map your upsell strategy to the customer journey
Upsell marketing messages must align with your customers’ real-time needs and where they are in their purchase decision and the customer journey – from awareness and consideration, through to purchase, retention, and advocacy.
A “bestsellers” product recommendation might be a useful thing to include in an automated welcome email for newly registered customers – but it could be intrusive, unhelpful, or irritating to someone shopping with strong intent, who’s already midway through the checkout process.
Understanding your users’ needs and context is everything. Use empathy mapping to identify what your customers are thinking, feeling, and doing at different points in the customer journey.
Ensure that your upsell marketing strategy focuses on adding value and addressing different customer needs, at different stages in the customer journey.
2. Use two-way messaging
Conversational, two-way communication is hugely valuable when it comes to helping customers understand the value add of a higher-value related item or service.
Take volunteering platform Goodera, for example. The CSR company implemented WhatsApp Business as a communication channel to engage its volunteer network – together with a WhatsApp chatbot.
By enabling two-way communication with volunteers, Goodera was able to successfully upsell 20% of its clients through relevant, engaging communication.
3. Use the right channels
Always use the communication channels that lend themselves well to upsell opportunities – and connect with customers where they want to interact with you.
