Why we should suggestive sell

To show customers that buying a product bundle is more cost effective than buying each individual product, use signage to display the savings. For example, if the running shoes you sell are made from breathable materials that lower the probability of painful blisters when running long distances, educate people about these features and benefits. Customer reward programs are the perfect way to encourage customers to spend more at your retail store i.

With a loyalty program that rewards the purchases they make—whether it's with exclusive offers, discounts, or gifts—shoppers are more inclined to continue shopping with you in the future. Check out the loyalty apps that work with Shopify POS to start rewarding customers for their loyalty wherever they choose to shop. Use point of purchase POP displays to showcase low price point items shoppers are likely to buy on impulse.

This is because those items are inexpensive and have a higher probability of being added to the shoppers before completing their purchase. You can start by asking them what they like about each. Then you can proceed to asking them about whether they typically run short or long distances, how many times a week they plan on running, and whether or not they have any injuries or conditions that flair up before or after they run. Some customers will respond better than others to different suggestive selling techniques.

Remember, each business is unique and so is its customer base. See what customers buy, how often they buy, how much they spend, what their favorite store location is, and more. Alexis Damen is a Shopify merchant turned digital marketer. Her specialties include content marketing and writing for SaaS and D2C ecommerce companies. She occasionally writes about small businesses and content marketing at www.

Get exclusive behind-the-scenes merchant stories, industry trends, and tips for creating standout brick-and-mortar experiences. Try Shopify free for 14 days, no credit card required. By entering your email, you agree to receive marketing emails from Shopify. Hidden label. Suggestive Selling vs. Upselling Suggestive selling in restaurants is similar to restaurant upselling , and the terms are sometimes used interchangeably. Cross-Selling Another common restaurant sales technique is cross-selling.

Better Customer Experience It truly is the little things that count. Happier Restaurant Staff Employee retention is critical for any restaurant. Play Matchmaker On the topic of recommendations, your servers should be well versed in which dishes have similar flavor profiles so they can make helpful suggestions to guests based on the meal the customer was initially planning to order This expertise can help make the suggestive selling process feel natural and effortless, like an inevitable conclusion.

Ask Your Guests Questions The benefits of this suggestive selling technique are twofold. Use Technology to Help Drive Sales Mastering suggestive selling techniques involves understanding how to leverage your restaurant tech to help you increase revenue.

Use Customer Data to Personalize Your Offers Leveraging tech like restaurant reservation software enables you to create guest profiles that include food and beverage preferences. Document Your Plan and Make it Fun Getting your suggestive selling strategy down on paper and incorporating your revenue goals will help ensure you stick to your plan.

Get Started with Suggestive Selling You now have all of the information you need to make suggestive selling a seamless part of the daily routine at your restaurant. Happy selling! Gift Cards Loyalty. Find out how diners choose restaurants Read.

Get hot restaurant tips. Subscribe Now. An employee asks a customer if they would like to include an additional item with their primary purchase or recommends a product that might suit the customer better. Most often, the additional item is a complementary product to the original purchase and much less expensive — like cables for a new entertainment system — but the inclusion of those extra items serves to increase the revenue coming into your business. In addition, when an employee performs suggestive selling correctly, the customer feels like your business really cares.

The theory behind this technique revolves around the fact that the hard part is out of the way — the customer has already committed to a purchase. From there, it takes marginal effort to encourage the customer to add a few smaller, but still necessary, items to the original purchase.

Restaurants and bars are rife with opportunities for suggestive selling. Wait staff could suggest a wine pairing based on the dish a customer orders or mention that other customers have enjoyed a certain dessert after their meal. At a retail clothing store, suggestive selling might take the form of an employee showing a customer a scarf and glove set that complements the new coat the customer has already committed to buying.

Suggestive selling helps to reduce theft by encouraging salespeople to keep a closer eye on the customers who are entering their store. It also improves your business by improving the overall customer experience. This is especially true if you have a salesperson who helps them choose the best items or lets them know about the benefits of a service that they might not have known about otherwise. More positive customer experiences means more positive press for your business, and we all know how important good press is when it comes to growing a brand and raising your bottom line.

In addition to helping you attract new customers, suggestive selling can also help you retain your existing customers. While you, of course, want new people coming to your business, you also want to foster good relationships with your current customers so they keep coming back.

The following six suggestive selling tips can help your team to become master add-on sellers in no time:. The more they know, the easier it will be for them to make recommendations that make sense to the customer. This also helps the customer to develop a sense of trust in your sales staff. Remember, 82 percent of consumers are more likely to listen to the recommendations of an expert. This will help them to be able to assist customers with more ease.

If your company has a lot of new inventory coming in on a regular basis, including an upselling point or USP for short when informing salespeople about the new items. Make sure that point is easy for them to keep in mind and work into a conversation with customers. Encourage your salespeople not to make things more complicated than they need to be, though. Remember, personal recommendations help the customer to feel special.

This helps to establish a bond between the customer and the salesperson, which, in turn, increases the likelihood that the customer will actually go through with an upsell.