Five tips to ensure successful upselling/cross-selling training

All sales training requires your team to make changes in their behavior, but teaching the techniques of cross-selling and upselling offers some unique challenges. In many cases, you're faced with employees who perceive the practice of upselling or cross-selling as requiring a total behavior change -- a change that does not correlate with the perception of their jobs. This results in a reluctance to learn the new skills. For example, for a customer service representative, the very word "selling" may invoke negative images of an aggressive person, someone whom they are not. They may feel that attempting to cross-sell or upsell will impede a special relationship they have developed with the customer. Or they may feel cross-selling or upselling should not be part of their job (e.g., "My job is to ensure customer satisfaction, not to sell."). In other cases, sales representatives who rely on low- and mid-priced items that "sell themselves" will fear losing what they perceive as a guaranteed sale by attempting to upsell.

How do you train even the most hesitant representatives to crosssell and upsell? Here is a summary of the best practices I have found to work to improve the sales effectiveness of both sales and non-sales teams.

1. Tell team members "what's in it for them."

Effective training starts by tuning into radio station WIIFM (What's in it for me?). Tell the team how using cross-selling and upselling skills enables them to enhance their career, make more money, feel more effective, and help their customers save money or aggravation. Explaining how team members will benefit motivates them to want to learn this skill. It is important to obtain "buy in" from the team before the training session starts; this creates a more receptive learning environment.

2. Give team members clear objectives.

Without targets, no one knows where to aim. Setting goals enables your team to produce the expected result. The most successful sales teams know where they have been and where they are going. Constantly share the company vision with your team and set objectives that are both measurable ("We want to increase service contract orders by 20 percent" vs. "We want to sell more contracts") and observable ("We want to hear each of you ask every caller if they would like to try a sample of the latest widget" vs. "We want everyone to push widgets today"). Take the time to define your objectives so everyone understands the expected results.

3. Create a non-threatening environment for role-playing.

Changing human behavior involves enabling people to practice the new behavior in a non-threatening environment. Small groups of two or three team members are the least intimidating; team members do not feel put "on the spot." It is extremely important to emphasize that any critique must include positive feedback (e.g., representatives must be applauded for what they do correctly). Effective role-playing initiates the behavior change in the classroom so it can be carried out with confidence on the phone lines.

4. Assign team members structured skill improvement activities.

To ensure that the team uses their new cross-selling and upselling skills, it is important to provide structured skills improvement and reinforce activities. Ask team members to perform specific activities when they leave the training, and assign a time frame for them to accomplish each activity. Give examples so they understand exactly what the activity entails (i.e., for the next four weeks, ask at least 10 customers each day, "Would you like to save 15 percent by signing up for the two-year maintenance agreement instead of one year?" Structured activities make it easy for team members to implement the new skill.

Note: Try to assign activities during the training session. This gives team members the opportunity to voice any misunderstanding or seek further clarification regarding your examples.

5. Schedule a reinforcement workshop three to five weeks after the initial training session.

Studies show that it takes an average of 21 to 30 days of concentrated effort before a task becomes a habit. Holding a reinforcement workshop within this period helps your team overcome the problems associated with changing behaviors, as well as maintain interest and enthusiasm. Hold an open discussion to share how their new cross-selling and upselling skills are working. Conduct strategy sessions on areas where they are still having difficulty implementing the new skills. Publicly praise team members who are successfully cross-selling and upselling. Interactive workshops ensure the behavior changes are permanent and create a forum for exposing all team members to winning strategies used by your top performers.

If you gain team consensus, present clear expectations, and provide structured activities with consistent, positive reinforcement, you create an ideal environment to foster new behaviors. If you do not, the purpose of the behavior change will be misunderstood and therefore carried out incorrectly -- which results in alienated customers and frustrated team members. Remember that when you ask anyone to change a behavior, you are asking that person to step out of a "comfort zone." It is important to minimize the perceived risks while maximizing benefits. Using all five of these techniques enables you to ensure a successful transition between the "old" and the "new."

Brian Geery is president of RESULTS Consulting Group, Inc. located in Wellesley, Massachusetts. This sales consulting firm provides training and management services for sales, telesales, and telemarketing teams across the Northeast.

Copyright Technology Marketing Corporation Jan 1996
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved