Build a new business pipeline and ... find new customers

Where does your new business come from?

Friends?

Networking?

Website?

Referrals?

Yellow Pages?

Just being in the right place at the right time?

Are you always too busy to look for new business?

It’s easy to put new business activity on the back burner when times are good.

But then you have to start from scratch when you need to look for more.

It can get you down sometimes ...

[Cue tumbleweed ...]

So, just how do you set up a new business pipeline?

5 easy steps ...

Step 1: Set up a database of prospects

Step 2: Decide who your target customer is

Step 3: Decide what it is you’re selling

Step 4: Create a communications package

Step 5: Automate your marketing processes

Step 1: Set up a database of prospects

There are two ways of creating a database: Create your own from contact details that you already have 2. Buy in or rent lists from list brokers

There are two ways of creating a database:

Create your own from contact details that you already have

2. Buy in or rent lists from list brokers

Referrals Website Networking Pre-qualified leads Exhibitions Marketing activities to generate enquiries Directory Entries Webinars Seminars Genuine, pre-qualified leads Referrals from existing customers There are many ways of generating your own leads PR from Awards or campaigns Friends and colleagues White Paper download

It helps if you already have the contact details of people who are interested in what you sell ...

People whose details you already have, will already have given permission for you to contact them - this is called Explicit Permission.

Implicit permission is where someone hasn’t specifically given permission to be contacted, but they haven’t specifically said they don’t want to be contacted either.

For the prospective customer, it’s the difference between Opt-In and Opt-Out

Remember there are Privacy Laws and Regulations

Telephone Calls, Faxes, E-mails and SMS The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (EU Directive) 2003 apply to unsolicited electronic marketing messages sent by telephone, fax, email or text message. If you want to make automated telephone calls or send a fax to an individual you must have the subscriber's consent, and include your identity in the call. For example in the UK ...

Subscribers can opt out of telesales ‘phone calls. People who register on the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) should not receive these types of calls unless they give their explicit permission. Businesses can also register with TPS to prevent unsolicited marketing calls.

Unsolicited marketing material by electronic mail (including texts, picture messages and e-mails) should only be sent if the person has asked to receive them, unless the e-mail address was obtained as a result of a prior relationship.

Legally, the recipient of your communications can withdraw their consent to be contacted at any time.

There’s no point in annoying the very people you want to become customers by harassing them.

But anyway ....

...the second way of creating a database is to buy or rent in lists from professional list brokers. (These will have already have been de-duplicated and screened against the Telephone, Fax and Mailing Preference Services).

To buy outside lists of people, you’ll first need to work out what kind of person i s most likely to buy from you ... or in other words, who is your ideal customer?

Step 2: Decide who your target customer is

Analyse your database of existing customers and find out who has bought from you in the past . (What you are looking for here are trends). W

You might look at their industry sector , size, turnover or location.

The next question to ask is whether this typical customer , is actually who you want or not. If they’re not, what you’ve been doing so far is attracting the wrong kind of customer.

The Pareto Principle (also known as the 80/20 Rule ) says that – as a general rule of thumb ... (Wilfredo Pareto, Italian economist 1848 – 1923)

80% of your sales come from 20% of your customers, so look for this type of customer 80% Results 20% Effort

Ready to Buy Not interested/unable 82.5% are ready to buy or will buy now or in the near future 70% of these are longer-term opportunities 17.5% are not interested at all Source: MarketingSherpa

Having a name and a number ... is NOT a hot lead

Don’t waste your time and money mass mailing people who have no interest in what you’re selling These people will NEVER EVER become customers, no matter how hard you try

Who are your best customers? Knowing who your prospective customers are and how they buy is half the battle in gaining new customers.

Who are your best customers? The other half is providing your potential customers with reasons to buy your products or services instead of those of your competitors.

Step 3: Decide what it is you’re selling

What benefits are you selling ? Work out what business problem your target audience has and how you can help solve it for them.

Why should someone buy from you and not your competition?

How to build a new business pipeline in 30 Days Every communication should have an incentive to encourage prospects to respond and eventually buy from you

This will avoid confusion later. Make sure that everyone agrees on the definition of words like “lead” and “prospect”. (This will avoid a lot of confusion later on).

