New business insights from the front line

Are you fostering an environment that encourages the right kind of failure?

2011-11-09T14:16:00.004-05:00

It’s commonly agreed that failure is an important and necessary ingredient for attaining success. According to Carol Dweck, author of “Mindset, The New Psychology of Success”, it takes failing the right way and that takes the right mindset – a “growth” mindset. Listen to more...
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39% of B2B Marketers Think Blog Content Is Most Valuable

2011-10-19T10:30:00.000-04:00

Not only is content a valuable component of inbound marketing, it's also an effective tool throughout the sales process, from generating initial interest.

Think Differently – 10 lessons learned from Steve Jobs & Apple Read more: http://www.bryaneisenberg.com/2011/10/think-differently-10-lessons-learned-

2011-10-18T09:50:00.001-04:00

I highly recommend this 45 minute video. It’s a presentation from Bryan & Jeffrey Eisenberg, internationally recognized experts on interactive marketing, customer behavior and what makes websites work that was given a couple of weeks before Steve Jobs passed away.

B2B Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends

2011-10-13T12:36:00.002-04:00

B2B firms that consistently create and share compelling content generate more leads, close more, and reduce customer churn.

Are you listening to the voice of your customer?

2011-09-20T14:36:00.008-04:00

To what degree is your firm listening to the voice of your clients?

Is your office repelling clients?

2011-08-25T13:29:00.007-04:00

I just called a firm to talk to them about a potential opportunity and here's what happened:

1. No receptionist was available (it's after lunch - 1:30)
2. Their "dial by name directory" didn't allow me to enter the name of the person to find their extension. Rather, it featured a woman reading staff names and extensions one after another in alphabetical order.

Considering the fact that it's a 60-70 person firm, I'm just thrilled that the person I'm looking for is a "K" and not a "W" :)

What in the world are these people thinking?!

Easy come, easy go. How full is your pipeline?

2011-08-12T10:09:00.002-04:00

Shop-Hopping Clients Threaten Small Agencie. Moves to bigger, diversified ad firms leave boutiques in the dust.

Do clients only think of you when they need something?

2011-06-16T16:14:00.010-04:00

While doing some customer research for one of my clients recently a concept surfaced that I thought was pretty powerful and therefore worth sharing. “I think of (firm) when I need something. I don’t think of (firm) when I don’t need anything.”

It’s great to have customers think of you when they need something. After all, isn’t that what we’re striving for? When I asked the customer to elaborate, he said that while the firm does a great job of getting the work done well and on time, there is little focus on “connecting” with him and doing so in ways that would both make the process easier from his perspective and at the same time grow the relationship.

In this case, the lone firm contact relies heavily on email with minimal (if any) phone and/or face time and communication focuses almost exclusively on the task at hand. According to the customer, “When I’m out with colleagues or friends, many of whom I could be referring to (agency), they are nowhere near top of my mind.” In addition, the firm contact is responsible for both creating the work and managing the account. He therefore doesn’t have the time or quite frankly the inclination to pay attention to the relationship.

The firm recognizes that the problem is also an opportunity so they've taken these initial actions: (1) they added another contact to the mix to help manage the account and in the process, grow the relationship and (2) they now ask new customers up front what communication channels they prefer.

If your firm is not taking the time to truly connect in ways that allow your client relationships to flourish, you’re probably missing opportunities to grow your business.

I welcome your thoughts…

Use Buyer Personas to Align Sales and Marketing Around Buying Behavior | The Customer Collective

2011-05-19T15:37:00.000-04:00

Use Buyer Personas to Align Sales and Marketing Around Buying Behavior The Customer Collective

Is Your Company a Thought Leader? Take the Test.

2011-05-11T09:04:00.000-04:00

Is Your Company a Thought Leader? Take the Test.

The Art of Purposeful Storytelling

2011-05-05T11:25:00.000-04:00

The Art of Purposeful Storytelling

Will your pipeline be ready when you need it?

2011-04-26T16:04:00.015-04:00

I had a conversation with a firm recently that experienced a much needed bump in business to start the year. Great news for both staff morale and of course, the all important bottom line. By the way, that's not the agency principal in the photo. More on that later.

The troubling news according to the agency principal is that the business has consumed everyone on an already lean staff. Therefore, little to no attention is being paid to marketing and business development and the pipeline is tepid at best.

Considering today’s volatile ebb and flow of business and long sales cycles, this puts the firm in a very vulnerable position. As we both know, while opportunities will occasionally drop in your lap, the vast majority don’t. They take time and effort to cultivate.

One way to mitigate this risk is to make sure that you consistently pay attention to both your marketing and business development activities – yes, even during the good times.

My dad used to say that the best time to make hay is while the sun is shining. While I believe this to be true, it’s not always easy to do, especially if you’re a small to mid-size firm. By the way, isn't it ironic that firms tend to stop or back off business and marketing at times when there's a lot going on and much to talk about?

The bottom line - ignore your pipeline and you’ll inevitably come up for air one day fretting like our cute prairie dog friend in the photo.

If you don’t have enough qualified people to regularly feed and nurture your pipeline, you may need to invest in additional staff or outside assistance. And what better time to make the move than when the sun is shining?

Have you found this to be an issue and if so, how have you dealt with it?

Generalist or Specialist?

2011-04-21T12:41:00.009-04:00

While being a generalist may be an effective strategy in the moving business, research continues to clearly show that it is NOT the right path for growing a professional services firm.

According to a recent study from Hinge Research, high growth professional services firms show a marked tilt in the direction of specialization.

While average firms are more likely to add new services and expend more energy on current clients, high growth firm strategies include narrow focus and careful targeting. Read more in Spiraling Up from Hinge.

So, how closely does your strategy align with Mark's?

Narrow your niche for more leads

2011-04-13T12:40:00.000-04:00

Struggling to position your company effectively and generate leads? Step back. Stick your stake in the sand and target your marketing efforts at a particular niche. Narrow your niche for more leads

11 Things Sales People Do That Irk Decision Makers | The Customer Collective

2011-03-11T15:36:00.001-05:00

11 Things Sales People Do That Irk Decision Makers The Customer Collective

Study: LinkedIn Is More Effective for B2B Companies | The Customer Collective

2011-03-11T15:26:00.002-05:00

Study: LinkedIn Is More Effective for B2B Companies The Customer Collective

26 Ways to Use Social Media for Lead Generation

2011-03-10T18:49:00.001-05:00

Communications plan or connections plan. Using connection planning to target and engage customers during the buying cycle.

2011-03-03T15:07:00.003-05:00

Great point. Also keep in mind what your "Conversation Strategy" http://bit.ly/g6DLX9

Is your agency's operating model dying or dead?

2011-02-22T10:09:00.010-05:00

If you've followed my writing over the years, you've heard me refer to a piece of Dakota tribal wisdom that declares that when a horse dies, the rider must dismount. Sounds simple, doesn't it?

Of course, some see other options. Like changing riders. Or, appointing a focus group to study dead horses. Or how about benchmarking how other companies ride dead horses. You might even declare it cheaper to feed a dead horse and keep on riding. Or harnessing several dead horses together. But when all is said and done, you’re still going to have to get off the poor animal.

In business terms, the dead horse can be an impotent strategy or poor process. For too many communications agencies the horse is an outdated and insufficient operating model. It is at the core of their problems and it is surely dying.

According to Boston Consulting Group's recent report, "The CMO's Imperative: Tackling the New Digital", and John Rose's assessment of the report http://bit.ly/hWaNwF, firms that don't take action quickly will find that it's too late and even switching horses won't matter.

By the way, if you'd like help setting a smart course for change that willl allow you to seize the future, near and long-term, visit http://www.personifeye.com/

So, what are you waiting for?

If it's not relevant, don't send it...

2011-02-14T17:03:00.004-05:00

If you want to improve your results, before you hit that send button, ask yourself, "How relevant is this to the person(s) I'm emailing?" http://bit.ly/g1y54b

What buyers want . . . to avoid

2011-01-24T10:30:00.014-05:00

Have you ever noticed that it's easier sometimes to get at what you want by considering what you don't want? My wife and I forever go through this process to decide where to go for dinner.

A recent study on what buyers of professional services want turned up some interesting insights. Hinge, a firm that specializes in the Professional Services Firm market, asked buyers to identify the most meaningful criteria for selecting a firm. Five surfaced that accounted for about three quarters of the responses:

Expertise/technical skill
Quality of the team
Firm experience
Past industry/service experience
Firm reputation

No real surprises here since these are all characteristics that are understandably important.

What's really interesting and actually more meaningful is what surfaced when buyers were asked what they are looking to avoid when selecting a firm. The answers provide a deeper understanding of the qualities that are valued most. According to the study, buyers above all want to avoid:

Poor results and
Failure to solve their problem(s)

Considering the challenging environment where there's so much at stake, this should be no surprise. At the same time, it's important to know because it points to the need to focus on communicating what your firm has helped clients achieve in the way of solving problems and meeting objectives.

If this value is not a focal point of your messaging strategy to prospects, I suggest that you reconsider your strategy.

