Imagine that you're in the drive-through of a fast food restaurant. You've just ordered a special meal deal when the cashier asks you if you would like to make your meal a large or an extra large for only a few cents more. You agree to the extra large meal.

The cashier has just created an upsell: She sold you more than you intended to purchase when you arrived at the drive-through window. It's a very simple example, but that's exactly how the upsell works, and upselling is an effective way of increasing your profits.

Upselling is a skill. You must not be pushy when offering the upsell, but at the same time, you must sound convincing enough to encourage the customer to take advantage of the upsell.

As a business owner, you must know how to upsell to your clients. There are numerous strategies you can use to upsell, including:

Practice upselling with your employees

If you have employees, you must practice upselling with them. Set clear guidelines and goals for upselling. For example, you may want to increase your upsell ratio by 15 percent over last month. Allow time for role-playing, so employees can practice their upselling skills.

Offer different levels of your product or service

One way to upsell clients is to offer different levels of a product or a service. For example, you may offer Web design services, and you offer a Gold, a Silver, and a Bronze package. Your Bronze package might be basic design service, and your Silver package might be Web design and SEO content while your Gold package might include Web design, SEO content, search engine submission, and Web hosting for a year.

When you have different levels of a product, you'll find it's much easier to upsell to customers.

Consider your customers' needs

You may have a goal for how many customers you're going to upsell in one day, and that's fine. However, you should never put your own needs before your customers' needs. Does the customer need the product or service that you want to upsell him? If he doesn't need it, don't waste your time trying to upsell to him.

Assume your customer wants it

If your customer has already purchased a product or a service from you, it is natural for you to assume that he is going to want what you have to upsell, making it easy for you to feel comfortable and confident upselling. (Remember, however, if it's clear he doesn't need it, don't go for the upsell.)

Start by mentioning a benefit

Begin your upsell by mentioning a benefit of the product or service you're trying to sell.

Explain why your product or service is unique

Once you've mentioned the benefits of the product or service you're trying to upsell, explain to your customers why it's a unique offering. For example, perhaps you offer an extended warranty on your product and that warranty is the most comprehensive in the industry.