Thinking Outside the Business Development Box

Being a successful business developer often requires thinking outside the box. That’s because some things about business development may seem counter-intuitive, at least on the surface.

Think about it: the fundamental goal of business development seems to be about getting things for yourself: more Clients, more work, more engagements and, ultimately, more revenue for your firm and for yourself. It seems like it’s all about you.

But if you approach business development this way, you will often fail. This is because, in reality, successful business development is not about you. It’s all about the Client.

Good business developers know this. They are all about the Client. They are genuinely interested in their Clients. They make it a point to learn all they can about the Client’s business and industry. They ask good questions and then listen so that they can identify and understand the Clients' issues, challenges and needs. Then they find ways to help them. They build relationships. They provide superlative Client service. These are the things that make them good business developers. Then there are the great business developers...

Slow and Steady Wins the CRM Race

To win the CRM marathon, you have to take things at a slow, methodical pace. I often work with Clients who are so eager to roll out their CRM systems that they just can't wait. They want to implement all the bells and whistles, integrate with all of the firm’s other technology, automate Client intake, replace the conflicts system. While we're at it, we might as well solve world hunger.

While I applaud the enthusiasm, my counsel to them is often one word: why. This isn't meant to be a sarcastic or snarky question they need to answer for me. Rather it’s the question they need to ask themselves before they embark upon that ‘boil the ocean’ CRM project. There needs to be a really good answer to the why question before moving forward with any CRM initiative. If that answer is not particularly compelling, it can wait until phase 2… or phase 22. By compelling, I usually mean that it will help the firm or attorneys save a lot of time, fix a challenging problem or get closer to their business development goals.

Because CRM isn't a project or an initiative, but rather a fundamental change in the way the firm manages relationships, there will always be time to tackle that complex problem, to implement that new, cool feature or to integrate with that software or system. Some of these projects can be incredibly complex and expensive and often they take time – time that could be spent on implementing the core functionality that the attorneys and marketers need to develop business and grow the firm.

A better goal for CRM success is this:just try to be a little better each day. Put one foot in front of the other, start with baby steps. Walk before you can run... repeat.

The CRM Marathon

When you first begin to roll out a CRM system in your firm, it's easy to get carried away and want to really take off right out of the gate. It's perfectly understandable that you might get excited about the potential of CRM to help the firm solve problems and automate processes. You know how effective CRM can be in improving communication, coordination and Client service – so it’s tempting to run around telling everyone what it can do.

Can it fix the mailing and event lists? Absolutely. Support the firm's Client teams? Of course. Allow the business developers to track referrals and opportunities? Sure. But realistically it when it comes to CRM, it’s often better to pace yourself. There are a thousand things you can do with CRM, but if you try to do too much too fast, you often won't end up doing anything very well. Besides, the last thing you want to do is over-promise and under-deliver.

Instead, slow down and pace yourself. Remember, CRM success is a marathon, not a sprint. It involves a fundamental change in the way that your firm thinks about and manages its crucial relationships. While change is good, it is also rarely easy and it takes time. If you just take deep breaths and move forward one step at a time, you will be better prepared for the long haul. 

Business Development Homeruns

Business development is, in part, a numbers game. As with baseball, the more times you are at bat, the more likely you are to get a hit. In the business development game, the more interactions you have with prospects, the more likely you are to get a new Client. But focusing on the numbers is only half the game. If that’s all you do, it could take you a lot of time and work to really see results.

To really improve your business development batting average, you also need skill – and a strategy. Start by working smarter, not harder. Look for the best prospects – the ones who are the most likely to hire you.  Start with current Clients. They are writing you checks, so presumably they already like you.

Next you should consider prospects that you or someone else in your firm has a relationship with, but who are not currently your Clients. Because of the existing relationship, they are more likely to take a meeting with you and to be open to listening to your ‘pitch,’ assuming you deliver one that they can connect with. 

After you have exhausted these, you can move to new prospects. But you need to be aware that you are a lot more likely to strike out with them. In fact, studies show that it can take up to seven times more time and effort to develop business with people you don’t have relationships with. Plus it will often involve a ‘cold call,’ which, for most people is a particularly ‘foul’ task.

