The main goal of any given business, in any industry, is to make profits. In order to make profits, a company needs to increase its revenue. This is only possible if the company is able to increase the sale of its products and services. This is where the various selling techniques, employed by the sales staff of the company, come into the picture. By employing various means, the sales staff tries to increase the revenues of the company. One of such means is the suggestive selling technique.
Suggestive selling can be defined as a sales technique which is used by the staff of the company, at the time a customer is making a purchase, so that he buys some other product of the company or something over and above than what he is purchasing at the moment. Suggestive selling is not only useful for increasing the revenues of a company, but also helps in creating goodwill for the business amongst its customers, as it contributes a lot towards the overall customer satisfaction.
Speaking of suggestive selling, two of the most popular techniques of suggestive selling are upselling and cross-selling. Often times, people who do not know about them, think that they are same. However, these two selling techniques are completely different, in theory as well as practice. The following Buzzle article compares upselling vs. cross selling. Have a look...
Difference between Upselling and Cross-selling
Upselling
By definition, upselling refers to selling a product to a customer, which is much expensive and better in terms of value to the customer, than the one he is purchasing at the moment. For instance, if you call up a hotel and ask them to book a standard room for you, the hotel employee at the other end, explains you all the additional facilities you will get if you book a deluxe room instead and tries to convince you into opting for the same. This deluxe room will cost you extra and is expensive than the standard room that you wanted in the first place, however, in terms of facilities and comforts, it is much better than the standard room. So, you might end up booking a deluxe room instead of the standard room. If you do that, it will be extra revenue for the hotel and as far as you, the customer is concerned, it will translate into more comforts and satisfaction, at an extra cost though!
Cross-selling
Cross selling, on the other hand, refers to selling a complementary product to the customer, which is in some ways related to the one he is actually buying. For instance, if you are on a flight and the attendant there sells foods and drinks to you, it is considered cross selling. Similarly, if you go to a beauty store to buy lipstick and the customer service executive there sells you some other cosmetic like a nail polish of the same brand, it means that she is employing cross selling technique, to make an extra sale. Sometimes, while cross selling, the sales personnel might offer some kind of discount to the customers as well. In this case, it can be something like fifty percent off on the second cosmetic of the company that you buy. This might serve as a motivation to you, to buy that extra cosmetic, although you might not even need it at the moment! Or, the company might have a scheme wherein if you buy cosmetics worth a particular amount at the moment, the next time you make a purchase, you will get a twenty percent discount on your entire bill. This will motivate you to come back and make a purchase, thus, making you a patron, a repeat customer of the company.
The above given examples of upselling and cross selling, bring out the difference between the two quite clearly. Both these techniques can be very effective, in creating customer loyalty and maximizing customer satisfaction, provided they are employed the right way, at the right time and for selling the right products!
article sourced from www.buzzle.com
Suggestive selling can be defined as a sales technique which is used by the staff of the company, at the time a customer is making a purchase, so that he buys some other product of the company or something over and above than what he is purchasing at the moment. Suggestive selling is not only useful for increasing the revenues of a company, but also helps in creating goodwill for the business amongst its customers, as it contributes a lot towards the overall customer satisfaction.
Speaking of suggestive selling, two of the most popular techniques of suggestive selling are upselling and cross-selling. Often times, people who do not know about them, think that they are same. However, these two selling techniques are completely different, in theory as well as practice. The following Buzzle article compares upselling vs. cross selling. Have a look...
Difference between Upselling and Cross-selling
Upselling
By definition, upselling refers to selling a product to a customer, which is much expensive and better in terms of value to the customer, than the one he is purchasing at the moment. For instance, if you call up a hotel and ask them to book a standard room for you, the hotel employee at the other end, explains you all the additional facilities you will get if you book a deluxe room instead and tries to convince you into opting for the same. This deluxe room will cost you extra and is expensive than the standard room that you wanted in the first place, however, in terms of facilities and comforts, it is much better than the standard room. So, you might end up booking a deluxe room instead of the standard room. If you do that, it will be extra revenue for the hotel and as far as you, the customer is concerned, it will translate into more comforts and satisfaction, at an extra cost though!
Cross-selling
Cross selling, on the other hand, refers to selling a complementary product to the customer, which is in some ways related to the one he is actually buying. For instance, if you are on a flight and the attendant there sells foods and drinks to you, it is considered cross selling. Similarly, if you go to a beauty store to buy lipstick and the customer service executive there sells you some other cosmetic like a nail polish of the same brand, it means that she is employing cross selling technique, to make an extra sale. Sometimes, while cross selling, the sales personnel might offer some kind of discount to the customers as well. In this case, it can be something like fifty percent off on the second cosmetic of the company that you buy. This might serve as a motivation to you, to buy that extra cosmetic, although you might not even need it at the moment! Or, the company might have a scheme wherein if you buy cosmetics worth a particular amount at the moment, the next time you make a purchase, you will get a twenty percent discount on your entire bill. This will motivate you to come back and make a purchase, thus, making you a patron, a repeat customer of the company.
The above given examples of upselling and cross selling, bring out the difference between the two quite clearly. Both these techniques can be very effective, in creating customer loyalty and maximizing customer satisfaction, provided they are employed the right way, at the right time and for selling the right products!
article sourced from www.buzzle.com
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