Discussions about how to win new clients usually involve a couple of these myths:
1. Knowledge-based businesses are best sold by experts
2. Networks are the best way to get inside large companies
3. If you get to the right person, a deal can be done.
The larger the price tag of the service you offer, the broader the impact of your service and the more stakeholders it affects, the more people will be involved in the decision to hire you.
As a rule of thumb, you should plan to hold "discovery conversations" with all 3 roles in the decision (cheque signer, influencer and implementer) before starting discussions about a specific solution or proposal.
Development can be viewed as a chessboard, with each player having a defined range moves. You will have stratagems, but as each player makes a move, your stratagem will change.
The next episode will treat the "Expert Myth" in winning new clients.
Catherine Mcquaid is a Big Game Hunter in the Urban Jungle. Her clients are mid-sized business services firms who want to win consulting assignments with the Fortune 1000. Trained as a semiotician/literature critic, she now owns a key account development business.
Her strategies for getting into large companies and getting very senior executives to open the door to the C-suite can be used by big game hunters everywhere. She writes on Major Account Acquisition strategies.
Connect / Follow: blog, Twitter, LinkedIn.
To contact directly: email, phone, 416.923.0877.
Thanks Darlene;
I like to think that jungles can become gardens with a few good tools.
Catherine McQuaid
www.HuntNewBiz.com
Posted by: Catherine McQuaid | December 07, 2009 at 07:56 AM
Your artice is really good, and I would not want to ever be back in the jungle. Maybe a small jungle with lots of trees, not people LOL It's hard work and your aticle was really great and I leaved some new advise. Thank you for sharing.
Posted by: Darlene Sabella | December 04, 2009 at 03:37 PM