We continue to find that when case studies are well crafted and delivered effectively, they will get prospects to notice you and move them to say "tell me more". They will also make your people better by making them better storytellers. Read more http://bit.ly/arVgL2

Learn more about the Hinge study http://bit.ly/9d8Ine

Your thoughts?

What's your point?

2011-01-23T16:10:00.006-05:00

All of the bad weather recently combined with the aggravation of traveling through it conjured up memories of a really funny movie, “Planes, Trains and Automobiles”.

While the film features lots of great lines, one of my favorites comes from Neil Page (Steve Martin) when he finally blows his lid at shower ring salesman Del Griffith (John Candy) and his ongoing blabbering. His tirade concludes with, “having a point makes it so much more interesting for the listener”! http://bit.ly/f15eUg

I’ve got to believe that you’ve experienced an aggravating “Chatty Cathy” at some point either in the form of a bad salesperson, a colleague or even a personal acquaintance.

If you happen to be on the “talking” or selling side, how often do you have a good point in mind when you reach out to prospects, something that they will find relevant and meaningful?

My point is, with the volume of pointless chatter from firms at such a high level, without meaningful purpose, your chance of getting through, much less getting noticed is slim at best.

So, the next time you go to pick up the phone or start typing a letter or email, stop and think about it. If you don’t have something to say that they will care about, I suggest you hang up or take your fingers off the keyboard and come up with one. Otherwise you're wasting time - theirs and yours.

Is a lack of understanding your "External Brand" inhibiting your growth?

2010-11-15T12:31:00.007-05:00

What would one of your clients say if they realized that you only had a 50-75% understanding of their brand? Probably, “don’t let the door hit you on the way out”.

More than likely you conduct quality research for your clients. Otherwise, how in the world could you hope to get their strategy right, which starts with a solid understanding of their brand?

So why don’t firms do sufficient research on their own brand in order to get their own marketing strategy right?

A recent study conducted by Hinge Marketing http://www.hingemarketing.com/, a brand marketing consultancy that specializes in helping professional services firms, found that firms have only a 50-75% understanding of their own “External Brand” - outside looking in. It’s like looking into one of those carnival mirrors. Distorted.

The study found gaps between External and Internal brand perspectives on a significant number of key issues, in part because many clients won’t proactively tell you when they are unhappy and/or because they don’t want to hurt your feelings with critical comments.

The bottom line is that (1) firms that conduct structured research on themselves, even occasionally, are more profitable and grew faster than those that did not and (2) firms that did frequent research were even more profitable and grew even faster. Read more about this bit.ly/aj3NlI

There are many excuses why firms don’t practice what they preach. Most often it boils down to the old “Cobbler’s Stepchild” – “we’re just too busy helping clients to help ourselves”.

If you’re serious about enhancing the effectiveness of your marketing and client cultivation efforts, consider the quality of your mirror and how often you look into it.

If you’d like to learn how we help firms understand their “External Brand” and turn that insight into growth, contact me at larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

Is your new business vision merely a dream?

2010-10-07T17:04:00.008-04:00

So you're about to gather the firm's brain trust around the conference room table like you did last year at this time to develop a new business plan for the coming year. Looking back, you wonder why you haven't made the progress this year that you had hoped you would.

Could it be your strategy, its execution, the soft economy or some combination of all three? Most likely, it’s the latter.

Over the years, we've seen firms struggle mightily with new business, especially when it comes to executing. When you get down to it, there are basically two keys to executing:

A sufficient system for getting things done consistently in a smooth and timely manner and
Enough of the right resources to drive and support the effort

According to an article in the Harvard Business Review by noted author and Director of the Palladium Group, David P. Norton,

"Our experience inside organizations has taught us that superior strategy execution requires a system, not a series of diverse projects performed in different parts of the organization. Companies generally fail at implementing a strategy or managing operations because they lack an overarching management system to integrate and align these two vital processes." Read more... http://bit.ly/abBz4J

We've found that many firms lack a system necessary to support the long and rigorous new business cycle that we all face these days.

Think about it, if you don't have the internal system necessary to execute your client strategies, they probably won't be clients for long. Likewise, if you don't have a good integrated system to enable the execution of your new business strategy, how much traction can your team realistically be expected to produce?

Once you have a viable system in place, your ability to turn activity into productivity comes down to having enough qualified people and resources readily available to drive and support the effort consistently over the long sales cycle.

While many firms execute their plan well early on, rarely is that promise delivered on over time. After an initial push, the staff gets busy with client needs (billable) and the creation of necessary marketing content gets back-burnered. Or, prospecting activity slows or stops when your business developer(s) gets sucked into a long and involved pitch or client service (billable). Sound familiar?

Remember, "Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world" (Joel A. Barker).

Thanks for your time and I welcome your thoughts!

“With everything else on my plate, how in the heck can I hope to get this done, too?”

2010-09-10T10:40:00.004-04:00

After writing about the important role that thought leadership needs to play in attracting new clients, I reminded myself that in most cases strategy is not the problem. Execution is.

In fact, according to our “Client Cultivation and Thought Leadership” study, the biggest barriers to success are “time” (55%) and “people” (39%). Getting it done in many cases starts by changing the “I” to “we” and this happens by creating a culture of thought leadership in your firm.

Here are 6 steps for encouraging others to contribute to the effort:

Find a champion – Like any new initiative, especially one that asks people to go above and beyond their primary role, it takes a strong leader to champion the effort, from first spark and ongoing.
Be inclusive –The more people you involve from the get-go, the more people you will have behind the program.
Look for natural connections – Those things that come naturally are typically easier to embrace. So, to find the right people and encourage participation, look for natural connections. For example, do they like to write or perhaps even speak? Are they especially knowledgeable and passionate about a key area of your business or your target industry(s)?
It’s not for everyone – The fact is everyone won’t jump up and down about participating. If it’s just not something that feels natural, you’re better off not forcing a square peg in a round hole.
Communicate benefits –Make sure to communicate potential benefits of the initiative to individual participants. Remind people that those who demonstrate an ability and willingness to contribute to enhancing the firm’s perception also enhance their position in the firm and the business community.
Be flexible - Time is precious and everyone is already working long hours. Be open to change how you operate to encourage and reward participation and also stimulate productivity. For example, be flexible about when and where participants work.

Remember, your knowledge can be a very powerful siren, if you truly leverage it.

Knowledge can be a powerful siren, if...

2010-09-10T09:49:00.008-04:00

“Knowledge is power” was first said by philosopher Sir Francis Bacon in 1597. It was true then and it’s true now. Clients come to professional services firms for what we know.

Most firms recognize that knowledge in the form of Thought Leadership is an important ingredient for attracting and winning new clients. According to Hunter Business Development’s recent “Client Cultivation and Thought Leadership” study, two out of three respondents rank having an ongoing Thought Leadership program as at least “very important”.

What’s concerning is that only about 18% of respondents indicate that they are “very happy” with their programs. That’s less than 1 in 5. It’s also a “happiness” gap of almost 50 percentage points!

So, if you recognize the potential value of thought leadership and you're anything less than “very happy” with your program, I suggest taking a hard look at your plan’s foundation in relation to these 5 pillars:

Deliver value – Your audience will appreciate what you’ve created only if it’s truly useful. And that happens when it deals with a key issue that they face.
Take a stand – Most clients want to work with firms that have a clear point of view and have the courage to stand by it.
Be consistent – Whether your medium is speaking or writing establish a consistent rhythm.
Be generous – Don’t be afraid to give what you know away, especially when you first start. Remember, what you know and believe can be powerful leverage for attracting prospects and for earning their trust.
Be realistic – If you expect quick results, you’re fooling yourself. Like good relationship building, success happens over time.

Remember, your knowledge can be a very powerful siren for attracting clients, if you truly leverage it.

If you'd like a copy of Hunter Business Development’s recent “Client Cultivation and Thought Leadership” study, email larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Nobody likes surprises...

2010-09-01T16:19:00.009-04:00

How in the world can anyone agree with the statement, “nobody likes surprises”? I can think of lots of great surprises in my life, can’t you? It's probably more accurate to say, “nobody likes bad surprises”, for example if a big client bolts and you didn't see it coming.

You already know how challenging it is to keep clients. You live it every day. Between companies demanding more and decision makers coming and going at an accelerated pace, it’s no surprise that the client life span continues to shrink.

So, what can you do to protect your position?

While there's no one "silver bullet" solution, over the years I've found that it starts with candid dialogue. I’m sure that you’re already attempting this, at least in a casual way. What I propose is a more formal yet intimate approach that involves speaking with clients to learn as clearly as possible what’s going well and what’s not.

The only caveat is that if you or someone in your firm is doing the talking (and listening), you may not elicit the kind of responses that you really need. Nothing personal, but clients can tend to be less than candid with you either because they expect you to get defensive and don’t want to deal with the confrontation or they just like you too much to tell you that "your baby is ugly". Whatever the case, this approach ultimately may not get you (or them) what’s really needed - the truth.

One solution is to work with a competent 3rd party to engage your clients in a structured diaglogue. If done well, this exercise can be a difference maker. Clients genuinely appreciate the effort, especially when you listen and take action.

