Upselling Strategies and Scenarios to Increase Revenue Opportunities (+ Free Template)
Effective upselling boosts revenue and increases average purchase value. When approached thoughtfully, it can also build trust with customers.
You can show customers you understand their needs by accurately recognizing pain points and introducing the right upsell at the right time. For example, if a prospect faces scaling challenges, recommending an integration or training package shows you understand their pain points and offer a solution.
But how do you avoid heavy-handed requests and nail perfectly timed suggestions that feel like a no-brainer?
In this article, we examine proven strategies for implementing effective upselling and discuss the tools you need to streamline the process and improve efficiency.
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What is upselling and why does it work?
Upselling encourages people to buy a more advanced or premium version of a product they’re already considering.
Unlike cross-selling, which offers related products, upselling focuses on offering a better version of what the customer already knows.
Successful upselling relies on providing convenience and added value to the customer. It taps into the psychological principle known as ‘commitment and consistency,’ where customers who have already invested in a purchase are much more open to enhancing it if the benefits gained align with their needs.
That last part is crucial, as upselling relies on trust. Converting is only possible if the proposition is centered on relevant products to customer needs rather than pressure-based sales techniques.
Before implementing the following upsell strategies, you need to correctly evaluate the upsell potential of a particular customer profile or account. This means building a comprehensive account strategy rather than going straight to cold calling.
For example, if the total opportunity is 1,000 seats across all divisions, you can direct your SDRs to focus on each part of the business contributing to that total.
Once you accurately understand the potential for upselling, you can start considering the following strategies to maximize conversions.
Six effective upselling strategies and examples
Here are six actionable strategies you can implement into your sales coaching program to generate more revenue and maximize customer potential.
1. Target the right customers based on metrics
Matching the right customer with the right upsell is a foundational part of the upsell process. Start by using data to clearly identify which customer segments are most likely to respond well to a particular offer.
Begin by analyzing customer data points such as purchase history, use habits, demographics, website behavior, and engagement with your marketing strategies.
This will let you segment individual customers into power users or existing fans who are invested in your product and more likely to benefit from extra features.
For example, purchase history might indicate how much a particular customer is willing to spend or the kind of add-ons they’ve found useful in the past.
Most CRM solutions will have tools to reveal data that explains your customer's preferences and buying behaviors. By collecting this data and unifying it into a single platform, you can start determining when, where, and who to target with upselling efforts.
To make this data more useful, you can integrate your CRM with Orum. This will allow your reps to reference key data during conversations in real time and tailor their recommendations accordingly.
Example scenario
Let’s say a customer is already subscribing to a SaaS tool. By evaluating their behavior in your CRM, your rep can use an integrated dialing platform like Orum to initiate a follow-up call.
They can then introduce the added premium features they think the customer would find useful based on their engagement with the tool. Since key data from your CRM is visible in-call, they can reference specific benefits that align with the customers' needs, creating a more compelling and data-driven case for the upsell.
2. Recommend upsells of value
It’s important not to try to upsell customers on products you aren’t confident will add value. Doing so can decrease customer lifetime value and make them less likely to recommend you to potential new customers.
Upsell only when it makes sense. Frame the upsell as a solution that enhances their current purchase, stating a clear value proposition rather than just another expense. By presenting the upsell as an investment in enhanced results instead of a simple upgrade, you’re far more likely to successfully convert.
For example, you might say, “Based on your current plan, you're getting solid results, but we’ve found that many of our customers see even greater success when they add [Feature/Product] to their package. This would allow you to [Benefit.]”
Orum’s dialer can automatically transcribe your sales calls to flag common objections. This lets you quickly recognize where specific upsells aren’t working for a particular customer base, allowing you to glean insights and adjust the approach.
Example scenario
If a customer buys a fitness tracker through your e-commerce platform, it’s safe to assume they would be interested in a premium package with an expanded suite of health-tracking tools.
This upsell is easy to frame regarding benefits like personalized health insights or diet tracking, which can further help customers hit their health goals. This approach ensures the upsell feels like a valuable addition instead of an irrelevant expense.
3. Time your upsells carefully
The timing of an upsell has a huge impact on its effectiveness. Presenting the upsell at astrategic moment, like when a customer is making a decision or has just started to feel thevalue of a base offering, is far more effective than taking a random approach.
This is because a well-timed upsell feels organic to the customer rather than a hopeful shot at getting them to spend more money. The perfect time to present an upsell is when customers can see the benefit of a core offering, but they’re just starting to see its limitations.
You could capitalize on this while making the upsell call by offering limited-time incentives, such as a trial of the premium plan if your product works via a subscription model. Or, you can create urgency by offering a limited-time discount for traditional purchasing models.
