Leveraging Cross-selling and Upselling with Shopify Subscriptions APIs

There comes a moment in the journey of building a relationship with your customer when they are ready for more. It's a sure sign that your product delivers enough value to the customer's needs. And when that reaches the most optimum level, upselling and cross-selling are the best options for both parties to grow themselves.

Upselling/Cross-selling is persuading a consumer to purchase a more premium version of a product/ a good additional product. When I say upsell/cross-sell, these words sound more relevant from the seller's point of view. However, it is a two-sided affair in which both the buyer and the seller are equally involved. You don't merely sell your higher-priced version to make more money. The high-end goods you upsell/cross-sell should provide sufficient value to the customer. Only then can such partnerships be considered a win-win arrangement for both parties.

The difference between upselling and cross-selling

As discussed, upselling and cross-selling add value to both the buyer and consumer. Often, upselling and cross-selling are considered the same, but there is a significant difference between them. 

Upselling focuses on boosting order value and encouraging a larger buy, whereas cross-selling entails giving a suggestion related to the original offering.

So, cross-selling is like “Would you like to purchase tops with the pant?”, whereas an upsell is more of an upgrade.

Subscription Value At Check Out 

Your shopping cart is a great place; using it will build your revenue. We've all been there: standing in line behind someone with twenty items at the grocery store. It's aggravating. The checkout process in e-commerce may be a pain; therefore, subscription businesses should do everything to simplify and streamline the buying experience for customers. What is the reason for the subscription option at checkout? Because removing friction from the checkout process is a smart practice that can boost conversion rates. And Shopify subscription APIs at checkout can achieve it. 

You can add eye-catching cross-selling and up-selling subscription content at checkout. The important catch of the offering or display is to add value to the customer's purchase intent.

In this series, we'll walk you through different ways to increase the value of a cart by cross-selling/ upselling (using Shopify subscription APIs) other products based on what your customer has already added to their cart. We'll achieve this by integrating Shopify Subscription API. 

Shopify Subscription API:

To assist merchants in providing the greatest shopping experience for their consumers, Shopify has released subscription and post-purchase Shopify checkout apps fully connected with Shopify Checkout.

Earlier, I think even you would have downloaded a Shopify App from the Shopify store to start your subscription business, but later, you would have stopped using the app with so many issues. 

Understanding merchants could not previously offer subscriptions and post-purchase upsells using Shopify checkout apps that didn't fully integrate. With the Shopify subscription API, you can now do it directly in Shopify Checkout, making things more efficient.

Subscription APIs - building a custom solution.

Usually, the subscription API Shopify strategy ensures customers purchase subscription products that generate multiple orders on a specific billing frequency. Importantly, with subscription products, the consumer is not required to return to Shopify after the initial subscription purchase to accept each subsequent order. Therefore, to use Subscriptions APIs, you will require secured access scopes.

• read_customer_payment_methods: Captures the preference of customer payment method.
• write_own_subscription_contracts: Create custom subscription contracts and allow apps to read and write the data. 

HulkApps recognizes that this might be confusing at times, so we're excited to announce the first APIs and infrastructure that will enable you to design new subscription experiences directly within Shopify Checkout.

Starting today, you can use the Shopify Subscription APIs to support your emerging business models for merchants.

• Custom Subscription Portal
• Cohort Tracking in Shopify
• Upsell Add-ons in Subscription Portal
• Build a box Subscription

These new  Shopify Subscription APIs will enable you to:

• Build on Shopify Checkout. You can easily focus on improving the subscription buying and management experience on Shopify’s checkout.
• Fully integrate with Shopify. Your store's platform capabilities (such as Shopify Payments, shipping, discounts, reporting, and so on) and the complete app ecosystem remain compatible with subscription orders handled and managed by Shopify.
• Solve the emerging needs. While selling subscription products is a well-known requirement today, our new APIs are designed to enable you to develop new ways of selling in the future.

Build on Shopify Checkout - Shopify Subscription APIs

Over the years, we have always focused on creating the industry's most scalable, durable, and conversion-optimized checkout, unrivaled in customer trust worldwide.

We can now help you build on Shopify Checkout (using Upselling Shopify Subscription APIs ) for the first time, removing the need to choose between selling subscription products and using Shopify's checkout. Customers may have the same friction-free checkout experience regardless of whether they're purchasing a one-time or recurring product in the future since you won't have to manage different checkout experiences.

Building on Shopify Checkout guarantees a performant customer experience.

Complete customer data

Shopify creates and manages subscription orders, giving merchants a complete picture of their client data for both one-time and subscription customers. Using Shopify to model and store subscription data, retailers will be able to utilize features such as:

• Get insights from recurring revenue reports.
• Build email campaigns exclusively for subscription customers.
• Based on subscription behavior, you can set up automated workflows.

In other words, data is essential for merchants to understand their subscription clients better and expand their subscription operations. This method also ensures that all merchants have access to the same data.

Business model flexibility

The Shopify Subscription APIs allow you to discover new ways to sell that aren't limited to Shopify's conventional "buy now" option. We want to help you create amazing experiences by allowing you to target certain segments and personalize experiences to their individual needs.

Finally: Avoid these upselling/ cross-selling mistakes

Upselling/ Cross-Selling is a technique that fosters a long-term relationship with a consumer. The best approach to sabotage a relationship is to treat the customer like a number. Cross-selling/Upselling, no matter how crucial you think it is, will never be more vital than client retention. So, don't contact them unless you've done your research and have a contextual solution to offer.

Another blunder would be to assume that customers would always be the same. If you want your customers to evaluate your products, you need to speed up their current situation. Always consider their needs - which will eventually get changed over time.

Upselling/Cross-Selling is a skill that any Shopify merchant can master in their business. Only in this way will you provide more excellent value to your customer's needs. Upselling/Cross-Selling is always different from new sales because you already have a thoroughly fostered relationship with your customer when you upsell. As a result, you've completed most of your tasks to get to know your consumer. All you have to do now is match the appropriate timing and upsell/cross-sell to make it work perfectly.

Conclusion with Subscriptions tips:

Effective and proper communication with subscribers is critical for healthy subscriber retention and loyalty. Your customers expect your marketing communications and checkout pages to be streamlined, just as you expect to be able to access all of your payment methods, backend operations, and currency choices from a single platform.

Don't hold back - Implement a subscription strategy with Shopify subscription APIs.

You can increase subscriber acquisition by providing a simplified, hassle-free checkout experience, regardless of where the subscriber is located or what device they're using.