The print you sell can have very long legs if you dig into the clients you serve to understand how they use that print and what other products might fit into their communication plan. Service businesses have different needs from retailers. Retail and office-based businesses use print for advertising, advising, and educating. Schools have different needs depending on the ages and communities they serve. Business associations, sports teams, candidates, and churches all work with different messages and cadence that may be associated with seasons, months, or holidays. The more you understand them, the more you can leverage upselling and cross-selling, building print bundles to unlock additional revenue from every sale.
In a 2022 HubSpot Blog survey of more than 500 sales professionals, 72% of salespeople who upsell and 74% who cross-sell say that it drives up to 30% of their revenue. HubSpot
For businesses new and established, the idea of upselling may need some explanation. It’s the idea that for every order you take, you offer additional options that add revenue. Some common upselling offers for printers include:
Rounded corners, painted edges, luxury substrates, spot and flood coatings, foiling, texturing, raised print, embossing or debossing, print on both sides of the card, QR Codes, and design services.
Folding options, luxury substrates, coatings, QR Codes for interactivity, and mailing services, as well as design services.
Fold-overs to add additional messaging panels, upgraded substrates, QR Codes for interactivity, spot and flood coatings, mailing services, and design services.
Books, catalogs, manuals, and magazines can benefit from upgraded substrates for the covers and book blocks. QR Codes can add interactivity. Personalization and other VDP services to create targeted material. Mailing services and design services.
Coatings, spot coatings, upgraded substrates, mounting variations, frames, design services, and installation.
Personalized caps, mugs or T-shirts, logos on pop-ups, messaging on key chains or pens, names imprinted on notebooks.
Work with your 4over team to understand upgrade paths for every product you offer your clients. Even if customers have only ever bought the most basic print, like black print on white business cards or basic banners, making upselling offers part of your selling strategy.
We all experience cross-selling. In restaurants, the servers may ask if you want to add a salad or change an option for side dishes. Car dealers work hard to sell you service, oil change, and door ding repair packages while the car wash entices you with hot wax or under car cleaning for a small additional charge. It happens because it works. Once the sale is in process, incremental offers are easier to make and close, so take advantage of your buyer’s inclination and make cross-selling part of every client engagement.
In the print industry, cross-selling comes with more options than we can name in a single post. The range of 4over products is vast, beginning with flat and folded printed products, signs, and banners and extending to the catalog of promotional products. The opportunity the 4over catalog brings means that for every order from every client, there is something to offer.
Cross-selling often starts with a review of the customers you serve, their business sectors, and what they buy from you. From there, look at the 4over catalog and think about what to pair or bundle to intrigue your customers. It’s the equivalent of your fast-food order taker asking if you want fries, a milkshake, or an apple pie with your order. What can you offer that will make sense to your clients?
To begin your cross-selling journey, talk to your 4over team about the best sellers for the segments you serve. Events can always benefit from gift bags, drinkware, caps, pens, notebooks, and even retractable banners or pop-up canopies. Office-based customers might be interested in new-employee or new-customer welcome kits with branded promotional items. During election season, offer candidates more than lawn signs. Offer colorful doorknob hang tags, window clings, and magnetic signs to spread the word.
The point of cross-selling is to introduce new products to your clients, grow your share of their marketing spend, and build a relationship as their trusted advisor. Your 4over team stands ready to help define up-sell and cross-sell opportunities and develop pricing that lifts your business and grows your revenue.