When it comes to business development, many of us get caught up in the idea of “quick wins”. These are things that you can do as a professional services firm that will help to increase clients and leads in the short term. These will give a boost to your sales for that particular period, but they may not have the longer-term impact that you are looking for.   

Of course, it is hard to try and find time to really focus on business development when you are already in the midst of your work, which is why these short-term efforts are made. However, in order to really get business development working for you, you are going to need to think about strategic business development.   

What is strategic business development?   

Strategic business development aligns the development of your professional services firm with your end goals. You will decide who your targets are and try your best to appeal to them.  

In doing this, you will see not only growth in your client base but also your profits too. Exactly the type of business development that you are going to want to achieve within your professional services firm. 

So, where do you start with strategic business development? Here are some of my top strategies that may be beneficial for your professional services firm to put in place.   

Content marketing   

Content is a significant form of marketing and business development, so it’s essential to master it as soon as possible.  

The main idea with content marketing is that you are trying to identify and then offer a solution for a problem that your client may have. You should be the place that you go when they have an issue, and you should provide them with the relevant information or support that they are going to need to get where they want to be.   

Considering the services offered by a professional firm, content marketing becomes highly beneficial.   

Along with content marketing, there is also the idea of thought leadership. This works much the same. However, the idea is that you present yourself as a leader in whatever niche you have identified, and you use this specialist knowledge to try and appeal to as many new and existing clients as possible.   

Telephones and direct mail  

Sometimes the older approaches to marketing and business development can still be as effective as the newer ones. One example of this comes in the form of both outbound mail and calls. These have been around for some time, but they are still proving to be an effective way to communicate with and try to encourage new clients.   

It is important to focus on being as appealing and as relevant as possible. You want to entice your target audience into finding out more about who you are and what you can do. This can be hard when you also want to try and balance the costs of taking this approach too.   

Networking

Now, I know that networking is not something that many people enjoy doing. However, it is one of the most used (and most rewarding) approaches to business development out there.   

The idea behind this is that professional relationships (much of which drive the success of professional services firms) are the driving force behind buying decisions. When you consider that the best way to build up a relationship with a potential client is to meet face to face, then you can see why networking can be so valuable.   

There are, of course, some drawbacks to networking which you do need to consider. One of the biggest ones is time. Arranging to attend networking events can take time, and not only do you need to consider the time implications of the organisation stage but also how much attending one of these events can cost you as a business.  

Advertising and sponsorship  

For many professional services firms, the main type of marketing and promotion that they are going to want to focus on is more in their local area. This is because many clients will want to use a firm that is based close to them, that they feel that they can trust with whatever service it is that you provide.   

This means that one strategic business development approach that you can take is sponsorships and advertising. This involves sponsoring local events or sports teams to promote your firm’s name and brand in the community.

When it comes to sponsorship, not only are you getting the benefit of being able to boost your brand, but you also have the added benefit of being able to help your local community to thrive too.   

Referrals  

There is no better feeling than leaving behind a satisfied client. Especially when you get a referral from them to another client who may be interested in your services. Referrals are a free way to promote your professional services firm and to secure new business for the future. Plus, it is this free “price tag” that means that it is definitely worth investing time in gaining those referrals.   

Referrals depend on past or existing clients taking action, but some may choose not to engage, which is a drawback. 

Additionally, you may find that your referrals are not always matched to what you can do for your potential clients. The existing client will have had a service from you but not realise what else you can offer. Therefore, you may miss a potential referral opportunity.  

While many of these approaches can work on their own, they can bring even greater success when combined. This combined approach to marketing will really help you to reach as many potential clients as possible and develop your professional services firm as much as possible.   

It may seem like a lot of work to start with, but I can promise you that over time you will feel the benefit, and you will see your business start to grow.   

Take a look at some of my other blogs you may be interested in:

Business Development Strategies to optimise your B2B Business Growth

Business Development Strategies for your professional services firm

Need help?

If you would like help with your marketing then bringing on a marketing consultant with a fresh pair of eyes can make all the difference. I work with B2B businesses and professional service firms in London, Kent, UK and Europe as well as specialising as a Legal Marketing Consultant. Please get in touch or book a free 30-minute consultation.