Lead (any person or information acquired for the purpose of a potential business transaction, but whose potential has not been determined yet) Follow up lead by finding out if this person: Has a business need that you can help solve Has the budget to pay for such a solution Has the authority to make the buying decision ...(etc) Prospect (a lead whose potential has been evaluated and has been determined to be worth pursuing. In other words, a qualified or interested lead. No Discard Follow up by finding out when the prospect plans to buy Now or in the next few weeks In the next six months or in the near future In the next 6-12 months or even longer Hot Lead Warm Lead Cold Lead Yes Definition of Lead and Prospect

Follow up lead by finding out if this person:

Has a business need that you can help solve

Has the budget to pay for such a solution

Has the authority to make the buying decision ...(etc)

Create an action for each type of lead YES - ready to buy now Nurture YES - ready to buy in next 6 – 12 months YES - ready to buy in next six months Discard No – no plans to buy at all Has budget Has authority to buy Has a business need Has a buying timeframe Industry sector Size Arrange Meeting Provide more information

Has budget

Has authority to buy

Has a business need

Has a buying timeframe

Industry sector

Size

Step 4: Create a communications package

Create a communications package to manage each stage of the sales cycle Request for Meeting Pitch Request for more information Request for Proposal Request for more information Request for free White Paper Request for Meeting Request for more information

Create a communications package and a timescale for rolling it out. A sales cycle can take anything up to three years to complete. Marketing activities to bring in new sales leads First contact within 48 hours, then follow up every 90 days E-mail Number 1 to confirm details and offer incentive number 1 Direct mail shot Number 2 to remind recipient of incentive number 1 & 2 Direct mail shot Number 1 offering incentive number 2 E-mail number 2 to remind recipient of Incentive number 1

Decide on what to send Decide on how to contact your prospects This can be a series of letters, e-mails, website, ‘phone calls etc., the only criteria being, that from the recipient’s point-of-view, they all have to be: Anticipated Relevant Personal

This can be a series of letters, e-mails, website, ‘phone calls etc., the only criteria being, that from the recipient’s point-of-view, they all have to be:

Anticipated

Relevant

Personal

Decide on what to send Decide on how to contact your prospects Create a series of communications for the different stages of your relationship that move them further along. They can be case studies, survey results, brochures, published articles, free booklets or CDs, e-mails or other research

Build Credibility and Trust by delivering the right information at the right time Credibility is an intellectual response Trust is an emotional one

How o build a new business pipeline in 30 Days Regular communications will .... build awareness and familiarity

Source: Rainmakers Survey May 2008 What are Prospective Buyers looking for ? New business agency, Rainmaker, spoke to 52 key decision-makers, between January and March 2008, who provided detailed responses to around 10 questions related to recruiting PR and marketing agencies.

Things that buyers want and don’t want “ The vast majority of cold calls make me feel as though I’m just the next person on the list , and they don’t show any real understanding of who we are and what we do.” “ I love to see an agency taking time to get to know me and my business , sending regular updates rather than just a one-off mailer.” “ I don’t like the business development person calling me regularly, trying again and again like they are trying to wear me down in a campaign of attrition until they get a result. I’m receptive to agencies contacting me to research and keep up to date with the situation, but there’s a fine line that borders on pestering…” “ Anyone who shows that they’ve tried to understand my business and key issues definitely gets a better reception.”

Step 5: Automate your marketing processes

Automate the communication process Once you have created your database, the communications process can be automated by using a simple CRM system (eg “Business Contact Manager” which comes with Outlook 2007

Consistency is the key to following up on leads and turning them into prospects and sales. It takes around five contacts with someone before they decide if they will buy from you, so schedule five types of communication with them into a campaign.

Every month, you can print out a list of who needs to be contacted and what with, as well as passing on any new leads and qualifying any prospects

Don’t fall into the trap of spreading your resources too thinly and opening up a campaign on multiple fronts.

Prioritise a small number of key prospects because your offer solves their business problems better than the alternatives and their problems are the most expensive to solve.

After that, have a list of secondary targets who receive some prospecting resources, but not to the same degree. Concentrate on the two or three main sources of prospects

That way, you can snap up any low-hanging fruit before the competition gets lucky

You need to keep your company name at the forefront of your prospect’s mind , so that when they are ready to buy ... you are their first choice .

There are three main types of new business role.

The Prospector for generating and co-ordinating cold leads and following them up to ensure they qualify as prospects.

The Torch Bearer for carrying on the scheduled, ongoing relationship with prospects and closing down cold leads.

The co-ordinator to generate information, co-ordinate diaries and unlock the relevant knowledge and experience of others in the company.

How to build a new business pipeline in 30 Days Don’t forget to include a final “call to action” on every communication, so that you can measure the results

So to recap ... Step 1: Set up a database of prospects Step 2: Decide who your target customer is Step 3: Decide what it is you’re selling Step 4: Create a communications package Step 5: Automate your marketing processes

Good Luck!

Sara Paine Verona PR and Marketing T: + 44 (0)1474 361008 E: [email_address] www.verona-pr.com