A Surefire Tactic to Increase Your Sales

I bought a book the other day from Angus and Robertson, the Australian book retailer.

As I handed over my credit card, the shop assistant informed me that because I was spending more than $20.00, I was entitled to choose from a selection of items at the discounted price of $12.00 each.

As the guy told me this, I went through an interesting experience.

Even though I knew that he was engaging me in what is commonly called a “cross-sell” in marketing circles (think software packages, which are often offered on top of the new computer, and you’ll get the idea), I felt quite powerless not to have a look.

And the more I thought about this afterwards, the more I realized the truth behind the theory that a little compliance goes a long way in sales.

In other words, because I had already said “yes” once and opened my wallet… I was that much closer to saying “yes” again.

Renowned social psychologist Robert Cialdini, of the University of Arizona, has coined a name for this phenomenon.

He calls it the “Law of Commitment and Consistency”, which is basically the desire of people to be consistent with what they have already done.

From a sales point-of-view, this law, if used wisely, can result in a lot more dollars in your pocket.

All you have to do is ask yourself: “What incentives can I offer at the time of purchase to increase the amount that the consumer spends with me?”

And then make that part of your sales process.

On-line you see this happen all the time.

Savvy Companies will often try to upgrade your purchase in the form of access to extra reports, upgrades to a superior version of the product, or if you are purchasing software, access to it in a more tangible form such as a disc.

Off-line this is the reason why McDonald’s and Burger King employees ask whether you’d like to upgrade your purchase to a bigger size, and why your local car dealer asks whether you’d like leather seats included as the part of the package in the purchase of a new car.

The point is, these people ask these questions at the point-of-sale for a reason.

They know your first “yes” is likely to influence a second…which makes this a worthwhile tactic to consider if you’re looking to increase your sales.

Incidentally, despite the offer, I didn’t buy the extra book.

I know though, that provided the shop assistant continued to make the additional offer to every customer who broke through the $20.00 barrier, Angus and Robertson would have been very happy with extra profit at the end of the day.