Effective Business Development

Copyright TBCI

Consulting Architects of AlbertaEdmonton, Alberta

How did we get here?

1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

Strategic PlanningStrategic Planning

Madison Ave product “marketing” moved into the professional services space

PC’sPC’s

Business Development Business Development

Consultative SellingConsultative Selling

“Sel

ling

” S

ophi

stic

atio

n“S

elli

ng”

Sop

hist

icat

ion

Collaborative RelationshipsCollaborative Relationships

Social Media

Mobile Devices & Cloud

Technology

Social Media

Mobile Devices & Cloud

Technology

InternetInternet

What is marketing?

Essentially, it is everything you do• How you dress• What you say• How you present• How you “package” your

– Image– Services– Relationships

What is marketing? (cont’d)

– Your historical service performance• Design quality• Design performance in the final deliverable• Bid vs actual price• Number of RFI’s, design changes caused by design

deficiencies/weaknesses• Change orders during construction• Bid ranges on design documents

• Trade show attendance and participation• Technical papers - presentation and publicationMarketing is still in the adolescent stage in most firms, yet it is one of the most complex and integrated processes in your

business.

Terminology

• Marketing (long term, positioning, market conditioning)– direct (lead finding, repeat clients, proposals, presentations, etc.)– indirect (direct mail, brochures, newsletters, resumes,

advertising, business cards, etc.)

• Selling (short term, activity-based, tactical)– direct (cold calling, face to face) – indirect (direct mail, telemarketing, sales tools) – facilitative/consultative (relationship development, consulting)

• Business development (long term, relationship-based)

The Business Development Triangle

Look for Prospects

Negotiate Contract

Find a prospective client

Decision to Propose

Subm

it pr

opos

al

Mak

e pr

esen

tatio

n

Mar

ketin

g

Identify potential

projectSales

Client Management

Iden

tify

“C

lient

C

ham

pio

n”

Mai

ntai

n Re

gula

r Con

tact

Verify

Clie

nt

Satis

fact

ion

Obt

ain

Form

al

Eval

uatio

ns

Broa

den

Clie

nt

Rela

tions

Develop a BD strategy

Key Marketing Components to Develop

• IFBP Matrix• CRM System• Opportunity Tracking Process• Sales Funnel• Effective Sales Training (e.g., RAS)

3-D Marketing

What

To W

hom

Where Markets

Services

Customers

Pull Marketing

• What is it?• How to use it effectively.• Why it is more effective than push.

Differentiation

• Identifying related “clusters”, or groups of customers, with like needs and buying characteristics

• Understanding the concepts of Unique & Distinctive Selling Points

• Differentiating Issues, Features, Benefits and Proofs• Clearly answering “What makes you different?”

Customers

You know who they are, but do you know... – their distinct buying habits– where you stand with them– how they are similar/different– where they go for services– who they like/dislike– what they like/dislike– what their key challenges are

Markets

You know what they are, but do you know where they are going and where the money is?

– Trends – Drivers (social, demographic, regulatory, etc)– Market Life cycle (intro, growth, mature, decline,

phase-out)– Basis of your knowledge (emotional, factual)– Threats/Opportunities– PESTLE forces

Services

You know what you have to offer, but is it what your customers want to buy?

– Service life cycle (dog, star, cash cow, wildcat)– Unique features– Provable benefits– Leverage able

Pursue Segmentation

SEGMENT SUB-SEGMENT PUBLIC PRIVATE QUASI-GOVT

OTHER

Commercial Hotel/Entertainment Retail Office

Industrial Light mfg Heavy Food/Pharma/Bio Micro-electronics

Institutional Educational Correctional Healthcare

Transportation

Rail (Light/Heavy) Airports Road/Bridge

Public Works Ports/Harbors Water/Wastewater Dams

Utilities Gas Coal Nuclear Other

Service Segments

Stars Wildcats

Cash Cows Dogs

Hi-growthLow share

Low-growthLow share

Hi-growthHigh share

Low-growthHigh share

Market ShareHigh LowLow

Market Growth

Benefits to Segmentation

• Profitability• Growth• Determine competition• Service distinction• Defense of business• Maintain competitive advantage• Positioning for future

What is at the heart of Marketing?

• Trust • Confidence• Client service• Listening• Understanding client needs• Tailoring a service at a competitive price which

meets the needs and creates value for the client• Repeat business at a lower cost of acquisition

Strategic Hierarchy in Marketing

• Corporate strategy focuses on vision - “What” the company wants to be.

• Marketing strategy focuses on “where” company wants to be - much like deployment of resources in military structures

• Company must answer question “What do we want to be?” in order to implement an effective marketing strategy

• Marketer must clearly understand his/her role in the marketing hierarchy

The Marketing Plan

• Why have one?• Structure of the Plan• Process to develop the Plan• Executing and tracking the Plan• The Marketer’s role in Plan development and

execution

The Marketing Plan

Plan Structure– Pre-planning Considerations (cash flow,

human resources, capital requirements, etc.)– Environmental Assessment (external, internal,

company (mgmt, financial, SWOT, etc.))– Assumptions – Objectives – Action Planning (strategies, tactics, actions,

responsibilities)

The Marketing Plan (cont’d)

– Milestones (target dates)– Budget– Contingency Plan– Plan to Control Plan – Plan to Update Plan

Key success factors in Marketing Plan development are involvement, creation of objectives, strategies, tactics,

and actions, and in communicating the developed Plan.

