In the competitive world of marketing agencies, maximizing revenue isn’t just about acquiring new clients—it’s about fully leveraging your existing client base. Upselling and cross-selling are powerful strategies that, when executed effectively, can significantly boost your agency’s bottom line. However, these techniques require more than just a good pitch; they demand a strategic approach, supported by the right tools and resources.
The Power of Upselling and Cross-Selling
According to Salesforce research, 89% of consumers are more likely to make another purchase after a positive customer service experience. Upselling and cross-selling begin with giving clients a positive experience.
Upselling involves encouraging a client to purchase a higher-end product or service than they initially intended, while cross-selling is about offering complementary services that add value to their original purchase. Both techniques are crucial for maximizing client value and increasing revenue without the cost of acquiring new clients.
Why It Works: Depending on your industry, studies suggest that acquiring a first-time customer can cost between 5 and 25 times as much as retaining an existing one. So, if you already have a loyal customer base, you may be better off working to earn more repeat business than trying to get new faces in the door. Clients who are already engaged with your agency and satisfied with your services are more likely to invest further, provided they see additional value. Upselling and cross-selling allow you to deepen these relationships and provide more comprehensive solutions to your clients’ needs.
Example: If a client has purchased a basic SEO package, you could upsell them to a premium package that includes content marketing and social media management. Alternatively, you could cross-sell a PPC campaign to complement their SEO efforts. You can start the upsell by providing them a holistic platform and channel audit (which you can provide to them as a courtesy project or service)
Leveraging Automation to Streamline the Process
Automation is a game-changer when it comes to upselling and cross-selling. With the right tools, you can automate outreach, follow-ups, and even personalized offers, freeing up your team to focus on client work or closing new deals rather than managing the minutiae of the sales process.
Email Marketing Automation: Use automated email sequences to nurture your existing clients and introduce them to higher-tier services or complementary offerings. A general newsletter that promotes all of your services via offers, testimonials, and employee features is a solid and unintrusive way to educate your clients about the other services they can access through you. Personalized emails triggered by client behavior—such as reaching a milestone in their current campaign or visiting pages for services they aren’t currently paying for—can prompt them to consider an upgrade or additional service and notify you of the opportunity with this client.
CRM Automation: Integrate your CRM with your marketing automation tools to track client interactions and identify upselling and cross-selling opportunities. For instance, if a client consistently engages with content related to a service they haven’t purchased yet, this could trigger a sales call from your outbound lead champion.
Driving Towards the Sales Call
The ultimate goal of upselling and cross-selling is to get the client on a sales call DEDICATED to the upsell or cross-sell discussion. This is where you can discuss their needs in detail and present tailored solutions. The benefit is your familiarity with the client and the trust you should already have as their agency in other arenas. You can leverage that in this call, but don’t let your guard down – stay sharp and promote your expertise in this “new” area that will help the client solve an additional problem they are facing.
Sales Call Strategy: On the call, focus on understanding the client’s current challenges and how an upgraded service or additional offering can help them achieve their goals. You might be talking with someone you’ve never met before (for example, if you provide digital services, but are upselling a PR solution, you will most likely be meeting a PR or Communications person rather than your standard account manager or marketing person). Use data and case studies to demonstrate the ROI they can expect from the upsell or cross-sell and demonstrate your expertise to this (potentially) new POC.
Closing the Deal: Make it easy for the client to say yes by offering flexible payment options, limited-time discounts, or bundled packages that provide even more value. This is where being an existing client will give them a competitive advantage over choosing another agency for this solution. Lean into that without overselling your agency and underselling your expertise.
Measuring Success and Optimizing Your Approach
To ensure your upselling and cross-selling efforts are paying off, it’s essential to track your results and continuously refine your approach. Many different platforms like Salesforce or GoHighLevel offer such tracking solutions for new and existing clients. Be sure to quantify your targets, dedicate a timeline, and follow through to close.
Key Metrics to Track: Monitor conversion rates for upsells and cross-sells, average deal size, client retention rates, and overall revenue growth. Opportunity awareness is key as well as NPS or client sentiment – especially if you’re looking to acquire this client from another agency. Use this data to adjust your offers, refine your targeting, and optimize your sales process.
Continuous Improvement: Regularly review your upselling and cross-selling strategies with your account managers and client sales team and make adjustments as needed. The market is always evolving, and staying ahead of trends will ensure your agency continues to maximize its revenue as well as ensuring a clear reporting process for any opportunities that may arise from existing clients.
Conclusion
Maximizing your agency’s revenue through upselling and cross-selling requires a strategic approach, the right tools, and dedicated resources. This strategy should be a standard, everyday assessment – analyziing opportunities within your current client base. On the front end, leveraging Done For You’s Agency Accelerator can help you apply the same sort of processes to new client acquisition. Learn more at doneforyou.com/partners or doneforyou.com/category/agencies.