20 Business Development Tips to Grow Your Business

Jonathan Silverman

Jonathan Silverman

• Run GSA Business Development for 14 years

• Lead Generation & Marketing Agency

• Specialise in targeting Blue Chip companies

• Run The Sticky Communication Agency with partner Grant Leboff

• Specialise in Content Marketing / Social Media

• Ex Head of Marketing for Porsche Cars GB & Alfred Dunhill / Montblanc UK

20 Business Development Tips to Grow Your Business

1. Know your Growth Targets

• If you don't know what your goal is, it's very hard to hit it.

• Define growth targets annually & review monthly.

• Set new business goals that are clear & achievable but stretching. (SMART)

• Then work on your strategy to deliver against those objectives.

2. Know your Market

• Is your Market Growing?

• Do you understand Market / Need Drivers?

• How easy is market penetration?

3. Why do Customers Buy from You

• People don’t buy WHAT you sell…

• If you clearly understand the ‘WHY’, you will be closer to understanding how to pitch your business to new customers both when face to face and online.

4. Hang out Where Your Customers are

• Where do your Customers go for Information?

• That may be online or offline.

• Then make a plan to be visible where they hang out.

5. Know the Cost per Lead to Reach your Target Market

• If you don't know how much the various routes to market cost, how will you know how to evaluate the viability of each option against your budget and objectives?

6. What can you DIY & What needs Specialist Skills?

• There's an opportunity cost to DIY especially if you don't have the time, resources, skills or knowledge.

• So, decide what can be done in house and what essential tasks need outsourcing.

7. Make a Plan

• Even small businesses need to plot out the main tasks they need to undertake to generate new business.

8. Work out the ROI

• If your value of sale is low, you may need to use email marketing or even advertising to reach a large audience quickly at a low cost per contact.

• If the value of sale is high, the personal touch (e.g. exhibitions, telemarketing) is almost definitely needed and cost of sale will rise but that’s set against a strong ROI that may justify the spend.

9. Get Expert Advice where Necessary.

• No business manager knows everything so take advantage of any support you can get.

• That could be by reading & implementing actions from blogs or stuff like this or using a sales & marketing expert for your strategy or implementation or government support such as GrowthAccelerator.

10. Become Known as a Go To Person in your Field.

• This relates to information around your area of expertise. There are over 100 articles, tips, podcasts and blogs on my site (www.gsa-marketing.co.uk).

• We get large traffic numbers from people wanting knowledge. This in turn pushes up Google rankings and from that we gain new business enquiries.

11. Participate in Conversations

• There are lots of these on LinkedIn, Twitter & in forums for your area of expertise.

• Be visible & become known as someone that contributes.

• But manage your time wisely by selecting discussions that showcase your skills to people that might want or recommend your services.

12. Work on your Website.

• Many sites were designed several years ago.

• Technology & tastes have changed & the advent of social media has changed the way we consume information online.

• Is your website now fit for purpose or does it look like a tired brochure based site that simply provides basic info on your services?

13. Get on the Social Media Train

• Social media is a fundamental change to how we communicate both socially & in business.

• Younger managers have arrived in the workplace & they expect to engage on different platforms not just by email & on your website.

• You need to play in this arena or you will disappear from both search and potential supplier short lists.

14. Be a Consultant not a Salesman.

• No-one likes to be sold to. Old fashioned selling techniques have long gone

• You must be prepared to give good advice even if it means no sale

• Goodwill & recommendation have more long term value than short term sales gain when that ‘sale’ may not be the right solution for the client.

15. Do Something Related to New Business Every Day.

• Make sure that your colleagues also focus on the new business effort.

• It can be as simple as a call to a prospect or writing a blog or sending an email.

• But make it a discipline that new business is a daily task.

16. Think Content not Advertising.

• Content attracts customers to your website, keeps them engaged & it's what encourages them to follow you, share your information, recommend you & favourite stuff that you produce.

• So, concentrate less on broadcast sales 'push' messages & more on engaging knowledge transfer.

17. Share that Knowledge.

• You can't rely on people simply finding your website.

• Buyers increasingly consult their networks and find relevant content through social media.

• That means you need to share your information through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube & other social platforms. Google + and YouTube are particularly important in a b2b context since both are increasingly found in search results.

18. Keep up to Date.

• The pace of change, especially online, is huge.

• You can’t chase every new thing that comes out but need to keep up to speed with developments & keep ahead of competition.

• Maybe that means recording a Google Hangout or a simple video or even a podcast.

• These do not have to be expensive & are not hugely time consuming. What they do, however, is make you credible and visible and support SEO.

19. Who Gets to your Customers Before you?

• One might call these influencers in an online sense and they might develop into possible strategic alliances.

• The point is that these are the people to use for knowledge and to engage with in order to reach your customers.

• It's about mutual interest & partnerships can be valuable for both sides.

20. It's a Marathon not a Sprint

• New business development doesn't happen overnight.

• You have to focus on it. Not to the detriment of your day job, unless it is your day job of course!

• It is about looking ahead and ensuring that you have a steady pipeline of leads coming through from different channels.

For more Lead Generation Tips: GSA Business Development Ltd

www.gsa-marketing.co.uk 0845 658 8192

For Social Media & Content Marketing The Sticky Communication Agency Ltd

www.stickycommunication.com 0844 478 0389