Cross-selling is a process where you try to convince to buy something related to what the customer is already buying. It is different from upselling where you try to sell a better and more expensive version of the product.
If a customer buys a pair of black shoes, you can offer a can of shoe shiner. This is cross-selling. In upselling, you will try to offer a more expensive pair of shoes like one that is made of leather that is of a higher quality.
So, where is cross-selling best used? In this tutorial, we will take a look at the different industries where you can best use cross-selling.
Retail Industry
Cross-selling is effective in all retail industries. For as long as a customer is making a purchase, we can say with a guarantee that you have a product that is complementary to what the customer is buying.
Here are some examples:
- Fast food and restaurant – you can offer soft drinks and fries to a customer who is only buying a hamburger.
- Clothing and shoes – a customer who buys shoes may also need a pair of pants that match the shoes.
- Tools and mechanical devices – if a customer buys a drill or circular saw, you can offer an extra blade or a set of drill bits.
- Gadgets and tech – a customer who buys a phone may also need a phone case or a protective plastic sheet.
As you can see, there is really no limit to the possibilities of cross-selling. It is up to you as a merchant to establish the connection of two things and make the customer aware that you offer such products.
Online Subscription Industry
There are many things that people buy online. Most of these are subscriptions for services that they use for their businesses. Here are some examples:
- Web-building platforms – you can offer a service where you actually build the site. You can also offer applications if you want. A good example of this is Shopify. In this service, a customer can build a site, and then Shopify sells apps that can help the customer make his site more functional, like adding an auto-translator or a shipping calculator.
- Web hosting services – for web hosting services like SiteGround, GoDaddy and Bluehost, they offer other services like domain names. They also give the customer an option to migrate his other sites to the new web host’s servers.
- SEO tools – SEO tools are subscription-based tools that help a website owner determine what keywords to use in his articles. The tool also provides the user insights about the website’s traffic, sources of backlinks, and many more. Most of them cross-sell other services like social media auto-posters.
The online industry is huge. There are so many things that are happening in the background, and you can easily convince a customer that one of your products will help him manage his business better.
Online Casino Industry
The online casino may not have obvious uses for cross-selling, but there are several ways to do this. Since the product of a casino is a game, then an operator only has to offer other games that a player may have not played before.
In an online casino where a player is only interested in the best online slots, the operator has the option to cross-sell other table games like blackjack, roulette, and many more. It can work the other way around. If a player loves table games and has not tried slot machines before, then it just makes sense for the casino operator to offer slot machines.
Another area where casinos can use cross-selling is via rewards. In most casinos, bonuses are offered to new players, and then nothing else happens after that. Since the casino does not offer any tangible product but rather a form of entertainment, the casino operator can offer more value if a player tries other games. For example, the operator can offer a different bonus to the player if the player deposits and plays in the casino’s sports betting area. This approach is a cross-sell because the player is forced to make a new deposit, and in return, he gets better value for his money.
Cross-selling in the gambling industry is a little tougher than retail. The reason behind this is that gamblers know the risks. If they attempt to play a new game, they know that they are more likely to lose money than to earn it. This is why you have to offer bonuses. If you want a blackjack player to invest $5 to bet on sports, it is best that you double his $5. If you do this, the player is more likely to give it a go.
Summary
Cross-selling is a beneficial selling tool that every entrepreneur must have in their arsenal. Whether you are in the retail business or you are offering slots online, you have to be aware of what products or services are related. To make cross-selling successful, you have to understand the mindset of your customer. If you were the customer, do you think there are other things you may need?
Lastly, make sure that the products and services you want to cross-sell are visible on your site. The offers must be above the fold on your site, so customers can easily find them. If you have your customer’s email address, you can also use this to your advantage.