The good news is that the more you practice, the better you will become – and the easier it will be. So swing for the fences. Who knows, you may even find that you like business development… especially when you are hitting homeruns.

Diving Into CRM Part 5: The Lifesaver

You thought you were ready, so you took the plunge and dove right into the CRM pool. You had a plan, prepared adequately, worked hard, committed resources, staffed up and seemed to be paddling along smoothly. You headed directly for the deep end because you thought that was where you would best be able to provide real value to your firm. But at some point along the way, you started to get a CRM cramp and suddenly you realized you could be in real trouble. You got a little scared and weren't sure what to do.

First, relax. Whatever you do, don’t start struggling or flailing as that will only make things worse and wear you out. Plenty of marketing and CRM professionals before you have done this and ended up drowning in the CRM pool. Maybe that's one reason why their average tenure can sometimes be less than 18 months.

You can also take a deep breath and try to float for a while, assuming that if you don't stir the CRM waters, you won't cause any more ripples – and maybe the whirlpool will finally calm. While I know it can be tempting to take the easy way out when you run into CRM issues and just let the current carry you back into the basics, you will likely lose control of where you end up. Ultimately, if you float too long you are likely to end up just treading water or worse, circling the drain.

So don't give up. Instead, you may find that if you just signal for help, someone will often throw you a lifesaver. Call up your peers, colleagues or your CRM provider for support and ideas. Reach out to industry associations like the Legal Marketing Association where there are articles, white papers and presentations on CRM success. Join a LinkedIn user group for law firm CRM systems. Several top CRM providers including ContactEase, CRM4Legal, Hubbard One and InterAction have these types of groups where you can post questions and learn from other members. Subscribe to blogs like CRMSuccess.net that focus on CRM best practices. Finally, don’t forget that you can always contact a CRM consultant. We're always happy to throw you some helpful information, ideas or other 'flotation devices.'

Effective Tactics for Managing Consultant-Client Relationships

In order for consultants to be the most effective, a strong relationship must be formed between the consultant and the client. However, throughout the consultation process, political and ethical issues arise that can either hinder or help the relationship, and therefore, hinder or help the overall strategy. The way in which the consultant handles these political and ethical issues can strengthen or weaken the consultant-client relationship and lead to a successful or unsuccessful program. 

Smeltzer, Watson, and Barker developed the Model of the Communication Consultant/Client Relationship, which consists of 24 steps that explore various aspects of the relationships between consultants and their clients. The model is based on the premise that consultants often must work in environments where political and ethical issues are raised simultaneously (Smeltzer, Watson, & Barker, 1984, p. 126). While ethical consultants “do not simply try to determine what actions are in their own best interest, but rather what actions are right or best for all parties concerned,” political issues “are concerned with the kind of actions that are most often beneficial or harmful to a person as an individual, and which advance one’s own interests (p. 126). 

After the first two basic steps of the model of marketing oneself as a consultant and having the initial meeting with the client, the third step of the model is to have the client state the problem (Smeltzer, et. al., 1984, p. 127). This is the first stage that possible political and ethical considerations usually arise. “Politically, the consultant may want to see only the part of the problem which is in the domain of his or her professional expertise. Ethically, the consultant must decide if the important problem areas are outside his or her area of expertise” (p. 127). During this stage of the process, consultants must also decide whether to limit his or her investigation to the problem identified by the client, or to investigate other areas within the organization that could also indirectly affect the issue at hand. Of course, this could increase the length of time spent on the project, and the consultant may discover that other problems must be solved before the requested problem is solved (p. 128), however, this is both a political and ethical decision the consultant will have to make prior to beginning the project.

