--- title: Art of the Upsell, Science of the Cross-Sell  description: There are many similarities between selling online and offline, and the ecommerce experience that s... image: https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/sale15-3-1-1-1.jpg --- [Log In](https://www.websitemagazine.com/_hcms/mem/login) [Subscribe](https://websitemagazine.tradepub.com/free/w_webk05/prgm.cgi) [![Website Magazine Logo](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hs-fs/hubfs/gradient-regular@3x-1.png?width=586&height=145&name=gradient-regular@3x-1.png "Website Magazine Logo")](http://Website%20Services,%20Inc.) - [About](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about) - [FAQs](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about/faq) - [Advertise](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about/advertise) - [Editorial Staff](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about/editorial-publishing-staff) - [Resources](https://websitemagazine.tradepub.com) - [Newsletter](https://www.websitemagazine.com/newsletter-sign-up) - More - [Contact Us](https://www.websitemagazine.com/contact) [Log In](https://www.websitemagazine.com/_hcms/mem/login) [Subscribe](https://websitemagazine.tradepub.com/free/w_webk05/prgm.cgi) Search - [Latest](https://www.websitemagazine.com) - [Design](https://www.websitemagazine.com/web-design) - [Development](https://www.websitemagazine.com/web-development) - [SEO](https://www.websitemagazine.com/seo) - [Ecommerce](https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce) - [Content](https://www.websitemagazine.com/content) - [Marketing](https://www.websitemagazine.com/marketing) - [Advertising](https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising) - [Email](https://www.websitemagazine.com/email) - [Infographics](https://www.websitemagazine.com/infographics) - [View All Topics](https://www.websitemagazine.com/channels) # Art of the Upsell, Science of the Cross-Sell ![Pete Prestipino](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Pete%20Prestipino.jpeg) [by Pete Prestipino](https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/author/pete-prestipino) 19 Oct, 2015 - - - [mailto:?Body=https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/art-of-the-upsell-science-of-the-cross-sell-160](mailto:?Body=https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/art-of-the-upsell-science-of-the-cross-sell-160) - Link Copied! ![Art of the Upsell, Science of the Cross-Sell](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/sale15-3-1-1-1.jpg) **There are many similarities between selling online and offline, and the ecommerce experience that shoppers have grown accustom to in the "real" world can actually translate quite nicely to the digital realm.** More often than not though, retailers just don't put the same emphasis on the nuances of the buying experience the same way brick-and-mortar retailers do. The main reason for this is likely that online sellers and shoppers never really have genuine interactions with one another and sellers ultimately become somewhat lazy about the need to 'actively' sell to shoppers. Fortunately, technology (and the tactics online retailers have available) can provide some relief. Many retailers have successfully implemented and integrated techniques (and technologies) which make the online shopping experience, if not identical, pretty darn close to what is expected and seen offline. Some of the methods and means by which this is accomplished, and arguably two of the most effective techniques, are **upselling** and **cross-selling** (there are some key differences between the two as you will see). Last week Website Magazine covered an interesting report from Optimove which showed that [initial order volume could reveal future behavior of shoppers](https://www.websitemagazine.com/blog/initial-order-volume-reveals-future-behavior-of-shoppers). According to the study, the more users purchased during their first visit, the more likely they were to purchase a second order in the future. If merchants can find opportunities to increase order value/volume, the better off they will be in the long run. And upselling and cross-selling provide such an opportunity. Upselling is simply a technique where customers are offered the chance to purchase upgrades (better features/options, greater volume) or to get more expensive alternative versions of what they are browsing or buying so merchants can maximize the value of their purchase. The secret to upselling is to offer products that add value and improve the experience of the customer, getting the customer to spend more in the processes and ultimately increase the average order value (AOV). Not all of a retailers products, of course, are really going to improve a customer's life (or are suited to upselling) so it's best to only target a few products or focus more on cross-selling. The aim of cross-selling is to get the customer to spend more money by adding other products (not alternatives) from the same or related categories. Product reccomendations are one of the most common ways to execuite a cross-selling initiative, and there is a whole science and strategy dedicated to doing so - and there are plenty of [recommendation solutions ready and willing to support online retailers](https://www.websitemagazine.com/blog/pick-this-recommendation-solutions-to-know). In a perfect world, sellers would only sell to those most likely to purchase. Since that's not a reality, merchants must focus their attention on the products most likely to sell to any potential buyer. That means focusing upsell and cross-sell efforts on the products that are most reviewed, sold most often, or are the most relevant products in the moment. Most ecommerce solutions such as Magento, Shopify, Prestashop and others have plugins/modules/extensions/add-on's which do a lot of the heavy lifting automatically for merchants interested in engaging in upselling and cross-selling some of their products. Take a moment to see what's possible in your ecommerce deployment before the holidays and you'll be on the fast track to greater revenue in no time. ![Pete Prestipino](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Pete%20Prestipino.jpeg) [Pete Prestipino](https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/author/pete-prestipino) Digital marketing executive with proven experience in all aspects of search engine optimization (SEO), performance-based advertising, consumer-generated/social media, email marketing, lead generation, Web design, usability, and analytics. - 20-year Internet marketing veteran, currently serving as the Digital Marketing Campaign Manager at Antenna Group (formerly Chicago Digital). - Former Editor-In-Chief of Website Magazine, and a regular speaker on Web technology digital marketing strategy - Author of several books on digital marketing Including Web 360: The Fundamentals of Web Success; Affiliate 360: The Fundamentals of Performance Marketing; Domains 360: The Fundamentals of Buying & Selling Domain Names, and SEO 360: The Fundamentals of Search Engine Optimization. - - - [mailto:peter@websitemagazine.com](mailto:peter@websitemagazine.com) #### Popular Post ### [The Impact of Late and Inaccurate Deliveries on Customer Loyalty ![The Impact of Late and Inaccurate Deliveries on Customer Loyalty](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/package_delivery-1-1.jpg)](https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/the-impact-of-late-and-inaccurate-deliveries-on-customer-loyalty) ### [Top 50 Customer Relationship Management Solutions ![Top 50 Customer Relationship Management Solutions](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/gradient-regular-logo-mark-Jan-22-2023-11-50-42-2994-PM-Apr-10-2023-01-15-57-0982-PM-2-2.png)](https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/top-50-customer-relationship-management-solutions) ### [Square Cash Now Available for Business Use ![Square Cash Now Available for Business Use](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/squarecash-mini-Jan-22-2023-11-46-25-0939-PM-1-1-1.jpg)](https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/square-cash-now-available-for-business-use) #### Subscribe to Our Newsletter! 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All Rights Reserved - [Privacy Policy](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about/privacy) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Pete Prestipino", "url" : "https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/author/pete-prestipino" }, "dateModified" : "2023-05-01T20:26:53.110Z", "datePublished" : "2015-10-19T05:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "Art of the Upsell, Science of the Cross-Sell ", "image" : [ "https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/sale15-3-1-1-1.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce/art-of-the-upsell-science-of-the-cross-sell-160", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/gradient-regular@3x-1.png" }, "name" : "Website Services, Inc." } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "NewsArticle", "author" : [ { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Pete Prestipino" } ], "headline" : "Art of the Upsell, Science of the Cross-Sell", "publisher" : { "name" : "Website Magazine", "url" : "https://www.websitemagazine.com/" } } ```