Insight
Business Development
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
WHAT IS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AND WHY IT IS IMPORTANT
You often hear about Business Development,
but don’t know exactly what it is?
Have a read at my article and find out why
it is important for your company too.
Let’s start by defining what Business Development is. Business Development is the set of various techniques that aim to increase the competitive advantage and, consequently, the turnover of a business organisation. It is an ongoing process and a multi-disciplinary approach that goes beyond the simple concept of increasing sales. While it is true that the ultimate goal is to generate more sales, it is also true that the business developer looks more at relationships and the projection of opportunities that these relationships can bring in the medium to long term, than at numbers and graphs. Never underestimate the importance of Business Development: it is the lifeblood of every company, because without new opportunities and new customers flowing into the business, the company stagnates. Let’s be clear, Business Development is not the application of standard templates, but rather the expression of a degree of creativity in dealing with unexpected events and business bottlenecks. Creativity is needed, as every company has its own dynamics and reacts according to its nature. The objective of business development is to actively pursue and manage opportunities and their follow-up actions.
So why is it important for your company and how can you implement it at this moment in time? Technological changes force every company to
re-evaluate its competitive advantages on a regular basis. The purchasing process has undergone a radical change in the last decade: buyers, technical managers or any other key figure, use both physical and virtual environments in an integrated way to assess new opportunities and get better information, they do it from desktop as well as from mobile, on whatever day of the week, as new technologies extend the time and place of access to content. Users show themselves fully informed when approached.
re-evaluate its competitive advantages on a regular basis. The purchasing process has undergone a radical change in the last decade: buyers, technical managers or any other key figure, use both physical and virtual environments in an integrated way to assess new opportunities and get better information, they do it from desktop as well as from mobile, on whatever day of the week, as new technologies extend the time and place of access to content. Users show themselves fully informed when approached.
Therefore, companies are forced to introduce new products, new services, new models of relationship with customers and leads, in order to promptly respond to the challenges of an increasingly attentive and, alas, increasingly saturated market. If you used to hand over your company profile or welcome customers to your stand at trade fairs only a few months ago, now, you see, you need to think out of the box.
Basically, many SMEs build their future around their existing network of contacts . At some point, however, the network of contacts may not pay off to the right extent and run out of steam for a variety of reasons. That is why it becomes important to implement a systematic and measurable development process for the sake of business health. It can be driven by the simple expansion of the customer base, or the launch of a new product or service, the desire to enter a new domestic market or the same market abroad.
Basically, many SMEs build their future around their existing network of contacts . At some point, however, the network of contacts may not pay off to the right extent and run out of steam for a variety of reasons. That is why it becomes important to implement a systematic and measurable development process for the sake of business health. It can be driven by the simple expansion of the customer base, or the launch of a new product or service, the desire to enter a new domestic market or the same market abroad.
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CYCLE
What to Expect
Assessment of the initial situation
Opportunities and Lead Scouting
Meeting Scheduling
Sales Management
Growth and New Perspectives
Three main factors make the difference between success and failure in all this: the punctual planning of all activities based on in-depth research, the smart adaptation according to a lean methodology and the detection of opportunities while optimising available resources.
If you wish to learn more about how to create a synergy between sales and marketing departments (Smarketing), implement a new process of demand generation, and a modern Business Development for your company, get in touch with me for a free chat by filling out the contact form.
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Get in touch with me for a free chat by filling out the contact form.
