INSIGHTS•4 MIN READ
Up-selling, Down-selling and Cross Selling
mhamilt
Published on September 22, 2012
Published on Wealthy Affiliate — a platform for building real online businesses with modern training and AI.
A few days ago Steve (IveTriedThat) wrote a great blog post with a number of diagrams which detail various sales funnels for different internet marketing products. I think they horrified most people who saw them, but they are also pretty confusing! What's up with "up-selling", or "down-selling"?
Here's what those different terms mean:
If you decide to buy an iPod, you might be upsold to a "better" model then the one you were going to buy. If you wanted the 8GB, the sales person might convince you that a 16GB one is better - that's upselling. A warrenty would also be an upsell.
Same thing if you want a small fries, but for just a little extra you can "upgrade" to the larger one.
The problem I see with internet marketing up sells, is that so much of the time the upsold products become essential to make the most of the initial product. If you purchase an ebook, you might need to purchase the "gold" edition to make the most of your investment.
Not very fair if I have to purchase something additional to make the most of the thing I've already bought!
You can see this in action in car yards - so you can't afford that $50,000 BMW? Here's another model for $40,000…
You also see this in action online. If you leave a website you might be offered a "special deal" which gives you the original product (or something else) at a cheaper price. Personally I'm not a fan of this practice. If you're selling something for $37, isn't it a bit unfair to sell the same thing for $27 if that customer decides to leave the sales page?
If that customer who purchased it at $37 ever finds out that he could have got it at a cheaper price, won't be be a bit bummed? Sure it makes more money for the merchant, but still… :-/
You can see a rather intense example of downselling on one of the internet marketing products that Steve features on his blog post (not that he points out individual programs).
Click here if you want to see this in action (don't waste your time watching the video!). If you close the web page (providing you 'cancel' the close request), you'll be greeted with a $20 discount. If you close that page, you'll be given "free" access to a few of their products. If you close that page, you'll be taken straight to a purchasing page to get another heavy discount on their product.
Wow!
Four different sales pitches, each one getting cheaper as we go down the sales tunnel.
You can also see cross selling online. If you're reading a sales page for a book on web design, you might also be offered a book on SEO.
Most people get confused between upselling and cross selling, but it comes down to terminology. If you see Steve's post you won't see any mention of cross selling, it's all upselling (even though it might not technically be so)
Even more confused?
Here's the basics:
Upselling: Offering to upgrade the inital product for an extra price.
E.g: Get a larger pack of fries for an additional fee.
Downselling: Offering the product at a lower price or another product for less money.
E.g: So you can't afford my $1000 price tag? Lucky you sir, today I have a 50% discount!
Cross selling: Offering an additional product in addition to the one being sold.
E.g: This meal would work better with a salad. Or do you want a home theatre system with that TV?
It's important to remember none of these sales tactics are "bad". It completely depends on how they are being used!
Here's what those different terms mean:
Upselling
Upselling refers to the sales practice of offering something above and beyond what the initial product is. Perhaps an upgrade, or something extra to increase the value of the original product being sold.If you decide to buy an iPod, you might be upsold to a "better" model then the one you were going to buy. If you wanted the 8GB, the sales person might convince you that a 16GB one is better - that's upselling. A warrenty would also be an upsell.
Same thing if you want a small fries, but for just a little extra you can "upgrade" to the larger one.
The problem I see with internet marketing up sells, is that so much of the time the upsold products become essential to make the most of the initial product. If you purchase an ebook, you might need to purchase the "gold" edition to make the most of your investment.
Not very fair if I have to purchase something additional to make the most of the thing I've already bought!
Downselling
Downselling is the practice of offering the product (or something else) at a cheaper price if the person decides not to purchase.You can see this in action in car yards - so you can't afford that $50,000 BMW? Here's another model for $40,000…
You also see this in action online. If you leave a website you might be offered a "special deal" which gives you the original product (or something else) at a cheaper price. Personally I'm not a fan of this practice. If you're selling something for $37, isn't it a bit unfair to sell the same thing for $27 if that customer decides to leave the sales page?
If that customer who purchased it at $37 ever finds out that he could have got it at a cheaper price, won't be be a bit bummed? Sure it makes more money for the merchant, but still… :-/
You can see a rather intense example of downselling on one of the internet marketing products that Steve features on his blog post (not that he points out individual programs).
Click here if you want to see this in action (don't waste your time watching the video!). If you close the web page (providing you 'cancel' the close request), you'll be greeted with a $20 discount. If you close that page, you'll be given "free" access to a few of their products. If you close that page, you'll be taken straight to a purchasing page to get another heavy discount on their product.
Wow!
Four different sales pitches, each one getting cheaper as we go down the sales tunnel.
Cross Selling
Cross selling is pretty similar to upselling, and it's okay if you get confused between them (I do!). This practice refers to selling something that complements the initial product sold. For example you might purchase a new phone and if you're offered a fancy new set of earphones, that's cross selling.You can also see cross selling online. If you're reading a sales page for a book on web design, you might also be offered a book on SEO.
Most people get confused between upselling and cross selling, but it comes down to terminology. If you see Steve's post you won't see any mention of cross selling, it's all upselling (even though it might not technically be so)
Even more confused?
Here's the basics:
Upselling: Offering to upgrade the inital product for an extra price.
E.g: Get a larger pack of fries for an additional fee.
Downselling: Offering the product at a lower price or another product for less money.
E.g: So you can't afford my $1000 price tag? Lucky you sir, today I have a 50% discount!
Cross selling: Offering an additional product in addition to the one being sold.
E.g: This meal would work better with a salad. Or do you want a home theatre system with that TV?
It's important to remember none of these sales tactics are "bad". It completely depends on how they are being used!
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