Crossing the sales line

By Fiona Czerniawska.

An increasing interest in cross-selling is a sign of the times. It signals market saturation and hints at a slight softening of demand. But speaking to a client today, I was reminded just how delicate an issue this is.

The stereotypical consultant is expected to turn up in a flash suit, rapaciously keen to sell new work. But in reality many consultants feel uncomfortable doing so, especially outside of their immediate area of expertise. I remember gathering client feedback for one firm and finding that, as one interviewee put it, “they were so far back from the line, they could have been an awful lot more salesy before it would have started to worry me.” Apparently, the firm’s consultants would arrange regular catch-ups, but would pretty much only talk about the weather (yes, they were Brits), which clients were finding fairly frustrating: “I’d actually like them to tell me more about what they could do for us,” said another. It’s not an unusual picture. Consultants, especially senior ones, are often convinced that their colleagues’ services/skills are inferior to theirs; they think that selling is beneath them (their brains, apparently, sell themselves); and they’re afraid of destroying valuable client relationships. 

They’re also wrong.

What the client I spoke to today said—and I’ve heard before—is that he’s really quite comfortable with cross-selling. Like most clients, he was willing to listen to suggestions from people he trusts: “As long as they’ve done good work for me, and can demonstrate expertise in the new area, I’m happy to consider using them in new areas, but there’s a line they shouldn’t cross.” While clients appreciate that consulting firms are commercial entities that have to make money to survive, they don’t want them to step over the line and become out-and-out sales people. “I find it helpful and valuable when consultants I know and like come to me, and say ‘we think you should do this’,” the same client continued.  “I just want to be sure that they’re not trying to sell me stuff I don’t need, that they wouldn’t buy if they were in my shoes.” 

The issue for clients is less about what you sell, and more about how you sell it.