By ALI CUDBY
Just before my trip to New York for Curvexpo, I ran to a nearby mall to grab some things for the trip. Specifically, I needed a fresh-looking black shirt.
As I looked around the clothing department of one store, I was approached by a salesperson who asked if she could put some items in a dressing room for me – which she did. I tried on the two black shirts I had found, but wasn’t feeling excited about either of them, so I left. On the way out, I received a quick, friendly farewell from the saleswoman.
At the next store, I went into the equivalent department and was, again, approached by a salesperson. This time, she asked me some questions about what I needed, and why. I told her about my trip as we poked through the racks, looking at black shirts. We pulled a few things and she showed me into a dressing room. As I tried on the shirts, she came back to check on me. She had pulled a few more items – some more black shirts, a vest and a tissue-thin sweater. Both the vest and the sweater were on sale, and she thought I might like having them for layering in the New York cold.
I left the store with a black shirt and the sweater. She more than doubled my sale by being thoughtful about my particular situation, and I genuinely appreciated it. And the sweater – it was seriously cold in New York this year!!
That saleswoman embodied the essence of up-selling.
She successfully encouraged me to increase the overall dollars spent, and did it without acting pushy. In fact, the opposite – I walked away from the store grateful for her help and thrilled with my purchases. I felt like I had received personalized, thoughtful service, and I spent more as a result.
That store didn’t have to do anything to get my extra business. I was already there. All the advertising, SEO and publicity work had already paid off when I crossed the store’s threshold – what differentiated my experience in store #1 and store #2 all came down to the feeling I had working with the salespeople.
In fact, according to a study by McKinsey & Co, 70% of buying experiences are based on how the customer feels they are being treated. Tapping into customers’ feelings is the key to winning the hearts, minds and (ultimately) the spending of the women you serve.
To get more information on specific tools to employ in an up-selling program, you can download the free eBook, The Art of the Upsell.
The next time I go shopping, I’ll bypass the first store and start at store #2. If that particular saleswoman is working, I’ll look for her – all because of how I felt in my interaction. That saleswoman converted me a more loyal customer, and the store will get more of my dollars as a result.
Learn more by downloading your copy of The Art of the Upsell now.
