For years, the most progressive brand manufacturers have been cleverly pairing complimentary items online to maximize visibility over their entire slate of goods, while also increasing opportunities for sales. Combined with today’s emerging technologies, e-commerce best practices, like cross-selling, come with even more added benefits.
Cross-selling online can help promote newly released items. While millions of dollars are often spent on individual rollout campaigns – involving billboards, commercials, print ads and beyond – cross-selling online offers a low-cost alternative when revealing complementary products to a slate of targeted and interested shoppers.
Many of today’s brand manufacturers are increasing their knowledge of behavioral purchasing patterns by consistently offering more than one item to online shoppers, and monitoring responses. This data is key when building an online marketing strategy—better connecting consumers with the products they want, when they want it. As a result, brands are inspiring more loyalty, sales and enhancing their online presence.
So, what are the best practices for building a successful cross-selling strategy?
1. Relevant Follow Up Communications.
After a customer has made their initial transaction online, don’t wait for them to shift focus and head to a competitor! After two or three days of purchasing a product, send an email to inquire about the buying experience and suggest complementary add-ons or related products.
2. Offer Compatible Items Before Checkout.
Before the customer checks out, engage with a link or pop-up window to help your consumer discover compatible items that might help make their product experience better. Sometimes a product needs additional items to fully function. For example, a stereo system doesn’t make noise without speakers, and what’s chips without salsa? You know your consumers will need these items, so make sure you offer it to them first, at a competitive price. Many brands are simply listing these types of complementary products, side-by-side, on various sites to help ensure the extra purchase.
3. Give Your Full Support.
Do any of your products require installation? Are there apps to help guide the consumer? By providing options to contract service teams or purchase complementary technology, brands are both increasing potential profit, while influencing deeper relationships with target audiences. In the era of convenience, many will pay to have the complicated process of assembly eliminated.
4. Garner the Help of Previous Shoppers
When converting a consumer from the browsing stage to the purchase stage, tap into the data-driven trend information supplied by your previous shoppers. Identify the complementary products that like-minded shoppers have searched for or purchased. Offer authentic product information like reviews, buyer-posted imagery and live-chat options to help create a relationship with the product.
As consumers browse through your website and individual products, they are providing the critical data needed to help better meet individual interests and improve the overall brand experience. Use this data to help build a stronger online strategy.
