upsell

1 of 2

verb

up·​sell ˈəp-ˈsel How to pronounce upsell (audio)
variants or up-sell
upsold ˈəp-ˈsōld How to pronounce upsell (audio) or up-sold; upselling or up-selling; upsells or up-sells

transitive verb

: to try to convince (a customer) to purchase something additional or at a higher cost
With a strong correlation between the amount of video consumed and the Internet speed that consumers think they need, providers could possibly upsell customers on costlier broadband packages.Makeda Easter
They start upselling you before you book your vacation by offering upgrades to a higher-class cabin …Christopher Elliott
upselling noun
or up-selling
Counter clerks, paid on commission, are typically instructed to pitch more expensive cars, a tank of gas, a damage waiver … It's called "up-selling" in the trade, and can account for as much as 20% of the revenue of some car-rental companies … Joni James

upsell

2 of 2

noun

plural upsells
: an attempt to convince a customer to purchase something additional or more costly : the act or an instance of upselling
We passed on the products they had used during the massage, which were for sale. Almost every activity, it would turn out, ended with a gentle upsell.Dan Saltzstein
I tend to avoid server upsells because I usually suspect they're trying to push a high margin or past-its-prime menu item.Michael Nagrant

Examples of upsell in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Average purchases at Natalie Grace range between $50 and $100 depending on which salesperson is working, since teenage staffers don’t always upsell, whereas Patrick uses her eye to offer head-to-toe styling options based on a shopper’s body type, Patrick said. Rosemary Feitelberg, WWD, 27 Sep. 2024 Disco may be able upsell services through streaming services. David Prosser, Forbes, 10 Sep. 2024
Noun
Of course, not all clients include different services in their first contract, which leaves a lot of the work of multi-line client engagement to upsells. Pat McKenna, Forbes, 17 Oct. 2024 This capability helps increase average order values by encouraging upsells and cross-sells. Kody Boye, USA TODAY, 19 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for upsell 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'upsell.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Verb

1972, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1976, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of upsell was in 1972

Dictionary Entries Near upsell

Cite this Entry

“Upsell.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/upsell. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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