5 tips:

Create a well crafted set of relevant questions that flows nicely
Find an experienced interviewer that's capable of putting your client at ease and willing to share their detailed, candid thoughts and opinions
Record the conversations (with their permission, of course) so that you can benefit from hearing their tone, etc. I've never had anyone say 'no'
Embrace the feedback, especially the negatives, as an opportunity to strengthen your relationship
Take action in a timely manner starting with setting a meeting to discuss with your client

Please share your thoughts...

The "10-40 Rule" for improving presentations...

2010-08-26T11:22:00.004-04:00

Here's a terrific article about a technique that will help you improve the impact of your presentations through simplification. http://bit.ly/amSjgY

If you've been a follower of mine, you know that I'm a big believer in the concept of "less is more". That is, so long as getting to less doesn’t lead to just "dumbing down" the content by reducing the number of words and/or images. Rather, the less becomes more if it successfully exposes the core concept or point. In the case of using PowerPoint as a tool, each slide should primarily serve to intrigue the audience enough to encourage them to say to themselves, “tell me more” – enter the narrative or presenter (you).

Your thoughts?

What to do when a great prospect goes dark...

2010-08-13T14:31:00.030-04:00

So, you just had a great meeting with a prospect. They definitely have a need for what you do and expressed a high level of interest and a bit of urgency. And, yes, the individuals you met with are actually bonafide decision makers. Makes you almost want to go have a celebratory drink. Not!

Fast forward two weeks after you followed up in a timely manner with a good thank you note that included the answer to an important question that surfaced in the meeting. You sent another couple of emails and left a good voicemail. All of this and you have heard nary a peep back from them. They've gone "dark".

Could it be that their plans changed unexpectedly, or that they've just gotten swept into something else? Maybe they didn't like you as much as you thought they did. What if they had a personal emergency? These are all very real possibilities. Not knowing, though, can and will drive you (and them) crazy. By the way, one thing that you do know: your current strategy isn't working.

Next time this happens to you, try this. Send them what I call my "multiple choice" email. Before I show you an example, let me share why I believe it works so well. First, the approach lets them know that you're sensitive to their world of chaos. It also incorporates a bit of humor and gives them an "out" (in case they've changed their mind about you). By doing these things, you humanize the dialogue.

The approach is also unexpected, one of the necessary qualities of a sticky idea that Chip and Dan Heath point to in their book Made to Stick. In the end, it gets them to respond, typically with an apology and a smile. Okay, here's a real life example:

Subject: Could it be…

Sally,

I’m sorry that we haven't been able to reconnect since our recent meeting. Could it be…

A. With everything else on your plate, you haven't had a chance to consider our proposal
B. You've been distracted by summer vacations and have not had a chance to get folks together
C. After further review it does not appear that we offer anything of value
D. You love what you've seen and heard, but haven't had a free moment to get back to us
E. You would prefer working with a firm located outside of (their city) so we wouldn't run into each other at the mall
F. All of the above
G. None of the above
H. Other

All kidding aside, I realize how precious time is these days, so the last thing that you need and that I want to be is a "noodge." At the same time, we feel strongly that we have a solution that addresses your needs.

Hope to hear from you soon.

Barry

Of course you'll want to customize the questions to your firm and/or the situation. By the way, here's the real life response that the client received:

"Hi Barry, Love your e-mail! It's 'd' and sadly a bit of 'a.'. Just when you think things cannot get busier...hold on. I have a meeting with Mark today and will talk to him about what your group offers. I hope you have a great weekend!-Sally"

Try it and let me know how it works for you. Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

Are you riding a dead horse?

2010-07-26T12:39:00.002-04:00

Have you ever come to the realization that what you’re doing is in some way out of touch or just plain ineffective? Sometimes it’s subtle and the light bulb dims over time. Other times it hits you like a brick, like when a client that represents a major percentage of revenue suddenly say "sayonara".

Either way, here’s a message that I think you’ll find some value in. It's an excerpt from an article by David Anderson, a peak performance trainer and speaker on leadership, sales and management. It goes like this.

Dakota tribal wisdom declares that when a horse dies, the rider must dismount. In business terms, the dead horse can be an impotent strategy or poor process.

Of course, there are other options. You can change riders. Or, you can appoint a focus group to study dead horses. If you prefer, you can benchmark how other companies ride dead horses. You might even declare it cheaper to feed a dead horse and keep on riding. Or you can harness several dead horses together and see how far you get.

But when all is said and done, you’re still going to have to get off the horse. You’ll have to think strategically and innovate. And yes, innovation is a strategy that requires change, so regardless of how that word may make you or your organization cringe, know that without it there is no progress or growth.

Face it, old habits don’t die easily and quite frankly, many firms are like freighters when it comes to change…they don’t exactly turn on a dime. I therefore continue to see many companies riding dead horses, especially when it comes to client cultivation.

So, my question to you is, are you riding a dead horse?

Is content really king?

2010-07-09T14:36:00.000-04:00

Content is king. I continue to see and hear this over and over again. So is it really an accurate statement?

I believe that it should be, especially for businesses like professional services and consulting firms that are built on relationships and trust. After all, it’s the people and their brain-power that are the real assets.

So, it just makes sense that content that communicates what and how you and your people think and what their thinking accomplishes should be pretty attractive to prospects. And yes, the better the content actually connects with your prospects and their world, the more they'll be drawn to it.

Over the years, I’ve both read about and personally witnessed time and again the power that great content can have when it comes to marketing and business development.

For example, I read recently about a client who told their new agency that they had been following their blog and other thought leadership content for the past year and a half. And that it played an instrumental role in their decision by allowing them to understand the firm’s point of view and their depth and breadth of relevant knowledge.

Then there is the small, little known San Diego agency that opened doors consistently to cold prospects by sharing accomplishments through well crafted case studies that were relevant to each prospect. The stories helped provide their business developer with a clear and meaningful purpose and prospects with a reason to say, "tell me more".

So, if content is (or should be) king, why then is it a missing link for so many firms?

Are you repelling prospects instead of attracting them?

2010-07-09T14:19:00.002-04:00

Your calls aren't taken or returned. When you do get through, the conversation seems to be quick and go nowhere. Emails and letters aren’t responded to – not so much as a “thanks, we’ll call you” and your blog isn't generating much interest or discussion.

As precious as time, energy and resources are these days, I don’t have to tell you how frustrating it is when all of your client cultivation activity doesn’t evolve into productivity. While there are a number of things to look at to figure out why you may not be generating sufficient traction, one important question to consider is
are you actually repelling prospects rather than attracting them?

Think about attracting someone who catches your eye at a bar. Some approaches work and some just act like a powerful bug spray. Like a clever pick-up line, “do you have a map? I’m getting lost in your eyes”. And don’t forget about appearance. While yellow underarm stains do attract attention, it’s not exactly the kind you want. http://bit.ly/b96D6Z

So, if you’re not happy with your efforts to attract prospects, here are 10 questions to ask yourself. Pretend that you’re a prospect.

When reaching out to prospects, is there real purpose driving each attempt or are you just “dialing and smiling” to one after the next?
Is that purpose grounded to your prospect in some way (a problem or opportunity, relevant knowledge or insights, etc.)?
Is your purpose supported by something substantive that they’ll find meaningful (relevant experience, accomplishments, etc.)?
Is your purpose communicated in a clear and concise way?
Is your thought leadership content rooted in your prospect market’s business issues?
Does your thought leadership content contain a clear point(s) of view that’s supported by convincing evidence?
Is your thought leadership content “packaged” as educational as opposed to promotional material?
Is your content well written (thoughts well organized, etc)?
Is your content formatted in a way that makes it easy to consume (short text blocks, good use of bullets and white space, etc.)?
When you look at your content, does your message cut through the style?

While attracting business prospects these days takes a smart approach, it shouldn’t be rocket science, especially if you’re a marketer. It takes keeping your eye on the ball (your prospects). That includes knowing what’s really important to them and being sensitive to their world of everyday chaos.

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Turned away...from Canada?!

2010-04-23T12:35:00.000-04:00

Last week my travels took me to our friendly neighbor to the north to speak to a group of ad agency principals. It was a pretty typical trip, other than the fact that I got a big surprise on the way. You see, when I got there, Canada wouldn’t let me in.

I thought to myself, how could this be? I’m just a regular guy, not a threat to anyone. And while I will admit that curling is a bit ridiculous, I’ve always liked hockey, I love to sing the Canadian national anthem, I find the Canadian people to be extremely friendly and I even know what a “tuk” is. So, why oh why was that Canadian customs agent so darn awnry and why did she say “go home”?

In hindsight, I probably ended up sharing more than I really needed to during the “interrogation”. For example, when we finally got to the “what are you doing at the conference?” I could have simply said, “I’m attending”. Instead I said, “I’m speaking”. Oops! Then came the real clincher. “Do you have a Canadian work permit?” Work permit, work schmermit? Nobody told me that I needed a work permit!

In the end I did get into the country (the next day), I enjoyed the conference and my short stay in Canada and actually learned a couple of great lessons. First, “less is more” (already knew that) and next time to muster up a tear and say that “I cried the day Wayne Gretsky was traded”!

