Successful early-stage business development: 4 proven tips

Repeatedly, we hear of SME consultancies hiring expensive business development personnel who will bring their book of clients and solve all woes – only to find in many cases that this approach does not work. Sound familiar?

Before you think about having a sales conversation or getting a lead, you need to develop an early-stage sales strategy that is robust and adaptable. Here are our top actionable tips to get your sales wheels in motion.

1. CRM (mis) management

Your CRM solution should be seen as an extension of your sales team. When used correctly and when fed the right information, it can be very powerful. Don’t lose sight of how important it is to keep it up to date.

• Choose a CRM solution that suits your consultancy’s needs. You do not need to spend a lot of money to make it effective.
• Clearly define your goals for the CRM.
• Maintain clean data! This is crucial. If your data is not cleansed, your marketing efforts may be ineffective. It will ensure you are targeting the right market.
• Utilise your CRM to leverage analytics. This will help you make better data-driven decisions based on sales trends and performance metrics.
• Regularly review your CRM setup and processes to ensure they continue to meet your business needs and achieve your goals.

2. Lead generation

This should be a playbook that is constantly evolving, with one main question… What are we doing to win new logos?

• Create a ‘sales buckets’ template. Review all current avenues for potential leads and establish a process for bespoke follow-ups with prospects.  Your LinkedIn messaging approach will differ from that of a newsletter. Document a strategy that remains evergreen.
• Assess the balance between manual and automated outreach. Monitor whether your communications are targeted enough to capture prospects’ attention.
• Tools and integrations are crucial for enhancing any business development function. Use automation tools that integrate with your CRM, ensuring that every contact file is kept up to date.

3. Campaigning

This is where sales and marketing need to harmonise.

• How confident are you that you are targeting your market effectively? Data segmentation and pursuing alternative channels for different audiences are important. One poorly targeted outreach can damage your reputation.
• What is the message? Synchronise the messaging between sales and marketing. There must be an alignment, or your message will not resonate.
• Create a campaign plan at least three months in advance, ideally six. If you do not have one, create one now!
• Do not include too many Calls To Action (CTAs) in your message. Each message should have just one CTA.  Whether it is to book a call, click on an article, or join a waiting list, make sure it is clear.

4. People and KPIs

Don’t rely solely on sales or marketing. Nurturing and creating an effective, well-oiled Business Development strategy requires input from the whole team. Be collaborative!

• Ensure Sales and Marketing hold efficient monthly and quarterly meetings to agree on the campaign plan. Make sure you consider the perspectives of both departments.
• Set KPIs that are input-driven, not just output-focused. If you focus on the right inputs, the outputs will take care of themselves.
• Create a detailed Sales and Marketing report. You should be able to report how many leads convert to MQLs, SQLs, and conversions. If you can’t, you won’t be able to report effectively on your pipeline or see trends in your activity.
• Delegate. A lot of work and hours go into ensuring your early-stage sales cycle is effective. Do not put the responsibility on one person. Share the load or hire administrative support (e.g., virtual admin).

About us

In partnership with the Consultancy Growth Network, BeDeveloped helps to build effective business development processes.

Get in touch

If you would like a free consultation to explore how we can guide you in setting up an effective early-stage business development function, please reach out to Luke or George by emailing info@bedeveloped.com