don’t know? time to see through their eyes.
by martin bissett
business development on a budget
there used to be an old exercise used in training sessions about customer relations or selling or leadership that went like this. the trainer would ask the group to think about the color green. a few seconds later he would ask them what type of green they were thinking of, and of course there would be many variations of green.
the point is that, as the saying goes, perception is reality. whatever each person perceived as green, that would be the reality for them – but it would be different for each person in the room.
seen in terms of this proactive business building process, your client’s perception is his or her reality – not necessarily your perception. and it’s that perceived reality the client will act on in deciding whether or not to come over to your firm.
so in preparing for client and prospect conversations, you must learn to see the conversation from their perspective, rather than your own. otherwise, you might think a meeting went very well, but all the prospect heard was you talking about your firm for two hours, which was not the reason they agreed to meet with you.
it is essential, therefore, to building a successful selling culture in your firm that sees all the partners and senior managers learn as much about clients as possible, as that will help them see the conversation from the client point of view rather than yours. it is the client’s perception of value that will make up their mind in favor of your firm or against it.
you may think your proposals read very well and that your price is fair, but if the prospect disagrees, then it doesn’t matter. you will lose the opportunity.
the more you know about the prospect, the more you can put yourself in his or her shoes, and the more you can ensure that what you deliver is seen by the client as perceived value.
perception – the client’s perception – is the difference between success and failure in the area of business development.
business development task
schedule specific, non-interruptible time in your diary to considering how you can build the importance of the client’s perception into the business development culture of your firm.