By the way, let me tell you without hesitation that I’m grateful that all of the customs agents and border guards are in place and doing their jobs to protect us. I also understand the tremendous responsibility that they shoulder. If they could just give me a “have a nice day” at the end, I’d be a happy traveler.

How listening opens doors...

2010-03-06T11:30:00.000-05:00

I’m sure you’d agree that listening is critical to building productive relationships. So how important is listening when it comes to starting relationships and how in the world can you listen if you haven’t even engaged someone yet?

To begin with, the more you truly understand someone's world, the better chance you'll have to attract their attention in ways that will move them to say, "tell me more". And since "listening" is one important path to understanding, it can definitely play a significant role in starting relationships, even if they haven't said a word to you. Of course, I'm talking here about listening with more than just your ears.

So, in addition to doing your due diligence by researching (listening to) targeted companies and contacts in order to understand the 'ususal' stuff about them, here are some great ways to "listen" at an entirely new level that will further enhance your ability to attract and connect with them. Read more
http://www.thecustomercollective.com/TCC/51644

What do you think and how well are you listening?

Trust - you can't rush it without breaking it...

2010-01-27T13:46:00.000-05:00

With budgets still anemic in many areas and a continuing cloud of uncertainty overhead, it’s no surprise that the need to land new clients continues to be high. I sense that so too is the hope and expectation that new opportunities materialize much sooner than later.

This presents a big challenge if you’re in a relationship based business like an ad agency or marketing services firm, since it is in large part grown on relationships and trust. As you may have heard me say before, building trust builds business.

The problem isn’t so much that firms can’t develop relationships and trust. It’s that trust just doesn’t happen overnight and most agencies and marketing services firms are notoriously short on patience when it comes to courting new clients.

I recently attended a workshop on cultivating clients presented by Andrew Dietz, president of Creative Growth Group. The firm specializes in helping professional service firms grow. Andrew’s remarks focused a great deal on the significant role that trust building plays in cultivating new clients. After all, hiring an “advisor” is a high-risk proposition. He went on to say something that I thought was equally as important – “You can’t rush trust without breaking it”.

How true that is. No matter how much you may want to score runs as quickly as possible, you won’t even get to first base with a prospect (their attention) without developing a certain level of trust. And remember that trust comes not only from what you say and the materials you share but also from the general manner in which you approach and pursue them.

For example, are you just persistent like a bull or is your approach persistent in a way that also clearly communicates, “We have something that you’ll find real value in AND I/we respect your humanity”?

We’ve all experienced situations, professionally and personally, where the other person’s defense shield activates unexpectedly. In hindsight, I usually find that I haven’t accumulated enough trust in my “account” with them to cover my next move or attempted “purchase”. While this isn’t always a deal killer, it can really throw cold water on the relationship.

That in mind, I encourage you to ask yourself the following questions…

To what degree is both our team and program focused on earning the trust of prospects with each touch over time?
Are we armed with the right materials that will help build trust?
Is our view long-sighted and patient enough to encourage successful relationship building or does it foster trying to yank it out of the park with every swing?

If it does, I’d find a new batting coach! Remember, you can’t rush trust without breaking it.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting (and trust building)!

Accelerating business development - one step at a time...

2010-01-20T15:11:00.000-05:00

Early in my business development career I had a boss that had a habit of asking the same question at the end of each day, “Did you sell anything today”?

At first I was really put off by this, I suppose because as much as I wanted to say “yes”, that wasn’t always possible. One day at lunch I learned what he really meant. The business development cycle is comprised of a sequence of steps or stages that starts with getting a prospect to notice you and ultimately ends with a signed contract. I already knew that. What I didn’t recognize was that the achievement of each stage along with all of the steps within each stage are all mini-sales that are necessary to moving the ball forward towards the goal.

Think of it this way. You or your team makes a sale whenever the prospect (1) opens your letter or email, (2), reads what you sent, (3) responds to your email, (4) clicks through to your web site, (5) receives your initial call, (6) agrees to a second call or meeting, etc., etc. You get the picture. Each step is actually a sale within the sale.

It was at that point I realized that by slowing down long enough to treat each key step along the way as a potential sale, a funny thing happened – I ultimately landed more of the right clients, often more quickly than before.

So, do you or your people tend to dial and smile through a long list of prospects or are you focused enough to treat each step or encounter along the way as a potential sale? Hopefully it’s the latter. After all, if you don't do the right things to get you to 1st base, how can you hope to get to 2nd? Also, the former does little to build trust which is critical in our business.

By the way, that boss and I still stay in touch 25 years later and whenever he calls his first words are usually, "Did you sell anything today?" :)

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

This too shall pass...

2009-12-17T11:51:00.000-05:00

To say that 2009 has been a rocky and stressful year is an understatement if I've ever made one!

Client budgets were butchered. So too were many agency staffs. The business environment was more ‘fluid’ than ever – clients continued to look for new and innovative approaches and redirected their budgets accordingly. Projects that were a firm ‘go’ yesterday became ‘no-go’ the next. So much for predictable revenue! In an environment like this, it’s so easy to get stuck when that's the last thing that needs to happen.

To put things into perspective, if you think things are tough, imagine the level of stress that Abraham Lincoln experienced when he was in the White House. Soldiers were dying by the tens of thousands and he was the one sending them to their tragic deaths. While this caused him immense despair, sadness and pain, it needed to be done.

To keep himself calm enough to deal with it, Lincoln often said to himself, this too shall pass. He used it as a kind of mantra to help him maintain his rationality and carry out his duties — largely by reminding himself again and again that whatever is happening is temporary.

So, try reminding yourself that the one constant in the universe is that everything changes. By doing so, while the problem and resulting stress won’t go away, you’ll probably get disheartened less often and less intensely. Try saying to yourself “this too shall pass.” Go ahead, try it. Hey, as my grandmother used to say, “It couldn’t hurt”!

Now, in your moment of calm and clarity, think about where you need to be and what steps will get you there. Then get at it knowing that this too shall pass!

All the best for a nice Holiday and a healthy and more prosperous New Year!

Larry

The real magic happens when you turn the monologue into a dialogue...

2009-11-04T09:34:00.000-05:00

I sat in on an agency new business meeting recently. It was the first meeting with a major CPG company. While the company had never heard of the firm, they were intrigued enough by what the agency sent them along with the persistence of the business developer to say “tell me more”. The prospect suggested a “capabilities” meeting.

After the usual introductions, the agency launched into a PowerPoint presentation. While it included some good and relevant information about the firm, the presentation took up most of the time allotted and because the presenter focused on getting through the deck, little to no room was available for participation.

In the end the prospect very graciously thanked the agency for their time and said that they would “keep them in mind”. In other words, “don’t let the door hit you on the way out”. Sad and very frustrating, because the agency did have strong experience and demonstrated success in the category, a high demand offering, etc. It was a missed opportunity to at least move the relationship to the next level.

Before I focus on what went wrong, let’s look at what went right.

The company fit the agency's prospect profile (category, size, etc.)
The agency got through to the right decision maker
They did some good homework on the category and company
The presentation showcased what they did through relevant accomplishments

So, what went wrong?

When the agency heard the word “capabilities”, they focused primarily on “what do we say and show about us that will allow them to see us as a viable resource?” Not a bad thought, on the surface.

The problem was that the entire meeting ended up being a one way conversation, or monologue. There never was a real connection established with the prospect. So, even though some good, relevant information was shared, it never had the desired impact.

What can we learn from this?

Understand that the real magic only happens when the other person(s) becomes an active and engaged participant, especially when they talk about themselves.
Realize that good questions can be a big asset...

Good questions serve as a great catalyst for making the transition from monologue to dialogue - getting the prospect actively involved and talking about their firm.
Good questions enhance your credibility – they illustrate your knowledge of their business/industry and how you think.
Questions that you ask can often say much more about you than what you say about yourself or the situation.

Does it work?

I spoke yesterday with another client who reported that sound preparation (research) including good questions allowed them to turn a recent “credentials” presentation into a great conversation that led to a follow up meeting and ultimately a new client.

What can you do?

When you’re either planning for your next new business meeting or to reach out to a prospect with the ultimate intent of getting a meeting, ask yourself, “what are 2-3 great questions that I/we could ask?” Then ask them early on in the meeting. By the way, I probably don't need to say this but I will - I'm NOT talking about asking manipulative, self-serving questions.

A couple of final notes.

Being prepared to ask good questions is even more important for teleconference or web meetings where you obviously don't have the benefit of connecting visually.
Finding good questions is not that difficult although it does take some time and effort. One place to look is your industry and/or company research on the prospect. Check out First Research (a service of Hoovers). They provide ongoing industry research that includes conversation starting questions to consider.

If you need help turning monologues into real dialogues with more prospects in 2010 (or other new business issues), don’t hesitate to give me a call at 770-645-9845 or drop a note to larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

Larry Melnick
Principal

What's your "conversation strategy"?

2009-10-30T13:33:00.000-04:00

I came across a great article in Ad Age titled, “How to Develop the Right Communications Strategy for a Conversation Economy”. In the article, Marsha Lindsay proposes that in today’s technologically empowered drive for conversations, rather than marketing products and services, we’re now marketing "conversations". Therefore, marketing-communications planning should be driven by a conversation strategy.