Why Marketing Plans/Programs Fail

• Arrogance• Lack of buy-in by stakeholders• Greed• Ignorance• Hidden agendas• Apathy• Lack of discipline• Bad luck

Selling vs Marketing

• Selling– Volume oriented– Short run– Individual customer– Field work

• Marketing– Profit planning– Long range– Market segments– Good information systems

Marketing is doing and thinking, not traveling.

A Limited Time To Connect

Here are several things you can do to lose your prospect’s attention in the first five seconds of the conversation:

• Start a telephone conversation with, “Hi, how are you?”

• Open your conversation by introducing yourself, your company, and what you do.

• Make small talk about “stuff” you see in their office (awards, plaques, photos, etc.).

• Give them an overview of your products and services.

A Limited Time To Connect

• Explain how your product or service will benefit them.

• Tell them what companies you have worked with. • Show them the awards and accolades your

company's service has received. • Give them a brochure that outlines your key

services.

Unfortunately, most sales people fail to effectively open the sales conversation with a new prospect.

Selling Issues

• First Impressions are critical– In the first 0-30 seconds of a sales call, the

• first response is always irrational• first impression usually lasts• first role-definition shapes the relationship

– In the following 0.5 - 5 minutes• the first impression will either be confirmed or

altered• future “doors” to the relationship will either be

opened or closed

You are what You’re Selling

• Be sure the client/prospect sees what he/she wants:

– Competence– Understanding– Interest– Respect– Energy– Comfort– Trust

Compelling Call Objectives

• Get through• Instill urgency• Create a positive image• Generate information/receptivity• Define the next steps• Maintain control of the process

The “Sales Call”

• Know the prospect/customer before going in• Have a strategy or plan• Set reasonable call objectives• Take notes• Should there ever be a “cold” call?

Getting Through the Selling Barriers

• Gatekeepers• Voice and e-mail• Finding the right person/qualifying the

prospect• Creating interest in the interview• Know the subject matter• Know when to leave• Create the follow-up action …. and own it!!

Handling the Price Objection

• What do you do when the prospective client says “Your price is too high.”?

• How do you overcome “cheap”?

Handling the Price Objection

• Customer controls the price perception• You control the value proposition• Jointly arrive at the cost If the value proposition is adequately posed, the

perception of cost can be lowered.

Price/Value = Cost

Value = Benefits - Price

Handling the Price Objection

• Remember buyers have a bargaining instinct• Realize the buyer is working the “price/value = cost”

formula in his/her mind; help them build up value and lower the cost

• Always probe the objection• Translate features into advantages into benefits and

build up value• Remember (most) buyers fear “cheap”• Recognize that “your price is too high” may be a

buying signal.

Interviewing

• Interviewing techniques• Asking questions

– Closed-ended – Open-ended

• Taking notes• Giving information to get information

Special Selling Techniques

• Cross selling (being aware of your surroundings)• Referrals (Don’t forget to ask)• Seminars (brown bag, open house, issue driven, etc.)• The Internet, as a

– research tool– marketing venue– direct selling medium– a venue to deploy apps

Survey Results

• According to market research performed by several industry groups, it takes between 8-12 repetitions of the same message to achieve recognition.

• Most companies change their message after 6 attempts.

• It takes an average of 5 sales calls to move a prospective buyer from awareness to action.

• The average seller quits after 3 attempts.• An average sales call today costs in excess of $740.

Life Cycles

Startup Growth Maturity

New and Improved

Decline

Time

Life Cycles

• Company• Organizational unit• Service• Market• Customer• Competition

Understand the life cycles of these elements.

Know Your Service Line Cycles (They’re getting compressed!)

Gro

wth

Growing Aging/Declining

New and Improved

CommoditizationEntrepreneurial

Balanced Approach to Acquiring Work

Pursue JobDevelop

RelationshipWin

Where is your firm?

Where do you want it to be?

How big is the gap?

How long will it take to close it?

The “Core” of the Work Week

Bad

Day

Bad

Day

Mondays and Fridays are “Bad days”

Afternoons are generally bad

M W T FT

Poor call times

Most productive

Typical Work Week

The PM/PA’s Role in Business

In general, today’s Marketer is expected to:– Find (or help find) the work– Win (or help win) the job– Ensure the timely delivery of services– Stay within ever increasing constraints of cost,

quality, and time– Make a profit– Maintain the relationship– Collect (or help collect) the money– Find more business/work/relationships

The PM/PA’s Role in Marketing

• Active participation in the planning process• Maximizing the “core” of the work week• Avoiding the “Sell/Do” trap• Backfilling and support to enable marketing, selling, and

business development, AND to distributing responsibilities for work assignments left hanging during the “core” of the work week

• Relationship management (repeat business)• Involvement in key proposal efforts• Project closeout

The Decision to Pursue

• Go/No-Go process– Formalize it and use it; the process helps build

discipline and improves the hit rate– Determine unique selling points relative to the

opportunity– Evaluate risk/return aspects of the opportunity– Is it a “one-of-a-kind” project; if so, why pursue it– Create an “as good as you can be” win strategy and

commit the resources to it

Other Marketing/BD Considerations

• Trade Show Strategy• Peer Organization Involvement• Getting Published• Developing a Valuable CRM System• Clarifying Roles And Responsibilities

(Mktg, Selling, BD)• Other?

Current Trends and Observations

• Down-sizing/right-sizing• Outsourcing• Globalization• Demographic shift• Technology advancements• The Internet and social networks• Role changes (Marketing is now a mature business

process affecting and involving all of us)

Questions