How to Ethically Up-Sell to Additional Projects and Higher Value… 

What do we mean by ‘up selling’? Well, think back to the last time you purchased a new car. 

Chances are you signed the deal for the basic car.  THEN… you were offered extras – tinted glass, paint protection, a panoramic glass roof, special floor mats… 

Very simply, you’ve been engaged in an up-selling process.   

But this raises the question: Is that practice pushy? Unethical? 

Well, yes… if what you’re being offered is something that you don’t need, or that won’t add functionality and/or enjoyment to your purchase. 

However, if you bought the vehicle and weren’t offered any of the extras that would add to the functionality and enjoyment, hasn’t the salesperson failed you? 

You should at least have the option, shouldn’t you? 

Now holding that thought, think about your own business. 

How can you ethically up sell? 

Well, it’s all about taking a ‘solutions provider’ approach, NOT an order taker approach. 

Let me give you a real-life example.  As I was writing this article, there was a team of workmen in my back yard installing a new glass pool fence around our pool area. 

Not surprisingly, we’d had several pool fence builders come in to give us their ‘quote’. 

But when THIS business owner came to look at pricing the new fence, he did something really interesting. 

He commented, ‘From the lay of your land, I’d say when it rains heavily, you probably get water overflowing into your pool and muddying it up. Does that happen?’ 

Well, my wife and I both agreed that YES, that does happen and it’s REALLY frustrating to have to clean out the pool again. 

Then he said something fascinating: ‘Can I suggest that while we’re putting in the new fence, we also put drains in here and here so that you’ll never have that problem again?’ 

Can you imagine our response? Sure! That’d be great! We were delighted. 

But he hadn’t finished yet!   

Next he said, ‘While we’re at it, why don’t we build up the soil in those gardens surrounding the pool with some nutrient rich organic soil? 

I can also arrange some new plants for you that will make the whole pool area look like a million dollars! How about I price that up for you too?’ 

Again, our response was, ‘Sure!’. 

Now you won’t be surprised to learn that his price for this now much bigger project was about triple the other quotes. 

The other businesses were just selling a fence.  

In contrast, the man who got the job was a professional SOLUTIONS PROVIDER. He had identified things we hadn’t thought of. 

He established the need with us, and then educated us to the benefits of these extra components. 

And we couldn’t have been happier to pay for this much expanded project! 

You see, as long as you’re looking after the interests of the prospect and you see a better solution, at the very least, offering those up-selling options is the ONLY ethical approach. 

Using this in practice in your business 

Hopefully you now understand how to ethically up sell products and services. It’s important to ensure that you make them relevant to the consumer.  

Take clothing websites, if you order a pair of jeans, on that page many have a ‘Goes well with’ section, where there’s a top, shoes, jewellery, and a bag that would all match those jeans. Even if they don’t have that, most websites don’t just show the item of clothing on its own – they show it on a model paired with carefully selected items that match it. All of this is ethical upselling.  

However, if after you put those jeans in the basket, that website suggested you ‘might like’ a new fridge-freezer to go with your jeans – you would most likely click ‘no’ straight away. It’s not relevant, it’s a bit annoying, and it doesn’t help to build a positive relationship with that company.

When up selling, always keep the client in mind. It really doesn’t matter what YOU want to sell (even if you have lots of stock of something!), all up selling should be based on what the consumer potentially needs to support their purchase. 

By following this simple strategy you’ll not only increase the order value from your customers, but you’ll give them a more positive experience and they are more likely to be a repeat customer and recommend you to their friends and family. 

 

Author: Chris Newton