It struck me that this figure didn’t reconcile with what I’ve been hearing from some of the sharpest business development people I know in the worlds of government contracting, architecture, engineering, construction, and professional services (where the company I lead operates). What they have been telling me, essentially, is that amid a surge in new business opportunities, they are prioritizing filling their funnels with the kinds of project work and clients they desire most. In short, instead of settling for any new business, they’re going after the right new business.
Which got me thinking: What if that figure were inverted, so that three-quarters or more of the leads in the sales funnel were a company’s most desired kinds of work and clients? How much better would life be for a company and its people if they could spend most of their time on these preferred projects and clients (preferred in this context meaning most likely to be successful)? What if the funnel was so full of desirables that an organization had the luxury of not pursuing less desirable leads?
In the B2B world, making this what-if a reality is not only possible; it’s good business. The more engaging people find their work, the more productive and client-focused they likely will be. That in turn should translate into better customer experiences and outcomes, improved client and talent retention, and fewer resources spent finding new high-caliber clients and employees, all of which positively impact the bottom line. So, how to get more of the types of clients and projects you want and fewer of those you don’t? Here are five steps that work for my company and what our clients say is working for them, too:
1. Do A Deep Dive Into Your Current Customer Base
Conduct a full, 360° analysis of your client portfolio. From a financial perspective, dive into pursuit and project data to determine which specific clients and projects, or which products and services, tend to be most (and least) profitable. Analyze your pursuits and pipeline for clarity on win rates. From the employee perspective, gather input from your people about the types of clients and projects that most stoke their interest. And use analytics to help you hone in on factors like win probability that give company decision-makers more data from which to make well-informed decisions that aren’t just based on gut instinct.
2. Prioritize Diversity In The Client/Customer Base To Future-Proof The Business
The goal here is to protect the organization from an overreliance on any one sector, product/service, type of client, etc. So seek to create a healthy mix of existing and new clients across sectors and products/services, identifying areas where you’re overly heavy and areas where you’re light. Determine what a healthy balance is for your organization and plan to allocate business development resources in pursuit of that balance.
3. Create Profiles Of The Kinds Of Work And Clients That Will Be Most Worthwhile To Pursue
Based on what the data tells you, what you’ve heard from your teams, project managers, etc., and what your current mix of work looks like, develop profiles of the types of customers and new business your firm most desires and should prioritize in its pursuits. In developing those profiles, be sure they align with your organization’s purpose, mission, and growth strategy.
4. Make A Wish List Of Organizations, Segments And New Products/Services/Revenue Streams
Using the profiles you created, here’s where to put a sharper point on your pursuits. Where, how, and with whom do you want to grow? Which markets (geographic and otherwise) are you targeting—to break into or to further develop? Which specific organizations would you love to bring into the customer fold? For each item on the wish list, how specifically can you leverage your contacts, talent base and institutional/tribal knowledge to give your organization the best chance of winning that business?
5. Develop A Formal Go/No-Go Process
Here’s where the wish list meets business realities. A well-defined go/no-go decision-making process provides a compass that keeps an organization’s business development pursuits pointed in the right direction, enabling them to cull less appealing opportunities early in the process, before they become time and money sinks. A SWOT (strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats) analysis can be a key determinant in the opportunity evaluation process. Also consider incorporating multiple gates in the go/no-go process, so you can evaluate each pursuit at various points as the opportunity unfolds, recognizing that circumstances and priorities change, and that potential clients and work may become more or less appealing the more you learn about them.
Final Thoughts
As I’ve heard from customers in the architecture, engineering, and construction businesses on a number of occasions lately, formalizing these aspects of business development can indeed help fill the sales funnel with more of the right business. As one client told a colleague of mine recently, “We have achieved target market precision…We’re dedicating our resources to the pursuits that are most winnable and desirable.” That should be the goal, whatever business you’re in.
