Upselling is a sales technique where a seller invites the customer to purchase more expensive items, upgrades, or other add-ons to generate more revenue. While it usually involves marketing more profitable services or products, it can be simply exposing the customer to other options that were perhaps not considered. (A different technique is cross-selling in which a seller tries to sell something else.) In practice, large businesses usually combine upselling and cross-selling to maximize revenue. Upselling vs cross-selling Upselling is the practice in which a business tries to motivate customers to purchase a higher-end product, an upgrade, or an additional item in order to make a more profitable sale. For instance, a salesperson may influence a customer into purchasing the newest version of an item, rather than the less-expensive current model, by pointing out its additional features. A similar marketing technique is cross-selling, where the salesperson suggests the purchase of additional products for sale. For example, he might say "Would you like some ice cream to go with that cake?" Both techniques increase profits for businesses, but research has shown that upselling is generally more effective than cross-selling. Examples Selling an extended service contract for an appliance Suggesting that a customer opt for higher specifications in a new computer Selling luxury options on a vehicle, such as leather upholstery Suggesting that a customer purchase a more extensive car wash package Asking the customer to choose a larger meal size at a fast-food restaurant Offering a pair of similar, but more expensive sneakers from the new collection Suggesting additional work on a car after a "multi-point inspection" Techniques Upselling techniques work by satisfying the needs of the customer completely- or exceeding them. Many companies teach their employees to upsell products and services and offer incentives and bonuses to the most successful personnel. Giving a customer a time bound offer. Tell them why availing it in this particular period could be beneficial. Creating a feeling of urgency is another technique for upselling. A common technique for successful upsellers is becoming aware of a customer's background, budget and other budgets, allowing the upsellers to understand better what that particular purchaser values, or may come to value. Another way of upselling is by creating fear over the durability of the purchase, particularly effective on expensive items such as electronics, where an extended warranty can offer peace of mind. Overlap with cross-selling and add-on sales