6 Steps for Successful Online Marketing for Your Business - Step 5

Step 5: Up-Sell Other Products and Services to Your Customer

Congratulations for getting to step 5 in our 6-step formula for online marketing success. You’ve achieved sales -- which for some entrepreneurs and business owners is the whole point of setting up their business on the Web.

But if you look at your marketing goals differently, you’ll see it's short sighted to think of only sales as success. Think about building long-term relationships with your customers.

I want to share with you a tip that boosts your sales 50%, but first let me tell you why building relationships is more important than sales.

When you focus on the person whether they are a prospect or already a client, you will begin a relationship that can lead to long-term retention. Then, they may tell their friends and colleagues about you, and your business will grow.

The relationship enables a far easier second sale once they’ve already bought from you – provided, of course, their buying experience with you was impeccable.

How Smooth Is Your Online Sales Process?

Selling online is different from selling in stores, because usually there is no human contact. This means trust can easily be lost at several points during the buying process.

If there are any technical glitches during the sales process, you or someone on your staff must respond immediately to help. When you’ve set up your shopping cart system effectively, your new client receives instructions and email messages at every step of the buying process to confirm their purchase, thank them, and to explain next steps.

The day after their purchase, they receive a follow-up email asking if they received their product (digital) and how they liked it.. Perhaps a few days later, another message reminds them how to use it properly, and asks for feedback.

At each step of the way your focus is to reinforce your trustworthiness by providing impeccable service.

May I Call You Again?

How you ask for the second date is like a delicate dance. Ask too soon, and your client will bail. There is no 3-date rule before going to bed with them. It’s all about the relationship and each client is a little different.

There is one occasion, however, when you can ask the customer to buy something else right away –- and that is at the point of the original sale, when they already have their credit card out.

How to Boost Online Sales by 50% or More

Ready for this? Let’s go back to the point of sale. Your customer has clicked the link that says “buy now”. They arrive at your shopping cart which has your logo, reinforcing that this page is indeed coming from you and your company. There on the page they see this up-sell offer:

“Before we process your credit card, would you like [‘fries’] with that? Today only, you can have them at 50% off the original price. Just put a ‘1’ next to ‘French Fries’ and they will be delivered at the same time as your [‘original order’].”

This up-sell offer is easy for the customer to understand and they already have their “wallets open”. Be sure your up-sell item has great value, is related to the original product and has a big discount.

Unless you have already created trust and credibility, prospects will be suspicious and abandon the cart at the point of sale. Relationships count. They should be the goal of your online marketing messages, not sales.

Want to know more about creating impeccable online sales processes? Check out The Blog Squad’s Blogging and Beyond Mentoring Program. Details at www.theblogsquad.net/mentor.