Professional Services Accounting ARTICLE -

Carpe diem . . . and start cross-selling

Target Audience: Legal Professionals, Professional Service Firms, Law Firm Partners, Law Firm Accounting

Suppose a partner in your firm was consulting with a client about his estate plan. The conversation is going well, with your partner imparting much wisdom on how to structure the plan so her client’s family will be well cared for in the future. As the client is leaving the office, he bemoans the fact that he’s up to his eyebrows in merger talks and it’s driving him crazy.

What should your partner do? Just smile and say “Good luck with that”? In short, no! This is a perfect carpe diem opportunity to cross-sell the client on your firm’s vast experience in this area.

Such opportunities to cross-sell your firm’s services are all around you. You just need to know where to look and how to jump on them.

Recognizing needs

Say the word “sell,” and many nonrainmaker partners will quickly hide. But cross-selling doesn’t require a marketing or sales background. It simply requires a good ear and a quick brain, which good lawyers all have. Cross-selling can be as simple as hearing that a client needs additional services and then referring him or her to a lawyer in the firm who can provide them.

But things can get a bit more complicated. For example, clients may not be able to effectively communicate their needs or confidently turn over their business to a new attorney. Moreover, lawyers typically dislike sharing their clients, and some aren’t comfortable with selling.

Valid points, all. But your firm can still become expert cross-sellers by simply training partners and associates for cross-selling success and rewarding their achievements.

Teaching the fine points

Selling can be a foreign concept to many lawyers. So before you involve them in cross-selling, be sure they have the necessary experience and training to build their confidence and technique.

First, train partners and associates about your firm’s specialties and services so they can easily identify cross-selling opportunities and promote the services effectively. A one-size-fits-all sales pitch is usually less effective with clients, so be sure to specify which services to promote to which clients.

Consider having them role-play real-life scenarios at department meetings. This will prepare them for the various types of situations they’ll encounter and give you the chance to evaluate their cross-selling techniques.

Making work pay

The saying goes “what gets rewarded, gets done.” An effective cross-selling program for partners and associates should increase their confidence and provide a supportive environment where they can try out new strategies and methods. It also should have a strong incentive system based on recognition and financial reward. Here are five key elements:

1. Make sure cross-selling objectives are understood and evaluated annually.
2. Tie associate compensation to cross-selling results, whether through a bonus structure or a merit-based percentage that’s built into associates’ annual increases.
3. Tie partner compensation or bonuses to performance based on, for example, the number of clients they introduce to other partners or to associates.
4. Celebrate cross-selling successes by recognizing partners and associates for their achievements.
5. Document and benchmark cross-selling results so you can quickly see what works and what doesn’t.

To foster cross-selling as a team effort, recognize the entire team’s contributions. This may include dividing a bonus among all of the lawyers involved in achieving a cross-sale.

Getting started

If your partners and associates are ready to seize the day and cross-sell, the firm will likely need to adjust how it thinks about its clients and compensation. Focus on team-based strategies for generating business — rather than relying on individual rainmakers — and effective ways to encourage and reward team successes.

Your firm will also need to help partners and associates become better cross-sellers and encourage rainmaking partners to do their part by introducing other partners and associates to clients and trusting in their skills and abilities to service them.

Carpe diem, today!

Cross-selling, done right, can help you keep more business in your firm and enhance client relations. When it comes to developing your firm’s cross-selling program, be sure to talk to your clients. Ask them in what areas your firm is excelling, and in what areas it can improve. Ask if there have been changes in the client’s business or industry that the firm should know about, and how else the firm can be of service.

You can get client feedback formally by sending a survey or informally by having your lawyers talk with clients when they meet on other matters. By gaining insight into your firm’s client service strengths and weaknesses as well as your clients’ needs and challenges, you’ll be better able to provide solutions through cross-selling. Carpe diem!

Find out how our expertise in professional services accounting can add value to your business. Email us or call us at 1 (888) 875-9770.

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