How to introduce new services to existing clients

Having a strong relationship with existing clients is the backbone of any great accounting firm. There’s already an established sense of loyalty and trust combined with a rich history of having worked with your firm before. The key is to not assume your clients know the full scope of what’s on offer. Existing or new services can often become overlooked when dealing with current clients due to comfortability and settling into routine tasks that keep the firm and client relationship running as is. It’s important to market to your current clients as much as you would when searching for new leads. Ensuring your client base is fully aware of your offerings reduces existing clientele searching for alternative firms that already offer the services you do.

Jump to:

• Check in with your client base
• Take the lead
• Train your team
• Make it easy to say yes!

The art of introducing new services isn’t always about upselling. When approached from a strategic standpoint, the relationship has the potential to deepen an already established trust. Being able to forecast potential pain points for your clients, and stepping in with new services at the right time is crucial. Whether your clients need business advisory services, self-managed super-fund (SMSF) advice, or guidance on financial planning trends, an advisor’s ability to approach judiciously matters just as much as the services themselves. Here’s our guide on how to do just that.

Check in with your client base

Managing an assortment of businesses and clients from a range of income scales can make offering new services a challenging task. Audit your existing client base and pinpoint what clients are currently receiving versus what new services would tangibly benefit them moving forward. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems can help standardise this process and give you a history on what has been, currently is, and potentially could be on offer. Some examples of clients who could use new offerings could be:

• A client may have grown their business in the past year and has employed new staff to help manage the workload but has no payroll structure in place. A great opportunity to step in and either have advisors take on the work, or outsource payroll to a trusted company who specialises in the task
• A client who has been contributing to their SMSF for years but has never explored investment strategies or the compliance surrounding their super
• A client over 55 years of age who hasn’t explored succession plans or retirement strategies
• A client who is a sole trader who has no income protection or isn’t informed on how this could impact them in the future
• A client who has had a range of new income streams come their way but no clue on how to manage them effectively. This would be a great time to offer business advisory services.

Take the lead

Instead of approaching your client with a new service off the bat, use the paint points previously identified to communicate how you can help without added sales pressure. Come to them with an empathetic point of view, using soft skills to convey your findings without inspiring panic. 

Have data to back up your suggested solutions and to show where new services can alleviate strain. Tools like Microsoft’s Power BI can help turn data into visual dashboards to show your client where cashflow bottlenecks may be occurring, where their clientele are being lost in their sales timeline, or areas in which performance could be reviewed. 

Train your team

Briefing your team on new services is just one part of the process. A cohesive staff means ensuring that they know how to approach, the right time to do it, and what services would suit an individual client’s needs best. We’ve devised some tips on how to do this and make a workplace-wide impact:

• Encourage active listening. Inform your team to look out for specific words or phrases that present an opportunity to introduce new services. Even something as simple as a client mentioning that they are thinking of or considering this. Moments that present a change in their client’s business structure are important too. A partner might be leaving, or new staff might be joining - make a list of what your staff need to listen out for and which services would match up with their concerns
• Debrief after client meetings. Make it a standard practice that after any client interaction, you take a few minutes to go over anything that was mentioned with your team that could be relevant to new services on offer. This also gives you an insight into the current client’s mindset and how your team is handling their account
• Educate the team on the full services menu. Take the time to go through any new services and what they entail including potential existing clients who could benefit from them. Make it a habit each quarter or when any new services are added to take your team through them and explain how they benefit both the firm and the clients.

Make it easy to say yes!

Offering up a routine free check-in, taking the time to delve deeper into your existing client’s business goals, encouraging feedback on the services currently rendered, make it easier for your clients to say yes! Reducing pressure to commit while informing your client on new services is a tricky balance, but one that pays off.