The Business Developer's Playbook by Peter Nixon

Author:Peter Nixon
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

Act – Research

As soon as I was referred the opportunity of work with a leading European pharmaceutical company to help them influence government policy in Asia, I knew I had to get busy doing research. The terms used in the initial briefing were unknown to me, and the scientists were so unused to talking to non-scientists, they found it hard to explain complex scientific terms in simple ways. My research was invaluable to refining my proposal and eventually winning the business. In the span of a week, I went from knowing nothing at all about what they were talking about to sounding at least a little knowledgeable about their topic. There are some very important things you should research BEFORE writing your proposal. These include:

• Subject – As explained above, you need to know what the client is talking about, otherwise you risk losing out to a competitor who has a better grasp of the industry, the product, the company, the situation. Nothing can replace doing your homework. As the Boy Scout motto reminds us, Be prepared.

• People – Do all you can to identify the key stakeholders and all you can to find out about them as early as possible. Who will be approving the budget, who will be reviewing the proposal, who is your target audience, etc. You don’t want any surprises once you get started working and the better you uncover the personalities beforehand, the better you can adjust what you say and how to say it (see motivational dialects and value propositions).

• Needs versus wants – The client will probably tell you what they want but they don’t always know what they need. Think of when you go to your doctor. You want to get rid of your headache. You later find out that you need to stop eating cheese because the doctor has discovered you to be lactose intolerant. Experts can diagnose the difference between needs and wants but most people can’t. It gets tricky sometimes because the client might insist on buying the service they want, e.g. a head massage, when in fact what they need is to change their diet. Your experience helps a lot in these situations, but even experienced service professionals will be confronted with new situations throughout their career. Do your homework and test your assumptions to be sure you are correct, e.g. maybe their headaches are caused by dehydration and not lactose intolerance.

• Competition – As mentioned earlier, you can’t win 100% of the opportunities that come your way. Some opportunities arise because clients are forced to seek three offers before choosing one. I was asked once by a good client of mine to respond to a request for proposal but she said I wouldn’t win the work because they wanted another supplier. She simply needed three quotes so they could satisfy policy and hire my competitor. I didn’t appreciate her wanting to waste my time, but since she was a good client, I obliged by sending a quick off-the-shelf proposal, which I didn’t win.

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