8 cross selling examples for small business growth

Looking for some marketing inspiration? We've compiled 8 power-packed cross selling examples that can skyrocket your ecommerce business's revenue along with suitable Shopify and WooCommerce extensions to implement them in your online store.

Cross selling is a well-known marketing tactic, and with good reason: it works. According to various studies, cross selling accounts for 10 to 30% of ecommerce stores' revenue on average.

However, simply suggesting products in your catalog isn't enough. Cross sells are most effective when deployed thoughtfully across various touchpoints in the customer journey. And that's where this guide comes in.

Here, we'll outline 8 power-packed cross selling examples that can boost your profits together with top-notch Shopify apps and WooCommerce plugins to implement them in your online store.

But first, let’s address what cross selling actually is.

What is cross selling?

Cross selling is a set of techniques designed to encourage customers to buy additional products that complement what they are already purchasing. With cross sells, the goal is two-fold: increase the average order value while enhancing the customer experience with relevant recommendations.

There's no shortage of cross selling examples to take inspiration from. For instance, in an electronics store, customers who buy a laptop may be recommended a laptop bag, wireless mouse, or cooling pad. While those who purchase a high-end DSLR camera are offered memory cards, extra batteries, or protective cases.

8 cross selling examples for ecommerce

Every channel and point of contact in the ordering journey creates opportunities for cross sells. Below, I'll share 8 cross selling examples for ecommerce stores of all sizes.

Cross selling example #1: Complementary products on the product detail page

Shoppers who are viewing items on the single product page are already considering a purchase. This makes it the perfect time to showcase add-ons or accessories that enhance the main product. With this approach, The key is to position these recommendations near the main product details to make it obvious how these items naturally go together and make the purchase more complete.

For example, a store that sells electronic items can present accessories like earbuds, charging kits, and memory cards on the product page.

Tools to implement this cross sell example in your ecommerce store

• Frequently Bought Together CBB (Shopify) — Adds a “Frequently Bought Together” section where you can showcase related or complementary products directly on product detail pages. You can manually select products to showcase or enable automatic recommendations based on purchase behavior.
  

  

• WooCommerce Product Options (WooCommerce) — Enables you to showcase additional products right on top of the "Add to cart" button on product pages. Plus, customers can choose variants, and select from a range of additional options and add-ons to customize products directly from the product page.
  

  

Cross selling example #2: Discounted product bundles

Bundles and discounts are two effective marketing strategies that are even more powerful when combined.

Grouping relevant products into bundles and then offering them at a discount makes the offer feel like a better deal than purchasing each item separately. Depending on your tech setup, you can create discounted pre-set bundles or allow shoppers to mix and match their preferred products to create custom bundles while still receiving a discount.

For instance, a store that sells home workout equipment might create a "Strength Training Bundle" with resistance bands, a workout guide, and a door anchor at a 10% discount.

Tools to implement this cross sell example in your ecommerce store

• Bundable (Shopify) — Create custom product bundles (called kits) complete with tailored descriptions and images for each bundle, and then allow customers to mix and match items based on their needs. You can also enable customers to add notes with their bundles and offer fixed or percentage-based discounts based on product quantity or price.
  

  

• YITH Frequently Bought Together (WooCommerce) — YITH mimics Amazon’s well-known “Frequently Bought Together” feature by enabling you to recommend related, cross sells, upsells, or custom-selected products on product detail pages. Plus, you can offer a fixed-value or percentage discount to customers who take advantage of your cross sell offer.
  

  

Cross selling example #3: Strategic product placement

In offline retail, merchandisers methodically arrange items to subtly align customers' purchasing habits with the business's strategy. That's the same idea here.

Most customers don't bother browsing through your entire product catalog. Strategically placing related items together on product listing pages — such as Shop, Collection, Category pages, etc. — enables shoppers to discover products that naturally go well with what they’re already interested in without extra effort.

For example, an online furniture retailer can create a campaign targeting people who work from home and add a "Complete Your Home Office" section featuring desks, ergonomic chairs, and desk lamps within the layout.

Tools to implement this cross sell example in your ecommerce store

• Tabular (Shopify) — Displays products in a structured table format from which customers can compare and add multiple items to their cart at once. Use it to strategically showcase cross sell items one after the other on the Shop or Collection pages.
  

  

• WooCommerce Product Table (WooCommerce) — Upgrades WooCommerce's default Shop layout to a conversion-focused one-page order form that showcases products and relevant product data (think: product name, image, description, quantity or stock status, price, etc.). Use it to strategically position complementary or related items to drive sales.

  

Cross selling example #4: Personalized recommendations

Analyzing customers' browsing behavior, past purchases, wishlist activities, and other actions on your website gives you insights into their preferences. You can then use this data to curate hyper-relevant product recommendations.

The best part? Personalized recommendations work well across various channels and stages of the customer journey — on the homepage, product detail pages, and post-purchase emails.

For example, if you run an online beauty store and a customer previously bought skincare products for dry skin, suggesting a hydrating serum or night cream that complements their routine will likely nudge them to buy.

Pro tip: You want to sound helpful, not intrusive. Make sure you use "soft" copy like “We Think You’ll Love These” or “You Might Also Like” to introduce the cross sell offer.

Tools to implement this cross sell example in your ecommerce store

• Wiser Product Recommendations (Shopify) — Wiser uses AI to show product recommendations to each customer based on their behavior on your site and order history. You can present cross sells in various ways: a frequently bought-together section, related products, on the order thank you page, in marketing emails, and more.
  