In the fourth, fifth and sixth steps of the model, the consultant must analyze and obtain data to determine problem-solving strategies. Ethically, the consultant must determine how much information is needed to develop an effective strategy for the client (Smeltzer, et. al., 1984, p. 127), and politically, the consultant must determine how much time and effort should be spend to attempt to gather the necessary data to make a sound decision (p. 128). For instance, the consultant may appear to be more professional if he or she does not require extra time to assemble more data, but ethically, if the consultant knows that a more sound decision could be made with access to more data, extra time should be taken to gather the necessary data. In the seventh step of the model, determining the possible strategies that can be used to deal with the problem, “there may be a difference between the strategy which would be the most profitable for the consultant and that which would be most effective (p. 128). In this case, the consultant would have to choose whether to select an effective strategy that may not show results right away, and a less effective strategy that may show immediate results. Being open with the client at the early stage of the process, and explaining why the consultant has opted to use the most effective strategy that is slow to show results in the short-run, can actually help strengthen the client-consultant relationship in the long-run. 

The eighth step in the model addresses the various degrees of the consultant-client relationship, and “the extent to which the consultant should take over the tasks and responsibilities of the client” (Smeltzer, et. al., 1984, p. 128). In this stage of the process, the consultant and client must determine what the ultimate goal of the consultant is—whether to teach tasks, or complete them, and on what level in regards to dependency, involvement, and ownership (p.129 – 130). Dependency is the extent to which the consultant wants the client to be dependent on them. The consultant must also evaluate the client and be open and honest with the client in regards to the client’s competency level and ability to be independent (p. 129). Some clients may desire a high level of involvement in the decision-making process when determining which strategy is right for the company (p. 129). While this could be helpful, it could also cause conflict if they client requests a particular strategy that the consultant believes will be ineffective. Politically, selecting the client’s choice may have better results initially, but if the program fails, the consultant could still be held responsible, even though it was the client’s idea. Ethically, if the consultant feels as if the strategy is not in the best interest of the client, he or she should explain why, although this may result in an undesirable situation, such as high tension or the termination of the relationship. Lastly, the client and consultant must determine the level of ownership of the program and implemented strategies (p. 130). For instance, who would take credit for the success or failure of the program, and at what point? In steps 9 through 16, time and resources are evaluated for the project and the proposal is presented to the client.

Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Consultant Program

Steps 17 and 18 of the model begin the evaluation process of the consultant program. During this phase, the consultant must decide how extensive an evaluation to conduct, determine “what aspects of the evaluation should be used by the consultant for personal self-development and what should be used for organizational improvement,” and must separate objective data from subjective data (Smeltzer, et. al., 1984, p. 131). After the evaluation has been completed, the consultant must provide the client with feedback—Step 19 (p. 132). While presenting feedback may seem like a pretty straight-forward process, again, both political and ethical issues must be taken into consideration during this stage of the process. The consultant must be committed to sharing all feedback—both positive and negative results—because that is the only way the client will grow in the long run. “…special problems develop when one is aware of certain information and contemplates the possibility of withholding it. In some situations, it may be both morally and politically judicious to withhold information (i.e. confidential information from employees), but in other situations the decision is not easy) (p. 132).

Step 20 and 21 of the model describe the process of terminating the agreed upon strategy and discussing future actions. There will come a time when the strategy that a consultant has implemented has been exhausted. While many consultants see “certain actions need to be implemented, there may be a tendency to make it part of the present strategy rather than making a new proposal,” this is not always the best option (Smeltzer, et. al., 1984, p. 132). When the agreed-upon program is completed, the consultant should evaluate the effectiveness of the program with the client. At that time, if either party feels as if there is more work to be done, the client and consultant must make the decision whether to continue the relationship, at which point a new proposal should be written by the consultant (Steps 22, 23, and 24) (p. 133). If the client and consultant agree to continue the relationship, the consultant should be aware that he or she will likely face many of the same problems, but on a different level. “In fact, some of the questions become even more complicated as the relationship between a client and consultant grows and develops” (p. 133). If the relationship is terminated, materials should be returned to either the client or consultant based on prior determinations. Decisions pertaining to the use of materials and ideas after the client-consultant relationship has ended should be determined prior to the implementation of the program. 

