UPDATED: Upsell Strategies for Vitamins & Supplements eCommerce

Upselling is an extremely powerful tool for an eCommerce website, bringing in extra revenue and increasing brand loyalty in a whole new way. We recently wrote about the art of upselling apparel and accessories online, but how does upselling differ for supplements, vitamins or nutraceuticals eCommerce websites? Aside from increasing order value and bringing in extra revenue for merchants, it can improve the user experience and enhance customer care. With that in mind, why not try it? Here are three strategies for upselling on your supplements, vitamins or nutraceuticals eCommerce website.

Use “You Also Might Like” algorithms.

Most eCommerce websites use analytics all the time for a reason—because it works! When eCommerce sites use “You Might Also Like” algorithms, they’re simply analyzing the data about which products each customer views or purchases and then serving up similar items that the customer might also like to purchase.

In terms of supplements or vitamins eCommerce stores, here are a couple of examples: If a patient views a joint health supplement on your website, it’s a good idea to automatically populate suggested related items for the “You Might Also Like” section. This could include multivitamins or calcium supplements. For customers with diabetes, you can—and should—recommend supplements that can help replenish lost nutrients, such as vitamin B12.

A best practice for this tactic is to show these complementary items on the product page first, then on the shopping cart page, and finally on the order confirmation page. This provides three separate instances where you can work the magic of upselling. Your web programmer or development partner can easily add a “You Might Also Like” section that suggests certain products based on customer behavior and preferences.

Tie-in Personalization

Just as you can tailor product recommendations based on previous buying patterns, you can also tailor these recommendations with demographics-based personalization. For example, you can give certain recommendations based on age group, geographic location or family status. There are certain vitamins that are generally recommended for people in each age group, some vitamins can be more effective in certain parts of the country, and some vitamins are better for women, men, or a woman who is pregnant or breastfeeding. 

By obtaining a little personal information about customers and implementing it into your messaging, your supplements eCommerce store can make tailored recommendations that make sense.

In addition, because supplements should be consumed regularly (and they’re typically not just a one-off purchase), it’s a good idea to offer a discount for multiples. This not only increases your average sale, but also keeps your supply fresh.

Focus on solutions, not sales.

Yes, you’re in business to make money, but you won’t make much money at all if your customers don’t find your store useful. That’s why it’s important to keep sales in the back of your mind and make patient care your priority.

When you consider your customers’ needs first and foremost, you’ll be able to make informed decisions on how to upsell. Don’t think about simply suggesting the most expensive products. Instead, think about what will increase the effectiveness of your customers’ vitamin and supplement regimen and truly improve their health. 

When you suggest the right vitamins for each specific scenario, your customers receive better care. This inevitably leads to extra revenue for your eCommerce business.

Conclusion

When it’s done well, upselling can be a powerful tool to increase sales and overall profitability for your company, as well as introduce customers to new products. However, it can be difficult to build all of these upselling opportunities into a webstore or CRM system. That’s why we recommend working with a strong development team instead of trying to figure out and implement everything on your own.

InteractOne has years of experience managing upsells. We are a team of eCommerce website development and solution specialists who can help you map out and implement a powerful upsell strategy. Contact us today so that we can begin working together.