What is your sales pitch? Does it include sample boards, brochures and fancy apps? Do you walk the homeowners around their house as you point out problems and opportunities? Or maybe flipping through a book of your past projects is the best way to go. There are many different closing methods, and every one of them ends with the opportunity to upsell.

Upselling is a win-win proposition. Upselling increases profits for the company and provides the customer with some form of extra value (whether it be appearance, protection or any feature in between). You have an opportunity to upsell on every single sale – if you correctly position the value of your offer to the homeowner.

What Is Upselling?

Upselling is the process of giving a customer an option to buy a better or more valuable product or service. Take a look at an example:

A customer wants to have 3-tab shingles installed on his or her home. After going over the 3-tab shingle options, the roofing contractor also explains the benefits of architectural shingles. After hearing that architectural shingles offer better wind performance, a more current aesthetic appearance, a longer warranty and Scotchgard™ Protector to prevent the ugly black streaks caused by algae, the homeowner decides to upgrade. The successful upsell benefits both the homeowner and the company.

Be Natural

One of the most important rules for upselling is to avoid being pushy. Customers won’t make the purchase if they feel like you are taking advantage of them. To prevent any uncertainty, take a few minutes to get to know your customers. Find out what their needs are so you can suggest a solution to their problem. Customers are more likely to upgrade their purchase if the product or service provides a resolution.

If you spend time getting to know your customers, you can make an appropriate recommendation based on their situation and are less likely to upset or offend them with your offer. Don’t make a recommendation just for the sake of upgrading the homeowners. If your customers don’t understand what they are buying, their contentment could easily become confusion or regret. Make your recommendations based on the homeowners’ wants and needs. Educate your homeowners on all of their available options. The more familiar your homeowners are with all of the benefits their roofing components have to offer, the more easily they will see the value of their purchase.

Endless Opportunities

Many upselling opportunities exist in the roofing industry. Beyond upselling from a traditional 3-tab shingle to a feature-filled architectural shingle, underlayment is an additional product with strong upsell potential. A quick comparison of the advantages of moving from traditional felt to a lightweight synthetic underlayment should be a great start to the conversation. Once homeowners understand that the upgraded underlayment provides extra protection for their roof, they shouldn't hesitate to make the move to the stronger alternative.

Another opportunity is to upsell from individual roofing materials to the enhanced warranty that accompanies a Signature Select Roofing System. The homeowner benefits not only from roofing components that are designed to work together but also from the extended warranty that is part of the roofing system.

Make sure the homeowners understand all of their options and the added value of the upgrades. If the homeowners understand the value of their selection, they will be much happier with their choices.

Mastering Your Close

Upselling is an art. You can’t just throw out a sample board with your most expensive shingles and expect customers to be eager to have them installed. Get to know your customers’ wants and needs, make a recommendation that fits their interests, show them the true value of their purchase and then enjoy the many benefits of a successful upsell. If you have mastered the art of upselling and would like to share your upselling techniques, feel free to leave them in the comments section below.