How To Do The Best Business Development Within Client Services Get to the point where you can readily reject clients that don't fit within your company's ethos, thereby allowing more time to focus on the brand itself.
By Drew McLellan Edited by Bill Schulz
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
According to census data, more than 430,000 business applications were sent in January 2022, representing a 2.6 percent increase compared to the year before.
If you're one of the many starting a new client services business, you're probably welcoming every potential prospect who comes through your door to ensure a sustainable company. While this promotes rapid growth, it also means you might be taking on projects that aren't exactly within your wheelhouse. At the same time, you might hold off on casting a wider net when you have "enough" clients to onboard, creating a feast-or-famine environment.
Over the past couple of years, everyone working in client services learned that no one has "enough" clients. Inconsistent development can sink your business. But even though you're more aware of your efforts, you might still be chasing the wrong types of prospects if you haven't identified your audience niche.
The key is making business development a priority no matter what stage your company is in.
Initial growth
According to HubSpot, 55 percent of modern customers don't trust the companies they buy from as much as they used to. If you want to build trust and establish long-term relationships from the get-go, you'll need a sales and marketing team. These individuals will focus on increasing brand awareness, building client relationships and improving your business's credibility. This stage might be hard to get past, but the decision to grow beyond your immediate network is pivotal for success.
Related: 4 Strategies for Effectively Managing the Sales Pipeline
The gorilla client
This is the one that drives 25 percent or more of your business. Gorilla clients are boons for new agencies, but they're also dangerous. They pose a high customer concentration risk and they tend to have a huge impact on internal decisions. While it's great to have a high-paying, long-term go-to, you can't become too reliant on one relationship. If you find yourself in this situation, you'll want to start prospecting so you can diversify your customer base.
Business development
At this stage, your company should have two or three large clients. You're still depending on them, yet ready to put yourself in a good position for long-term growth. If so, it's time to introduce the concept of business development to your team.
For example, you might consider hosting events every few weeks to build new connections within your industry and with potential prospects. Your development initiatives may be inconsistent, but at this stage, it's fine. Right now, you're trying to figure out what you need to do on a regular basis to ensure growth. According to GoCardless, you should aim to grow by 15 to 25 percent every year.
Narrowing your niche
Now it's time to find your client niche (i.e., the right prospects for your business). By catering your services to this audience, you can start attracting the big money barracudas and stop fishing for them.
At this point, you should have honed your expertise and created a consistent development program. Now's the time to use what you've learned to pull in perfect-fit prospects. You could create engaging content for your niche with a podcast series, or you could work on growing your social media channels. The key is establishing consistency.
Related: Understanding the Concept of 'Niching Down' for Budding Entrepreneurs
Becoming an expert
According to an Edelman-LinkedIn study, 48 percent of decision makers say expert content influences their purchases. Now is the time to focus on creating authoritative, helpful thought leadership pieces. For example, consider Deloitte: This multinational consulting, plus financial services, company is known for its high-quality insights, research and reports. By establishing itself as an expert, Deloitte has become a go-to resource for many professionals.
Your goal should be to develop your company to a point where you can reject clients that do not fit within your business's expertise. From there, you can become an expert that impacts clients within your niche for years to come.
Related: Use Your Marketing Data to Fuel Your Ascent to Thought Leadership
