Apparently the circus understood something about pricing that a lot of businesses still miss.
After you paid your general admission…
and maybe another 10 cents to see the sideshow…
there was another offer waiting for you.
Reserved seating. Five cents more.
Here’s what’s interesting about that.
They weren’t offering you another show.
You were going to see the same elephants.
The same trapeze artists.
The same ringmaster.
The same Greatest Show on Earth.
They were simply offering you a better way to experience it.
For five cents more, you could have a better seat.
That’s a completely different kind of upsell.
The sideshow says:
Would you like something else?
Reserved seating says:
Would you like to experience what you already want…better?
Would you like to experience what you already want…better?
That’s worth looking at in your own business.
A lot of times when we’re trying to figure out how to create more revenue from an existing customer, our first instinct is to invent another product.
But maybe you don’t need another product.
Maybe you just need a better seat.
What would your best customers happily pay more for?
Faster?
Easier?
More convenient?
More personal?
Priority access?
Done for you?
A better view?
The important thing is that you’re not necessarily changing the result.
You’re changing the experience of getting the result.
Airlines figured this out.
Hotels figured this out.
Concerts figured this out.
And apparently the circus figured it out a hundred years ago for a nickel.
So take a look at what you’re already selling.
Before you invent something completely new, ask yourself:
Where’s the reserved seating?
There may be people standing in general admission right now who would happily give you another five cents.
You just haven’t offered them a better seat.
Dean