Upselling on the Phone

What to Pay

Compensation for upselling and cross-selling presents a dilemma: Do you reward reps for making add-on sales or not?

Both Kislik and Bruggeman believe it’s dangerous to tie upsell goals directly to monetary rewards and that it’s better instead to pay a slightly higher hourly wage.

The most important consideration, says Bruggeman, is that “rewards shouldn’t tempt reps to rush the sale.” In other words, reps must be take their time and be clear about what the customer is agreeing to on the upsell. “Never be unclear just to make the sale and end the call,” Bruggeman warns. He suggests it’s a good practice to have agents recap what the customer is agreeing to buy—restating exactly what the customer ordered and will pay.