Vulnerability

5 Steps to Upsell Your Security Services Without Being Sleazy

March 1, 2018 | 3 min read
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Security consultants aren’t natural salespeople. For most of us, it’s the thing we hate most. You want to be the expert who can help them reduce their risk, not be some sleazy salesman always looking for another buck. And somehow, upselling just feels dirty.

But offering add-on solutions doesn’t have to be a sleazy deal. There’s nothing wrong with equipping your customers to succeed—and selling add-ons can be an honest part of that. As with most things, there’s an ethical way to do it, and a seedy way of doing it.

If you’re ready to see healthier profits while helping your customers to increase their physical security, it’s time to start upselling your security services. Here are five ways to offer add-ons without being sleazy.

Handpicked related content: 7 Ways to Boost Your Risk Assessment Profits without Killing Yourself

1) Assume the Sale—Politely

The quickest way to lose an add-on purchase is to ask your customer if they’d be interested in additional solutions. The default answer is always No, because to them, you just asked if they want to spend more money on something that’s optional. Of course they don’t.

But if you start by assuming they want to successfully increase their physical security, your conversation changes drastically. Begin by briefly stating the benefit—using hard numbers about ROI, if possible—then add something unique about what you’re offering. You don’t want to be pushy, so ask for permission to share the details.

Now, you’ve got them listening.

2) Solve Their Problem

The purpose of upselling your security services isn’t simply to get more money out of your customer—it’s to help them to successfully reduce their risk. When offering an additional product or service, don’t present it as a product, but as a solution. Customers don’t want more features, they want more benefits. Show them how the add-on will help them solve their most pressing security problems.

3) Understand Your Customer

A successful upsell depends on understanding your customer. They have budget constraints, internal politics, procedures, and pet priorities that you’ll need to keep in mind.

Don’t try to sell something that’s low-priority for your customer, or clearly outside of their budget. Also be aware of internal roadblocks that you can help your customer to get past. For example, they might need to justify additional spending to their director. Give them information to prove ROI.

Also consider how much they’re willing to spend. As a rule of thumb, an upsell shouldn’t add more than 25 percent to the cost of doing business with you. After that, the add-on could feel like a second major purchase.

4) Limit Their Options

If you’re thinking that providing more options gives you a better chance for making a sale, think again. Option paralysis is real. If you give your customers a ton of add-on choices, you could overwhelm and confuse them. They’ll end up choosing nothing instead.

It’s better to give them just a few options to choose from—maybe three or so. Don’t worry about missing out on selling other add-ons—you can offer other another set of options at your next assessment.

5) Be Honest

Not every add-on is going to solve every problem. And sometimes the expensive full-featured solution isn’t your customer’s best option. Be honest with your security clients, and they’ll be more likely to purchase from you. You’ll establish yourself as an expert they can trust, which will win you more sales.

When your customers know you’ve got their best interests in mind, they’ll be more inclined to follow your recommendations. Security consultants that don’t sell honestly get found out fast and lose customers. Not only do they miss out on future upsells, they have to work harder to compensate for customer churn. It’s a double whammy that bites into overall profitability.

If you’re using Circadian Risk software, you have a wealth of data to understand your client’s needs. This can help you make the smartest recommendations and provide the best solutions to your customers.

Better Profits, Stronger Customer Relationships

Ready to see healthier profits? Follow these five rules of upselling your security services, and you’ll help your customers as well as your bottom line. Chances are, you’ll even build deeper relationships with your clients as they lean on your expertise more.

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