Author Archives: Six.Two.Eight

You are probably a member of a trade body or association whether that’s The Law Society, The Bar Council, ICAEW, CIPA, CITMA or RIBA. What is less likely – but more helpful from a business development perspective – is that you join and get involved with your clients’ trade associations. When you go to yourContinue reading “Why should you be going to your clients’ trade bodies’ events?”

Improving cross-selling is not only the easiest way for you to grow your firm’s fees, it’s also the most cost-effective. The sticking point though is working out how best to do it, especially if your fee earners traditionally work in silos. Here are 5 smart ideas we’ve seen professional service firms put in place toContinue reading “How do you really imbed cross-selling into the fabric of your firm?”

Believe me it happens to us all!  And to prove the point, here are 3 stories from my own adventures in BD: In a pitch to a high street law firm in Norwich I was stopped by an unimpressed partner.  His grievance was that I had been talking with pride about projects I had delivered forContinue reading “What lessons have you learnt from pitches that didn’t go as well as expected?”

Are you bored of just running the same old hospitality events?   More importantly, are your clients bored of the same old hospitality events you run?! If you are looking for inspiration for ideas to do something different to entertain your clients, just Google it! A quick search for “UK events on 14th January” has highlighted theContinue reading “Are you bored of running the same old hospitality events?”

How much time and money does your firm waste on exhibition stands?  I am not opposed to the concept of trade shows or exhibiting at conferences, I just don’t think enough thought goes into what you’re going to get back in terms of ROI (the return on your investment) or analysing what exhibitions generate versus yourContinue reading “Are you wasting time and money exhibiting for little return?”

Success in your marketing and BD is more likely to come if you fine-tune your approach rather than making wholesale changes or searching for the next big thing – if you focus on making improvements to the way you are already doing, it will be time well spent. So where could you start?  Here are 5Continue reading “Small differences collectively change outcomes”

There is a lot of nonsense talked about differentiation.  Every professional service firms claims they have an edge because they are client-centric, straightforward and pragmatic.  The only trouble is almost every professional service firm claims they have an edge because they are client-centric, straightforward and pragmatic! If you want a real edge there is a much easierContinue reading “Differentiation or distraction?”

In my 20s I was a sales executive at Procter & Gamble.  I learnt so many small things there, things that got me into good habits from the off and habits I stand by today. What I’ve noticed in the 20 years since I left P&G is that the most successful individuals and organisations – justContinue reading “Little things matter!”

I have a practical suggestion that will not only save your firm tens of thousands of pounds but also spare you the cost/effort/disruption of implementing an expensive CRM system or updating your current contact management software. All you need is what Microsoft or Apple already offers as standard. If you were to write up, collectContinue reading “Would you like to save your firm tens of thousands of pounds?”

There is a helpful exercise that detectives use you can adopt to improve both the efficiency and effectiveness of your business development. You know that scene in your favourite crime drama when, after a murder, the senior detective stands in front of a large white board and addresses the staff?  In the first scene the whiteContinue reading “Do you have a favourite crime drama?”