According to Lindsay, the right conversation strategy answers two big questions, (1) what meaningful content will attract sufficient conversations with the right people? and (2) how will you jump-start conversations and keep them alive? Read more…

So, does your own firm’s go-to-market plan include a conversation strategy?

Coming from a sales background, I learned long before all of the advances of communication technology that relationships are ultimately the outgrowth of meaningful conversations. I also learned that encounters most often start as a monologue. It’s the ability to turn the monologue into a dialogue that sets you apart and allows the relationship to evolve.

What are the best ways to turn monologues into dialogues with prospects?

I agree that meaningful content is a powerful tool that can both attract attention and jumpstart conversations. If you’ve read my articles over time, you’ve heard me point to the fact that prospects are starved for time and therefore jump-starting new and meaningful conversations is a big challenge. Also that prospects primarily want to know two things up front:

How well do you know my business (who have you worked with) and
What problems have you solved for them?

With this in mind, here are a couple of powerful steps that you can take to stimulate curiosity and turn monologues into dialogues with prospects:

Communicate relevant business results your clients have experienced
Shed light on the fact that clients use your firm to solve similar issues that they face

Well-crafted case histories and powerful value propositions are great vehicles for delivering this information.

Also, be prepared to ask relevant and thought provoking questions about their company and/or industry, especially when you have an opportunity to speak or meet with a prospect. In addition to stimulating interest, it will also enhance your credibility with them. Remember, the questions you ask can say much more about you than what you say.

There’s no doubt that taking the right steps to engage prospects in conversation takes more time and effort than just talking at them. Is it worth it? Well, for starters know that if you’re not conversing with them, the odds are high that someone else probably is.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting (and conversing)!

Are you still shooting the messenger?

2009-08-27T12:03:00.000-04:00

I recently caught a call from an advertising agency business developer who was pulling his hair out over not being able to get the tools and materials he felt he needed in order to successfully attract and nurture prospects. No surprise. I tend to hear this quite a bit.

We all know that the gap between sales and marketing is a long-standing problem in companies big and small. A study done some time back by the Chief Marketing Officer Council found many disconnects between the two groups. For example:

Most salespeople view up to 90% of sales materials created by marketing as valueless.
The majority of marketers view most sales-generated content as diluting their brands or inaccurately positing products.

In fact, I know many advertising and marketing services firms that position themselves as experts in helping clients deal with exactly this problem. However, when it comes to practicing what they preach, that’s another story.

Is the problem the old “cobbler’s stepchild…” excuse? While I think that it definitely contributes, I don’t believe that it’s the core problem.

The truth is, unlike most companies, business development is still not a part of the agency culture. It’s a serious paradigm shift that’s still s-l-o-w-l-y and painfully trying to happen. Most firms don’t even have a real “business development department”. To make matters worse, many times the guy or gal (forget about “team”) doesn’t even have a business development background. The business developer that I spoke with had no prior experience - he was an account manager. This is all compounded by the fact that many firms end up hiring inexperienced people (cheaper) to do the job that no one else in the organization has any experience in. Therefore, it’s kind of like the blind leading the blind.

So, what’s the solution?

If you’re a successful advertising or marketing firm you know that solving the problem starts with understanding the target. If you don’t know what is most likely to get your prospect’s attention and have them say “tell me more” (both content and form), you need to find out. Here are some ways:

Research the industries and companies that you’re targeting to understand their key issues, drivers and their environment
Speak with your clients about it – they, after all are prospects too and probably have a good perspective
Consult an expert in the field like us (a bit of self promotion) – we can tell you what works and even help you get it done

If all of your new business activity is not turning into sufficient productivity, be careful not to knee-jerk and shoot the messenger. Instead, make sure that they are armed with the right tools and materials that will enable them (and you) to succeed.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

7 OTHER words no firm wants to hear…

2009-08-20T15:25:00.001-04:00

Sometime back I wrote about an issue that continues to rear its ugly head more often these days – clients saying, “We have decided to make a change”, many times without warning and when it doesn’t seem to make any sense.

Short of a significant client exiting stage left, 7 other words that no one wants to hear is “We need to significantly reduce your fee.”

It’s clear that marketers are still pressured to reduce costs and spending and are considering a number of options. According to a recent Association of National Advertisers (ANA) survey, challenging agencies to reduce internal expenses and/or identify cost reductions and reducing agency compensation are items that continue to be considered by marketers.

What makes the 7 words more painful is (1) when you don't anticipate their arrival and (2) learning that your client doesn't just want to cut back your services, they want the same services for a reduced fee, “temporarily” while they “thread the needle through these tough times”. And of course, they’ll “understand” if you can’t accommodate them. Translation: “we’re talking to some other firms.”

So, what can you do to protect your position if and when those 7 words come your way? In addition to making sure that your new business pipeline is always alive and well, I still believe that it starts with establishing a candid and ongoing dialogue that addresses “value”. For example, try asking yourself a few questions about each key client…

What are those things that our client really values the most?
To what degree is our client aware of the value that we provide?
How important is the value that we provide relative to their overall well-being?
To what degree are we living up to our client's expectations?
Is there an influencer(s) in the decision hierarchy not directly involved in the relationship who may not be aware of our value?

If you can’t answer these questions with confidence, make it a priority to find out. Even if the answers are not what you want to hear, at least you’ll know where you stand. No one likes surprises.

Sad to say that clients all too often get taken for granted. We all get busy focused on the task at hand (including clients). So, if you assume that the reasons that they chose to do business with you in the first place are still top of mind with them, think again.

In the end, let’s just hope it doesn’t come down to this kind of scene.

Thanks for your time and have a great week!

Focus to Grow...

2009-08-06T16:58:00.000-04:00

Do we broaden our services? Should we expand our capabilities? What about increasing the list of industris to pursue?

If you're wrestling with how to most effectively align your firm for growth, the best strategy may have less to do with expansion than you might think. Read more from Tim Williams, fouder and President of Ignition Consulting Group.

Slow down and you'll move ahead faster...

2009-06-26T16:16:00.000-04:00

I got a call recently from an agency that was obviously frustrated with the lack of traction that they were getting from their prospecting effort.

Their strategy involved 5 account managers each pursuing a half dozen new prospects every week. Over three months, that’s 360 prospects in the pipeline. Trouble is, little time was available to develop compelling entry strategies or to pursue each. It basically gets down to just “dial and smile” with not enough bandwidth to dial. Oh, and did I mention that among other things, each account manager also had other responsibilities, like clients? You get the picture.

Many moons ago, a boss and mentor looked me square in the eye and said, “You know, if you slow down, you’ll move ahead faster”. I remember the moment, including my response, like it was yesterday. “What, are you (bleeping) crazy?!” There was no way in the world that I could afford to slow down, especially when I believed that selling was primarily a “numbers game”. While it didn’t happen overnight, I did come to realize that selling was only partly a numbers game and that slowing down actually did help me move ahead faster.

By contrast to the above example, here’s what happened when one of our clients bought into the concept of “slowing down…” from the get-go. They started by taking the necessary steps to become a Marketing-Led agency.

In just the first 4 months of pursuing prospects, they’ve gotten great traction from only 43 companies pursued, none of which had ever heard of the agency:

6 – Introductory meetings
3 – 2nd meetings
1 – 3rd meeting
3 – Proposals generated

If you’re struggling with new business, among other things, take a hard look at your approach. If it’s too “numbers game” centric, I encourage you to rethink your strategy.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

When budgets rebound, where in line will you be?

2009-06-09T08:11:00.000-04:00

As the mid-point of the year approaches, I’m sure you’re not only taking a deep breath, you’re also taking stock of your progress to date and what the future holds. Here's a bit of good news.

While b-to-b marketers have slashed budgets this year in response to the economic downturn, about half say their budgets will be up in 2010, with an upswing beginning in the second half of this year, according to a study by BtoB. Read more Budgets looking up heading into 2010

So how well are you positioned to recapture lost ground when budgets rebound? Are you...

1. Positioned to your prospect universe in a way that they will find compelling?
2. Reaching out consistently to engage the right new prospects in a quality way?
3. Effectively articulating your value through powerful case histories and value propositions?
4. Actively working to earn a "Trusted Advisor" position through regular knowledge sharing?
5. Harnessing a range of channels to touch prospects?
6. Integrating all channel activity, both on and off-line?
7. Cultivating prospect relationships by staying in front of them in ways that truly build presence and trust?

Keep at it and keep in mind that new business is like your garden. It takes attention, nurturing and time to get what you want.

Thanks for your time and have a great week!

Larry Melnick
Principal

How well does your firm communicate its own benefits?

2009-06-05T11:15:00.000-04:00

I read an article the other day that I think really delivers an important message, one that is relevant even beyond the business area that’s at the center of the discussion.

The article emphasizes the critical need for consumer electronics products to clearly communicate to consumers what’s in it for them, from the consumer’s perspective, of course. According to Vipin Jain, president and CEO of Retrevo, a product review search service focused on electronics,

"With the consumer electronics market reaching saturation, it is difficult to find people who do not have gadgets that meet their needs. Customers are no longer buying products just for the sake of owning one. They want products that are prime examples of their category. Companies focusing on innovation need to work to emphasize, in the customer's mind, what the innovation really accomplishes in their daily lives.”