Whatever approach you choose, upselling should begin as soon as your product is fully implemented and delivering results.
Let’s say this happens within 30 days, in this first month you should already be engaging with different stakeholders across the accounts to show the results you’ve achieved. This will build trust and motivate them to buy in early.
💡Pro tip: You should also figure out the right time of day to make a sale. Orum shows you the best day of the week to call based on when prospects are most likely to pick up.
Example scenario
Taking the example of a SaaS solution, you might wait until the customer has used the basic version for a couple of weeks before introducing options to upgrade. You can time the offer just after they’ve become familiar with the basic tools, giving context and allowing them to appreciate the enhanced capability of the premium version.
Timing these interactions based on engagement signals like log-in frequency or session times lets you identify the optimal moment for upsell outreach.
4. Use multiple channels
Correctly leveraging every touchpoint allows you to reach customers organically, increasing the chance of a conversion. A multichannel approach also provides more personalization based on how individual customers like to be communicated with and will allow you to recognize the best method for each customer.
For instance, you might use email for detailed information and resources, social media for engaging and interactive content, and phone calls for more personalized, in-depth conversations,
Example scenario
Imagine you call a customer who has engaged with an email showcasing a new premium feature. Based on their behavior during the call, you can deduct whether they found it intrusive and would prefer an email or enjoyed the more personalized approach to their needs.
By being flexible with your approach to touchpoints, you can demonstrate that you understand your customers and have their best interests in mind. This ultimately creates more opportunities for well-timed upselling.
5. Sync cross-selling and upselling efforts
Cross-selling and upselling should complement each other strategically. This means if a particular customer doesn’t fit the criteria for an upsell (e.g., they’re already using a freemium version of a service), you might consider cross-selling as a better fit.
You can also blend the approaches by packaging multiple products and encouraging customers to buy more solutions at the initial point of sale. Just be careful to ensure the bundled products are related and contextually relevant.
Example scenario
A customer interested in a travel subscription might not be a good target for an upsell on a multi-person premium package because they are solo travelers. However, they might be an ideal candidate for cross-selling travel insurance or related accessories. These could be bundled together at a reduced price.
6. Utilize social proof
By highlighting testimonials, reviews, or popular options you can leverage social proof to build trust quickly over the phone and encourage hesitant customers to open up to the idea of the upsell.
Your upsell should follow this formula: “Here's what we've done, the results we've achieved, and why we're excited to show you how.”
This shows your product's value and creates a certain 'Fear of Missing Out'. In other words, it garners interest by making customers want to be a part of the success you’ve showcased.
Example scenario
During a sales call, you should reference testimonials from customers in a similar industry with needs similar to your current prospects. This closing technique will frame the upsell as a trusted choice among peers. For example, a sales rep might say, “One of our clients in [Industry] faced the same challenges you're dealing with, particularly around [Pain Point].”
Upselling template to grow pipeline
You can use this template as a guide for upselling. Just be sure to adjust it to your specific target audience, their pain points, and the nature of your product.
Greeting: Hi [Customer Name],
Intro: Glad to hear everything is going great with [Current Product/Service]. I just wanted to reach out as I think you can get more out of your [subscription/product].
Personalized insight: I know you asked about [specific feature/benefit] when you signed up, which got me thinking about some of our other clients. Quite a few of them who upgraded to [Premium version/feature set] actually said it gave them much more [specific benefits, e.g., increased productivity, streamlined workflows].
Benefit highlight: I think you would get a lot of value out of being able to:
- [Benefit 1]: Brief description of how X feature benefits the customer.
- [Benefit 2]: Brief description of how X feature benefits the customer.
- [Benefit 3]: Brief description of how X feature benefits the customer.
Call to action: Would you be available for a quick call so we can look at how [Premium version/feature set] would work for you?
Optimizing your upsell approach
Upselling is a powerful tool to boost average order value when strategically planned to align with your customer's needs. To optimize your approach, focus on:
- Unifying your data in a single solution
- Understanding common objections to present value in your upsells
- Finding the right time to call across different channels
- Syncing upselling and cross-selling efforts
- Strategically using social proof
Orum integrates with your CRM to bring all important data into one location your reps can reference in real-time. Transcriptions of common upsell objections, insights about the right time to call, and data straight from your CRM all help you boost your upsell rate.
Boost your upsell strategy
Identify common objections and provide tailored recommendations with Orum
Request a demo
Frequently asked questions about upselling strategies
What are some examples of upselling strategies to boost sales?
Examples of effective upselling techniques include targeted upselling based on customer data, timing upsells during the customer journey, enhancing the customer experience through being flexible with channels, and bundling products to introduce cross-selling.
