Lack of time, lack of motivation, lack of know how. These are just some of the reasons professional services people are less involved in business development in their firms than is ideal.
The challenge
Fundamentally, the challenge exists because business development is rarely part of professional skills training, so individuals don’t get used to working on it from the early stages of their career. They understandably want to focus on their core expertise.
However, this is risky. It means that in many firms the responsibility for business development sits with a few. What happens if those people leave or are incapacitated? It also means growth potential isn’t realised.
Ultimately, I would argue that anybody who is client-facing has a responsibility for business development. How they deal with clients has a direct effect on how satisfied those clients are and whether they remain loyal and whether they refer your firm to other people.
Recent research from Meridian West backs this up – it shows that how Senior Associates in law firms engaged with clients was extremely important, as they were doing most of the day-to-day work.
How skilled are your mid-level people at handling clients so they develop client relationships?
Also, with the development of the right skills, the ‘technical’ experts are the best people to identify client and prospect needs and detail how they can best support them.
Inside Out Image becomes ClientWise
Today is an exciting day for me, after 14 years of running Inside Out Image, I now run ClientWise. My ultimate goal is to contribute to a future where confident, successful business development is a natural part of every professional’s role in driving their firm forward.
This isn’t a change of direction, simply a refined focus on the work I’ve been doing for firms over the last few years and I’m excited.
Watch my short video talking about the move to ClientWise.
There’s a lot to be done to improve how both smaller and larger firms are doing business development, and I want to be there to help firms move forward.
My approach is:
- structured,
- skilled and,
- people centred.
I’ve developed a framework that encompasses all the elements that I know from experience are important for proactive business development.
It’s easier when there’s a structure for people to think about doing something they are less used to or proficient at.
Watch my short video about The 5 Ps of Proactive Business Development©
More people focusing on winning and retaining clients will reduce reliance on inbound enquiries, and only a few people bringing in new work.
More client work may feel like something your firm doesn’t need right now, as many firms are busy. However, it’s risky not to have a business development structure in place for when you need i,t and as AI gains further traction, many tasks can be outsourced to technology – some admin and client work. Therefore, firms are likely to be able to increase their capacity for client work. It’s important to be prepared.
I want to help your firm improve its business development from where it is now. Whether you’re a large, established firm that needs to upscale specific groups. Or, you’re a smaller firm that currently has no defined approach to business development – I am here to help you move forward from where you are.
As far as possible, I would love to see a business development culture in more professional services firms. What does that mean?
- More people involved in business development to win more work from existing clients, introducers and brand new clients directly.
- Business development is integrated into everyday working so it becomes the norm.
Visit the programmes page to find out more about how I help firms like yours.
If you’d like a speaker for your next away day or conference to inspire people to think differently about business development, then you can read more about my talks here.
To book a Discovery Call to discuss how to get you more of the clients you want, results you need send me a message.
Structured, skilled & people-centred
This article explores some of the key elements that drive successful business development.
They come from my proven framework, The 5 Ps of Proactive Business Development© – the key practical elements to help professionals win more work by being intentional and consistent.
EXPLORE THE FULL FRAMEWORK