This of course isn’t rocket science. I think it’s safe to say that in general terms, the better job marketing does at communicating from a benefits based perspective, the more effective it will be.

So, why is this important to you other than to reinforce the need to make sure your client work is benefits based”? Here’s why...

1. Like consumer electronics products, the market is overly saturated with agencies. It’s difficult to find many companies out there that don’t already have an agency(s) that meets their needs to one degree or another.
2. Like consumer electronics buying decisions, long gone is the time when companies hire an agency(s) just for the sake of having one.
3. Like consumer electronics consumers, companies want agencies that are prime examples of their category.

See the parallels? If you’ve read my articles, you know that we've learned from experience in the field that the path to differentiating your firm and getting prospects to pay attention to you starts with clearly articulating how you’ve made a difference. And that starts with powerful case histories and value propositions that are written from a prospect’s perspective.

So, my question to you is this – how well does your marketing really communicate the benefits of your work? More specifically, do your case histories and value propositions at least…

1. Start by clearly exposing the real business problem(s) that created the need for action to be taken, or do they focus on the fact that the client needed a new website or brand refresh?
2. Communicate the clear and tangible results from your strategy and efforts to solve the client's business problem(s) or do they, for example, simply communicate the fact that the work was done (website developed, brand refresh accomplished)?

If you didn’t answer “yes” to both questions, your marketing is probably not generating the attention you deserve and you’re missing opportunities.

If you’d like to improve your ability to get noticed and have more prospects say “tell me more”, drop me a note to larry@hunterbizdev.com or give me a call at 770.645.9845.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

Larry

Read the article Marketers Need To Highlight Innovative Benefits by Aaron Baar

Read related new business insights
What prospects are really looking for
Case histories that get you noticed
You can't attract prospects without good stories

You can't attract prospects without good stories...

2009-05-05T16:31:00.000-04:00

...and you can't tell a good story without a good script.

Humans live in stories. Your story is a window through which you see the world and through which the world sees you. It affects how you make decisions, your decision choices and the impressions that your decisions leave on your world.

The fact that we naturally live in stories is actually good news for professional services firms. After all, we don’t sell a product and therefore we need to rely on prospects to infer our potential value.

Speaking of good news, I’m glad to say that most firms have come to the realization that they need to develop stories in the form of case histories in order to get prospects just to pay attention to them. After all, in this highly accountable and competitive business climate, decision makers have a significant need to vet or evaluate your firm up front – who you work with, how you think and what problems you solved. It’s necessary currency for their attention.

The bad news is that most case histories that we see really come up short. They simply don’t tell the stories in a thorough and compelling enough manner. Don’t get me wrong. I realize that it’s “short attention span theatre” out there, so I’m not talking about writing a book. What I am talking about is a case history that’s designed to grab a prospect’s attention and then deliver the story in a clear, compelling and concise way by answering 8 key questions:

Who is the client (if not a household name, provide perspective)?
What was the business problem or opportunity that existed (not that they needed a new website or brand position)?
What was the client trying to accomplish?

What were the key insights that we knew or learned through research that helped determine our strategy?

What did our strategy involve?

What, if any obstacles stood in the way of success (external and/or internal)?

What were the results of our efforts (increased sales, etc., not the website that you developed)?
Based on above, what would be a strong, results-based headline that would intrigue your market to read more?

Something else to keep in mind - the more clearly the steps of your story is linked, the stronger it will be. For example, strategy should be an outgrowth of your insights and results should link back to objectives.

When you have a few minutes, review one of your case histories. If it does not sufficiently address these questions, you’re probably selling yourself short. You’re also not providing your business developers with enough knowledge to allow them to effectively engage prospects in a meaningful way.

HERE’S AN OFFER TO CONSIDER:
Send one of your case histories to larry@hunterbizdev.com. I’ll review and assess it for free. I’ll also send you our worksheet for developing case histories that get you noticed.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

You snooze, you lose -- customers...

2009-04-21T10:34:00.000-04:00

I’m certain you’ve heard about and no doubt seen by now the teenagers who incriminated themselves with a phone camera as one of them appears to be tainting a customer’s sandwich as he prepares it in a Dominos kitchen. Their post on youtube.com got hundreds of thousands of hits and in the end, cost Dominos when they failed to react immediately to address the problem. Read more about it from media specialist Eric Seidel… http://ericmseidel.blogspot.com/2009/04/lessons-from-dominos-experience.html

These days, when customers are precious cargo and competition is plentiful (and stalking them like pirates), without a strong customer retention strategy, your ship could be sunk.

Okay, enough with the pirate analogies. Here are some tips for making yourself indispensable to clients, including the need to "create transparency" and "embrace problems", which is where Dominos dropped the ball.

1. Create transparency – the more clients know and understand, the more they will trust
2. Create a scorecard – clients crave accountability so incorporate it into your relationship
3. Expand your presence – up and down the chain of command with each client
4. Embrace problems – seek out, address and solve them quickly
5. Seek candid feedback – fix problems early on and build on positives

There are no doubt other strategies for becoming indispensable with clients. What has worked for you? I’d like to hear your thoughts.

A great message for a challenging time...

2009-03-23T11:56:00.000-04:00

Here's a message that someone recently shared with me that I thought you might find value in. Its a great message for a challenging time called "Smile & Move". You can learn the quick points at www.SmileAndMove.com or buy the manifesto by visiting GiveMore.com/smile (20 minute read, tops). It's Sam Parker's (cofounder of JustSell.com) follow-up to his bestselling 212º the extra degree. I hope you enjoy it!

Is it possible to contract AND expand?

2009-03-13T17:05:00.000-04:00

There's no doubt that most companies have adopted a defensive posture for doing business. I'm sure you've seen it first hand with clients. They've slammed the door on spending, especially advertising and marketing. This approach has therefore trickled down to agencies, creative and marketing services firms. Trouble is, most still need to find ways to expand business just to keep up.

Is it possible to do both (contract and expand) at the same time? In pure scientific terms, the answer is “no”, since these actions are opposites.

If you’ve ever seen a drag race, you know that the drivers “smoke” their tires prior to each race. They do this to increase traction and performance by applying equal pressure to the accelerator and to the brakes. While this creates tons of noise and smoke, when it clears, it’s easy to see that they haven’t moved an inch. In order to move, the accelerator needs to override the brakes.

Chances are you’re not going to move forward if you don’t have sufficient pressure on the accelerator. At the same time, increasing your budget to enable expansion probably looks like an impossible pill to swallow at the moment. And if you’re like most firms, you probably don’t have additional funds just lying around. So what can you do?

First and foremost, take the time to improve the quality of your “fuel” in this environment of short attention spans and hyper-accountability by sharpening your both your position and messaging. There’s never been a more important time to clearly articulate who you are and more importantly, what you’ve accomplished for clients in measurable terms. Sharpen your value propositions and case histories.

Next, take a very hard look at your budget as you pull back to look for ways to reallocate funds to beef up your new business resources. As hard as it is to consider cutting “cobblers” loose, if you don’t have enough shoes coming in to keep their plates full and/or to achieve your objectives, something needs to give. You can always staff back up based on real demand pressures.

Another strategy to consider is to outsource some of the responsibilities. This approach can potentially provide you access to high quality people with specialized talent and skills, the right tools and valuable insights and do so more cost-effectively than bringing people on full time.

Whether you enlist resources that are full-time or outsourced really doesn’t matter. Getting it done, does. Time and time again I see firms who refuse to get additional help. Although they save money, 6 months down the road they’re still sitting in the same place, just like the drag racer smokin’ their tires.

If you've found a successful strategy for expanding business during these tough time, please share.

If you’d like to learn about our strategies for helping agencies step on the accelerator, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 770-645-9845, email me at larry@hunterbizdev.com or visit http://www.hunterbizdev.com/

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

Are agencies really a time suck?

2009-03-12T15:54:00.000-04:00

Recent research indicated that 45 percent of CMOs say they are spending more time managing their agencies than just two years ago. http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/special-reports/studies/e3ia82652ffac56b32ee61c03f4d8bf85d8

This article obviously raised the hackles of most agency people, probably because of the headline. No doubt that the responsibility for this is shared here between both clients and their marketing partners. At the same time, perception is reality and they are the client.

Does this not also speak to the simple reality that corporate marketers (like all of us) are under pressure and are short on time?

More power to those firms that clearly demonstrate an ability to “get it” (their business, issues, etc.) and who move quickly. I also think that it speaks to the critical importance of being able to clearly and concisely articlulate relevant value when you reach out to prospects. Otherwise, your message just comes through as "blah-blah-blah-blah-blah".

Your thoughts?

Getting beyond their fear and anxiety…

2009-03-11T08:44:00.000-04:00

No one seems to be immune from the fear and anxiety that these difficult and uncertain economic times have spawned. It crosses business categories and affects all levels of organizations.

People fear the impact that the economic downturn will have on their business. They fear the impending layoffs and how it might impact them personally. They fear making decisions as the level of scrutiny has ratcheted up. They fear change in the form of new and uncharted territory as the need for greater accountability has forced a shift to incorporate new platforms.

