Selling More: Better By The Bundle

Selling more is always better than selling less. This would seem obvious taken at face value. But we don’t always work as hard as we should to get those larger orders. That’s why whenever possible, marketers should get creative and bundle products and services to both improve the bottom line, and boost customer satisfaction.

One would think it is always good to make a sale. But there is a point where too small an order actually hurts more than it helps. This is where bundling makes sense.

What would make a good bundle? Just think of items you’re selling near each other because they complement one other, and you’re halfway there. Instead of selling a planter and its pieces, and then offering the refill soil and fertilizer kit as a separate line item, here’s a chance to sell it all as one big bundle. Give the customer a little discount if they buy the whole set. I’d even suggest leading with the bundle, and then following with separate line items if they want just the individual pieces.

What are the advantages?

1. You increase your average order size, a worthy goal for all of us. Even with a discount, it takes less labor to sell more in one package than to sell each item separately. It also costs the customer (and you) more in postage to have these items shipped separately.
2. You increase customer satisfaction. The customer gets more of what they like, and you’ve shown them what works well together. That means a happier customer.

Get Creative
Don’t just offer five John Wayne DVDs together at $19.95 each. Call the assortment “The John Wayne Cowboy Flicks Collection,” and selling the five disc set for just $89.99 – a $10 savings. And of course offer the movies individually as well

Does the collection it be in its own special case? Not necessarily. If you’re not showing a set or bundle in a fancy box or slipcase, you are free to sell them the bundle without changing the packaging.

We discovered this a few years ago when we started bundling sets for Blackhawk, a Republic home video seller. We bundled Tarzan sets, Fred Astaire sets, Musicals, and more—and took the average order up $20 more than it had been before. This made them much, much more profitable. It appealed to their customers too, who liked the idea of building their film library of collector flicks.

Not every bundle will work, and it may require a little bit of experimentation. But give it a try. Selling a cookie cookbook with a set of your own exclusive cookie cutters will excite the customer much more than selling them separately. Giving them savings when they buy the chair and ottoman together can make the customer happier on more than one level—and it will make your bottom line happier, too.

Carol Worthington-Levy is creative partner with San Rafael, CA-based catalog consultancy Lenser.