  

• Product Recommendations for WooCommerce (WooCommerce) — Built by WooCommerce's official team, this advanced plugin enables you to present context-aware product recommendations to customers based on various criteria: previously viewed items, browsing history, date, shopping cart contents, location, and more. You can showcase these cross sell offers on product pages, as well as the checkout and order confirmation pages.
  

  

Cross selling example #5: Loyalty programs

Many ecommerce stores already have loyalty programs that reward customers for purchases and other milestones. You can take it a step further and offer points or unlock discounts for shoppers who add related or complementary products to their orders.

Here are a few ideas:

• An online beauty store can offer double rewards points to customers who buy shampoo and conditioner together instead of just one item.
• A fitness store can knock $5 off the price of a protein shaker when it is purchased with a tub of protein powder.

Designing your loyalty program this way makes cross selling feel like a reward rather than an added purchase.

Tools to implement this cross sell example in your ecommerce store

• Smile.io (Shopify) — Enables you to create a comprehensive loyalty program where customers earn points for various actions, including purchases, referrals, and social shares. While it doesn't natively tie points to adding specific product combinations, you can set up campaigns that encourage purchasing complementary products by offering bonus points.
  

  

• YITH WooCommerce points and rewards (WooCommerce) — Allows you to reward customers with points for purchases and other actions. While it doesn't specifically offer points for adding related products, you can easily configure it to provide points based on cart contents to encourage customers to include complementary items.
  

  

Cross selling example #6: Limited-time offers

Time-sensitive offers capitalize on the fear of missing out (FOMO) to push shoppers to act quickly before a deal disappears. Discounting complementary products for a short period increases their perceived value and drives impulse purchases.

For example, an online furniture retailer might offer a "Buy a couch, get 15% off a coffee table for the next 48 hours" deal. Customers who are already interested in the main product will feel compelled to take advantage of the savings before time runs out.

Tools to implement this cross sell example in your ecommerce store

• Selly (Shopify) — An all-in-one discount manager that enables you to implement dynamic pricing and discounts effortlessly. You can set up various discount rules, including limited-time offers on complementary products, to encourage customers to add more items to their carts.
  

  

• WooCommerce Discount Manager (WooCommerce) — A comprehensive plugin that allows you to create dynamic pricing and discount rules. You can set up bulk discounts and quantity-based pricing for complementary products, and schedule the promotions to run during specific periods.
  

  

Cross selling example #7: Checkout page offers

Shoppers who reach the checkout page are already committed to the purchase. At this stage, they have immense trust in your business — which makes this the perfect time to present relevant last-minute recommendations.

Depending on how extensive your product catalog is, you can choose to offer the same products as on the product detail page or recommend a completely different set of products.

Remember to make sure the process is seamless — customers should be able to add items without leaving the checkout page or otherwise disrupting the flow.

Tools to implement this cross sell example in your ecommerce store

• Candy Rack (Shopify) — Enables merchants to create upsell and cross sell offers directly on the checkout page. With customizable product titles, descriptions, and call-to-action buttons, you can seamlessly encourage customers to add complementary products with a single click during checkout.
  

  

• WooCommerce Fast Cart (WooCommerce) — Upgrades WooCommerce's standard, lengthy checkout process and presents related items in a sleek pop-up or sliding cart from where customers can complete their purchase from any page on your online store

  

Cross selling example #8: Post-purchase offers

The end of the first purchase creates the opportunity for another purchase to begin. Post-purchase offers — whether on the confirmation page, in follow-up emails, or via retargeting ads — are super effective at driving additional revenue while keeping customers engaged.

Broadly speaking, immediate post-purchase offers work well for low-cost add-ons, while delayed offers (sent via email a few days or weeks later) are better for consumables or upgrades.

For example, an electronics store might email customers who bought a coffee maker with a 10% discount on premium coffee beans valid for the next 3 days.

Post-purchase cross sells work best when:

• They are somewhat personalized (either based on customers' browsing behavior, past purchases, wishlist activities, etc.) or the items the customer just bought.
• They are paired with a limited-time discount to encourage immediate action.
• They feature one-click add-ons in order confirmation pages or shipping updates.

Tools to implement this cross sell example in your ecommerce store

• ReConvert (Shopify) — ReConvert bills itself as "Your AI post checkout order bump sidekick". This revenue-boosting app allows you to optimize your order thank-you page with personalized product recommendations, upsells, and cross sells based on customers' shopping behavior and purchase history on your site.
  

  

• FunnelKit (WooCommerce) — Formerly known as WooFunnels, this plugin allows you to create post-purchase upsell offers that customers can accept with a single click after completing their initial purchase. Its smart rule engine enables you to present customized offers to each customer based on various criteria: items bought, past purchases, how much they spent, payment gateway used, and much more.
  

  

Cross sells can supercharge your revenue

There you have it: eight unique cross selling examples together with capable Shopify and WooCommerce extensions to implement them in your ecommerce store.

If you're ready to optimize your marketing with the cross selling examples we've outlined, check out Barn2's robust catalog of Shopify and WooCommerce extensions, including several extensions mentioned in this guide:

• WooCommerce Product Options — Showcases cross sells on product detail pages.
• WooCommerce Product Table — Strategically positions products and relevant product information to boost sales.
• WooCommerce Discount Manager — Creates and schedules limited-time bulk discounts and quantity-based pricing rules for complementary products.
• WooCommerce Fast Cart — Presents complementary items in a conversion-focused pop-up or sliding cart from which shoppers can place their orders from any page on your online store.