While there’s no doubt that fear and anxiety can be formidable barriers, we all still have to move forward to build business.

With that in mind, my message today is simple. If you hope to get prospects to notice and pay attention to you, make sure to demonstrate an understanding of the world through their eyes. That means keeping their pains and priorities front and center when developing messaging – from conversations, letters and emails to your web site, direct mail and thought leadership. You might call this being “customer-centric”.

Here are a few things to keep in mind as you reach out to prospects. At the core is to be human and above all, to remove any hint of manipulation. It does nothing to build trust:
1. Communicate in a clear and straightforward manner
2. Communicate a clear purpose for reaching out
3. Communicate in plain language
4. Communicate an understanding of and sensitivity about their situation
5. Remove any “spin” about your agency – they will see right through it
6. Be patient

One last point. Be aware of your own fears and anxieties and take care of them outside of the workplace. Have friends, partners, and family members that you can vent to and share your fears with. Also, take care of yourself by eating well, getting rest, exercising, limiting alcohol use, and taking time for recreation. Managing your own stress and fears will help you engage prospects in a way that will help to decrease their anxiety and increase your ability to build a bridge with them.

If you’d like to talk about this or to learn about how we help agencies build relationships with prospects, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 770-645-9845 or email me at larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

How solid is your foundation?

2009-02-02T18:03:00.001-05:00

“Keeping sales up in a tough economy”, “Recession sales strategies”, "How to survive the downturn", etc., etc.

I’m sure you’ve seen plenty of advice like this show up lately in your inbox, in the trades and on blogs – tips for developing business and for staying afloat in a very tough economy. Most are valid ideas.

The trouble is, for too many agencies, these are but band aids rather than strategies designed to address and solve the core problem – they are ill-prepared to consistently market themselves in a meaningful manner and in a way that ultimately generates a predictable flow of business.

I firmly believe that success (not to mention survival) will come to those agencies that have the right go-to-market foundation and are truly marketing-led. This is where prospects are attracted over time through a balance of "pull marketing" and "push sales."

“Firms without a good quality sales and marketing process cannot reliably predict sales revenue”. This according to Paul Collins, Managing Director of Equiteq LLP, a firm specializing in mergers and acquisitions in the consulting industry. Collins goes on to say that marketing-led firms receive premium interest from buyers and investors.

So, what does it really mean to be a marketing-led firm and how well does your agency measure up? We believe that these are 8 steps that will get you there.

1. Value Articulation – Your firm can readily communicate/ demonstrate the various ways that it has made a difference for clients in a clear and compelling manner that ultimately incites a "WOW" rather than "so what?" from prospects (well-crafted case histories and value propositions).

2. Thought Leadership – Your agency is taking steps to earn a “Trusted Advisor” position with your prospect universe through an ongoing knowledge-sharing initiative (white papers, articles, research, speaking, blogs, books, etc.).

3. Channel and Campaign Diversity – Your firm is leveraging a range of channels – email, web, direct mail, direct sales, public relations, events, etc., to touch prospects in a variety of ways in order to stay top of mind, to create interest and ultimately to generate leads.

4. Online/Offline Integration – Your firm’s strategy integrates all channel activity and includes a strong online presence where the website is the hub of all activity for your marketing campaigns.

5. Dedicated Business Development – Lead generation in your firm is independent of any individual (principal) and is not a “part-time” responsibility. It’s driven by dedicated professionals who have specialized skills, talents and experience and who utilize a clear and smart process to effectively open doors and build relationships.

6. Relationship Cultivation – Your firm has a strong and growing contact database of prospects that fit your profile along with a clear strategy and tools for touching them consistently and in a meaningful way over the long business development cycle.

7. Return on Marketing Investment (Measurement) – There is a sales and marketing scorecard in place at your firm where all spending and campaigns are monitored for client acquisition costs and conversion rates.

8. Investment versus Cost – Sales and marketing in your firm is treated as an investment and not as a cost.

So, how does your firm stack up if you grade each on a scale of 1 – 5, with 5 the highest? If your total score is under 32, your initiative probably could use some attention.

If you’d like to talk about this or any other new business issue, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 770-645-9845 or email me at larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

Case studies that get you noticed...

2008-12-03T19:06:00.000-05:00

It’s no secret that prospects define you by the company you keep (your clients) and by what you’ve accomplished on their behalf. The latter continues to receive increasing attention. Prospects want to know what problems you’ve solved and then understand how you did it, both in as tangible terms as possible.

We’ve therefore found that well-crafted case studies can be a helpful tool in your efforts to open doors to dialogs with prospects, if they’re properly developed. They also can serve as an important guide to help your business developers communicate with prospects.

Here is a simple yet powerful format along with some guidelines that we’ve developed for creating success stories to support targeted prospect lead generation.

1. Headline – Results based statement or perhaps a question - one
that’s generic will transcend business categories
2. Situation Overview – This is a quick straightforward overview
about the client and the situation. Identify the bigger picture. For
example, rather than “they needed a new web site”, identify the
bigger issue that drove them to need it.
3. Obstacles(s) – Brief description of the challenges that stand in the way of success
4. Insight(s) – The ‘golden nuggets’ of knowledge about the situation (marketplace) that led us to the specific strategy – provides
insight into how you think
5. Strategy – Key points
6. Results
• Make them as tangible and relevant as possible
• Illustrations/graphs can be more powerful than words
• A strong client quote can be a very powerful addition,
especially if available results are not as strong as you’d like
• Consider using subtle techniques to help this section stand out
(larger font, italics, etc.)

Tips:
 Keep case studies to one page (two tops). Remember that these are
door openers, so make them quickly and easily digestible.
 Design a simple, nice looking template that can be used for all
case studies. It will accelerate the process and simplify your life.
 Create hard copy and electronic versions.

If you’d like to talk about this or any other new business issue, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 770-645-9845 or email me at larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

"They [agencies] all say the same thing. It’s blah-blah-blah-blah-blah.”

2008-11-09T02:52:00.000-05:00

This is an all too familiar response that we hear from the marketplace. The source of this quote is the CMO of a company that one of our agency clients recently pitched as part of a thorough review of a dozen or so firms. We interviewed the CMO in order to gain insight into, among other things, how the agency is perceived.

Mind you, the agency is not positioned poorly because they lack the skills to do so – they do it at a high level for clients all the time. They just could not seem to find the time to pay attention to their own brand.

Another barrier is that most advertising and marketing services firm executives find it difficult to establish a clear position for the firm. The main reason is that doing so involves sacrifice.

Al Ries and Jack Trout are still probably the world’s best know marketing strategists. Their book, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, includes “The Law of Sacrifice”. According to Ries and Trout, if you want to be successful, you have to give up something. That something can involve your services, your target market(s) or change. Yes, if you try to follow the constant twists and turns of the market, you’re bound to wind up on the side of the road. The best way to maintain a consistent position is not to change it in the first place.

We’ve learned through the years that sacrifice can be an especially tough concept for creative firms to buy into, since the desire to do new and fresh is usually so strong.

So, what do you do? First, when you think about sacrifice or specialization, realize that it doesn’t have to mean all or nothing. For example, if you want to define yourself by your experience, rather than moving your focus from 9 disparate business categories to one, consider identifying 2-3 strong categories to focus on that have some perceived synergies based on who they are and/or what you do for them. For example, here is a diverse list of target areas for one agency. • Financial Services
• Insurance
• Health Care
• Real Estate
• Travel & Leisure
• Retail
• Non Profit
• Education
• Technology

At least on the surface, I might suggest narrowing the focus to Financial Services, Insurance and Health Care in order to strengthen the position. What do you think?

So, how does your market(s) see your brand? If it’s anything but clear, concise, compelling and consistent, good luck. Count on being just one of a deep and wide sea of non-descript generalist firms scratching to gain their attention.

If you’d like to talk about this or any other new business issue, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 770-645-9845 or email me at larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

Getting off the revenue roller coaster...

2008-10-05T18:19:00.000-04:00

I know you’re well aware that accurately predicting revenue is critical to the ongoing health and well being of your agency. I also realize that doing so successfully can feel like picking the right number to hit the lottery jackpot.

Take a look back over the past 12-36 months. If the emerging pattern resembles a roller coaster, you may want to take a hard look at your sales and marketing initiative
• Are you too reliant on client referrals?
• Do you expect the partners to find, sell and manage new accounts?
• Is business development a shared and/or part-time effort?
• Does the initiative get your attention in spurts?

If you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above, your new business activity in all likelihood mirrors your revenue pattern. The result is an unpredictable roller coaster revenue ride – big valleys between projects (and revenue) and an inefficient use of resources. In other words, feast or famine and stress on the agency.

It’s very difficult to accurately predict revenue without a viable pipeline of opportunities. And in today’s hyper-competitive environment where long sales cycles are the norm, a pipeline doesn’t appear without a well-conceived effort that is paid serious attention to on a consistent basis.

In the long term, according to Paul Collins, Managing Director of Equiteq LLP, a firm specializing in mergers and acquisitions in the consulting industry, firms with this type of sales and marketing posture present a very risky profile for an investor because of their complete reliance on erratic and unreliable sources for their sales pipeline.

