How to improve your cake business or bakery sales. Most people love baked goods. But 1 cupcake isn’t going to sustain your business. A creative way to improve food business sales is by upselling.

Up-selling is simply getting a customer to spend more than he/she was originally intending.

Upselling… gosh… this can feel like such a cheesy ‘car salesman’ type of thing to do. Pushing for that extra dollar. Pushing for that extra sale.
Cheesy. But effective.

Especially if you can find a way to do it without seeming like that cheesy car salesman. Especially if you know your products, know your target market, and take a few tips from below.

You’ll be adding an extra sale onto many new orders coming through. And your customers will be thanking you! Why? Because you are adding value to their order!

7 Tips to Upsell In Your Cake Business

1.) Know your upsells.

Make sure you know which item/s you are wanting to upsell. It may be something as simple as a custom made topper, a pack of 12 mini cupcakes, box cookies, maybe some packaging for those biscuits. Whatever it is, KNOW confidently what your upsell options are.

2.) Make your upsell beneficial to your customer.

Nobody wants a bikini to cross the desert in. So why would you try and sell it to someone going on a camel ride through the Sahara?
Try to upsell something that will be of use, or be helpful to your cake customer. For example, a cupcake stand for their cupcakes. And make sure your customer KNOWS it will benefit them somehow, i.e., what a wonderful display it will make rather than displayed flat on a table.

3.) Be specific.

‘Want to hire out a cupcake stand for 20 bucks?’… probably won’t get that upsell. Be more specific with something like ‘I have a – tiered cupcake stand that displays 24 cupcakes just perfectly. I’ll add it as an option to your quote for you to consider.’

4.) Focus on profit over effort.

Wherever possible, focus on the products that are profitable, and not much effort.
Hiring out a cupcake stand for $20 requires next to no work as opposed to baking and decorating 12 mini cupcakes for an extra $15.00. Or providing a fondant covered cake board for $15.00 is super quick as opposed to making a 6 pack of macarons.

5.) Offer different price ranges.

Where it is possible (and not being too pushy), offer 2-3 different price ranges for your upsell. For example, if you are offering to package for baby shower cookies, offer a heat-sealed option (which is quicker for you) as a cheaper alternative, as opposed to hand tying pretty little bows (medium range), or even adding ‘thank you’ tags (higher range).

6.) Show examples where possible.

If you are offering a fondant covered cake board with a nice ribbon around the edge, offer an example as opposed to just words and an upsell quote. For example, when you are sending your quote through or suggesting your upsell, mention ‘I have attached an image as an example to show the difference a fondant covered cake board can make.’

7.) The power of positioning.

Make sure you add your upsell where you feel appropriate for your customer. This may differ from customer to customer. You may want to add a simple ‘OPTION’ section at the base of your quote. You may want to directly ask your customer. You may want to send a follow up after they have booked their order. Read your customer and position your upsell to suit.

The take-aways?

• Offer upsells to your clients.
• List your upsells, make them beneficial to your customer, be specific, focus on profit not effort, offer different price ranges, show photo examples and offer options when appropriate.
• Do all the above regularly and/or consistently. Even a 10% uptake is bigger revenue and profit!

• Want extra help?  Join Cake Biz Bootcamp!

  

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HAPPY CAKE DAYS!!!

Written by Guest  Blogger, Krystle Armstrong from Magnificent Mouthfuls Cupcakes & Catering Townsville