Here are some actions to consider for smoothing out your road ahead:
1. Take a hard look at your sales and marketing effort – from agency positioning and how it’s articulated to your outreach process, tools and the people driving the effort.
2. Implement a smart, clear and replicable process for proactively reaching out to and staying with new a targeted list of prospects.
3. Invest in experienced and knowledgeable people to consistently drive the effort.
4. Realize that you very well may need more than one business developer to sufficiently fill and nurture your pipeline and eventually close the business – just pursuing prospects is a full-time job.
5. Provide the right tools and materials to support a long sales cycle – business intelligence, a contact management system, fresh collateral (case studies, PR, white papers, etc.).
6. Stay consistently involved in supporting and monitoring the initiative.
7. Be patient – remember that the median timeline for landing a key new account is 1.5 years (in 2007)

If you’d like to talk about this or any other new business issue, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 770-645-9845 or email me at larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

What prospects are really looking for...

2008-08-12T18:27:00.000-04:00

You see what looks like a good prospect for your agency, so you pick up the phone and call the company. A receptionist warmly answers the phone and without hesitation, politely asks you to hold and puts your call through to the marketing executive that you requested. The marketing executive answers the phone on the second ring with a big smile in their voice and proceeds to spend the next 30 minutes telling you everything you wanted to know about their current situation, needs, challenges, etc. The call concludes with them suggesting that you meet for lunch to talk about doing business.

Wow, what a terrific dream! Now back to reality.

Corporate defense shields are up. Marketing executives aren’t sitting around waiting for your calls and correspondence. They’re burning the candle at both ends while dodging calls from more agencies than you can imagine.

While it’s long been said that the path to a man’s heart runs through his stomach, a good case can be made that an important key to a marketing executive’s attention these days is a powerful value proposition – a clear statement of the tangible results that a customer receives from using your service.

In her best-selling book “Selling to Big Companies”, Jill Konrath, a recognized expert on selling to big companies states, “If you’re struggling to get into big companies, you probably have a weak value proposition. Pure and simple. Your vague or nebulous statements about the benefits that customers get from using your product or service are likely the root cause of your account entry problems.”

Even if you’ve done your homework and have great stories (case histories) to share, you won’t get prospects to really pay attention to you if you can’t help them make the connection to how what you have to offer is clearly meaningful to them.

Powerful value propositions:
• Focus on outcomes
• Speak to the critical business issues the prospect faces
• Refer to actual client successes that tie results to critical issues
• Are specific (results that include metrics)

What if no results metrics exist?
• Emphasize anticipated business needs/accomplishments in terms that will resonate with the prospect like – accelerated time between product launch and projected sales results or improved message consistency to channel partners and customers
• Use a strong client quote
• Use industry statistics as a benchmark

How many Value Propositions do you have? There are probably multiple ways that your firm makes a difference, so don’t just stop with one value proposition.

How to find your Value Propositions:
• Interview clients to discover the true value of your offering
• Look to your accomplishments – problems solved, opportunities capitalized, etc.

What a powerful Value Proposition looks like:
Influencing, training and motivating a large, dispersed sales organization can be a monumental challenge. Our approach helped (Company) achieve their initial objective of getting buy-in from their financial advisors for a new product designed to increase productivity. It ultimately resulted in their sales goal being exceeded by 26%.

If you’d like to learn more about powerful value propositions and how they could help you open more prospect doors, drop me a note to larry@hunterbizdev.com

You can learn more about Jill Konrath by visiting www.sellingtobigcompanies.com

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

Building trust builds business...

2008-07-22T18:36:00.000-04:00

You already know that trust is a prerequisite for influencing behavior and developing relationships. What is often overlooked these days is the importance of trust in the new business process and the opportunity that it offers for growing agency business.

In an article that I caught sometime back titled "Corporate Responsibility: Role of Brand" Arlo Brady, management consultant at Mott MacDonald and a researcher at the Judge Business School, Cambridge University contends that brands today are “in a hand-to-hand battle for attention, and most importantly for trust.” He concludes that, “trust is the competitive advantage of the 21st century.”

The problem is, building trust is not front and center enough in most agency strategies as they reach out to attract new clients. At the core of the problem is impatience. Most agencies are in such a hurry to get new business that they’ve forgotten what realistically is involved in making it happen. As Brady points out, “it (trust) is something that has to be built over time through engaging stakeholders and by adopting a responsible approach to commerce.”

Considering the current business environment that has corporate marketers bombarded with agencies approaching them, agencies are definitely “in a hand-to-hand battle for attention”. Since too many prospects are approached without much real forethought and often with lots of agency spin, cynicism reigns supreme. And the barriers to entry have increased significantly.

All of this considered here are 5 steps that you can take to build trust and break down barriers when prospecting for new business:
1. Communicate in a clear and straightforward manner
2. Personalize your approach (not a template letter)
3. Communicate a clear purpose for reaching out that is prospect centric
4. Incorporate a history of “accountability” – powerful value propositions and well-written case histories
5. Minimize any “spin” about your agency – they will see right through it

If you’d like to discuss more about this or other new business topics, give me a call at 770.546.9845 or email larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

7 words no firm wants to hear...

2008-05-03T18:52:00.004-04:00

Picture this. Over the past five years, your firm has played a key role in helping a client move to a market leadership position. During that time they’ve nearly doubled their share of business and sales grew significantly. You’ve also won all kinds of industry awards for the work your team created. Everything looks and feels solid, from performance to chemistry. Then one day the client calls to say,

“We have decided to make a change.”

I don’t need to tell you how challenging it is to keep clients. You live it every day.

Between companies demanding more and decision makers coming and going at an accelerated pace, it’s no surprise that the client life span continues to shrink. All in all, it still costs less to keep them than it does to win new ones.

So, what can you do to protect your position? While nothing is perfect, we think that it starts with candid dialogue. I’m sure that you’re already attempting this, at least in a casual way. What I’m proposing is a more formal approach. To actually interview clients to learn as clearly as possible what’s going well and what’s not. Clients genuinely appreciate the effort and like it even more when you follow through and address their issues.

The only caveat is that if you are doing the interviewing, you may not elicit the kind of response that you really need. Nothing personal, but clients tend to be less than candid with you either because they expect you to get defensive and don’t want to deal with the confrontation or they just like you too much to tell you that "your baby is ugly". Whatever the case, this approach ultimately doesn't get you (or them) what’s needed.

One solution - consider hiring a competent 3rd party to interview your clients.

Your thoughts?

Don't shoot the messenger...

2008-04-11T17:56:00.000-04:00

“We’re on our third business developer in the past two years. I can’t seem to find the right person.”

If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. It’s a theme that I’ve heard consistently over the years. In fact, these words came from a frustrated agency president that I just spoke with.

What’s interesting is that once we talked about the agency’s new business initiative, it became evident that the business developer was actually only a part of the problem. The agency president was the first to admit that their position was unclear and not at all compelling. Also, marketing materials were scarce, the web site was dated and ineffective, brand recognition was low and nothing was being done to increase it.

Don’t get me wrong. Finding business developers with the right talent and skill set is both critical and a challenge. At the same time, in today’s hyper-competitive business climate, ignoring core marketing principles and in essence, telling your business developer to “just get out there and sell” does nothing but make a bad situation worse.

So, the next time things aren’t going well with new business and your eyes turn first to your business developer(s), stop and ask yourself,
• How well is the agency really positioned to prospects?
• How compelling is our story?
• Do our materials effectively articulate the many ways that we make a difference?
• Are we consistently building awareness and trust with prospects over the long sales cycle?
• Do our business developers have the tools they need to be successful?
• Are they getting enough consistent support from the staff?

Remember, by “shooting the messenger”, you very well could be shooting yourself in the foot. And that hurts!

If you’d like to talk about this or any other new business area, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 770-645-9845 or email me at larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!

What if a gorilla client leaves tomorrow?

2008-03-16T18:46:00.000-04:00

There’s good news and bad news in my message today.

Let’s start with the good news. Opportunity usually accompanies change.

Now for the bad news. Agency turnover continues to be extensive. According to the recently released CMO Council’s Outlook Survey, 64% of respondents said that they dropped at least one agency last year and more than half said they plan further agency changes this year.

Back to the good news. Those CMOs are obviously looking for new agencies. Although I do believe that the pace of change is not a good thing in the big picture for either clients or their agencies, those agencies that are ready and able to capitalize will benefit. Others will continue to struggle just to keep up with the churn.

Ready and able means establishing a pipeline of prospects that are actively nurtured on a regular basis. If you’re not clearly on someone’s radar when they’re ready to make the move, you might as well save your time, energy and money.

Make no mistake about it – establishing a viable prospect pipeline takes bandwidth and time, especially in a highly competitive market. It’s more than a part-time, shared or one-person effort. It takes a dedicated team that includes both frontline business developers and support staff along with the right resources and tools to sustain a consistent high- quality effort. No different than any other meaningful part of your business.

So, if an important client bolts tomorrow, how ready and able are you?

If you’d like to to discuss this or other new business issue, give me a call at 770.645.9845 or email larry@hunterbizdev.com.

Thanks for your time and as always, good hunting!