Conclusion

In the consultant-client relationship, there will always be instances where ethical and political issues must be taken into consideration. These considerations can lead to a strong relationship between the consultant and the client, as well as the successful implementation of the strategy, supported by objective results. However, making the wrong decision, or a decision that is not ethically or politically sound, can lead to a weak consultant-client relationship and a failed strategy. That said, even when ethically and politically sound decisions are made, there are times when the consultant-client relationship must be terminated due to a difference in ideas about where the organization should go; disagreements about the level of dependency, involvement or ownership of the organization or the strategy; or at times, simply because the contract has come to an end. Regardless of the end result, it is imperative that the consultant make a valiant effort to continuously make ethically and politically sound decisions throughout the entire relationship with the client to ensure optimal results.

Reference

Smeltzer, L., Watson, K., & Barker, L. (1984). The communication consultant/client relationship: An analysis of ethical and political issues. Communication, 13(1), 125.

Client Service Stories Part 2: Apple

As you may have read in our post last week, every once in a while we will take time out from our regular discussions about building business through relationship development and Client Relationship Management (CRM) to talk about Client service, which is a core element of both. After last week's post, I am more convinced than ever about the business development power of Client service, as I have never received so many emails and comments as I did after that post. It just proves how important it is to take care of your customers...  as I recently learned that Apple does.

So after a 3 month wait, I finally got my little computer from HP, only to realize that, unlike the iPad, its on-screen keyboard was basically useless. The buttons were too tiny to press and there was no way to use the keyboard without resting your hand on the screen and inadvertently typing all kinds of crazy stuff. Additionally, trying to manipulate the cursor with the little pen or your finger was awkward. So off I went on a quest for a keyboard and mouse.

Like many technology consumers, I have always been intrigued by the stylish look of some of Apple's peripherals (ok, yes, I know this makes me a bit of a geek) so I decided to investigate further. The Apple keyboard was wireless, light and stylish. The mouse was magic, literally. (It's actually called the Magic Mouse) Again, great design – functional, but with no buttons. To click, you just press on the left or right side. To scroll down the page, you slide your finger from the mouse's head to tail – very cool.

But would the Apple toys play nicely with a Windows computer? The helpful salesperson said he thought they would. If they didn’t work with Windows, I figured I could always use them with my iPad. Besides, I was informed that  Apple has a 14-day no hassle return policy. How could I say no? (Business development lesson #1: make it easy and painless to buy from you).

When I got them home, I needed to connect the new devices to my Windows computer wirelessly via Bluetooth. I was ready for a fight, but was pleasantly surprised. I put in the batteries and fired them up. First the keyboard. Windows recognized it, prompted me to type in a code on it and it worked. Just like that. I was shocked. Hooking up the mouse was... well, like magic. It just worked. Technology is great when it does that. 

Then a few weeks (and a few road trips) later, it happened: the keyboard got a mind of its own. One minute it was working... then it wasn't. Windows found it... then it disappeared. It was connected... then it wasn't. And, of course, this happened at the worst possible time - when I was on the road in a hotel room preparing for a big training session with a Client. Ugggggh. Then I remembered: I had seen the neon glow of an Apple store just a few blocks away. Maybe they could help. I figured it was worth a try.

What I learned is that customer service is not dead (although some would argue that it seems to have taken one heck of a beating judging from the treatment you get from most companies.) But not Apple. As I walked towards the entrance of the store, I was greeted by some really friendly associates who opened the door for me asked me if I had a service appointment. I didn't even know I needed one. Great, now I knew I was doomed to wait for hours, or worse, they might not even be able to help me at all today. 

But I was wrong. Instead, the associate walked me over to a Mac, where he typed my info into their system to put me in the online cue for the Genius Bar upstairs. He said the wait would be about 20 minutes. Well, since I had to wait, I might as well make the most of the situation and check out some of the shiny new Macs. Of course, I knew I couldn't get one because all of my business applications ran on Windows. I mentioned this to the associate, who then asked me if I knew that I could actually run Windows on a Mac. (Business development tip #2: to really develop business, ask questions to determine the Client's needs before you try to make a sale)

Really…Windows on a Mac? But I was sure that running two operating systems would affect the performance and slow things down. He assured me it wouldn’t and asked me if I was aware that the fastest Windows computer for the last few years was actually a Mac? (Business development tip #3: provide information targeted to Client needs, as determined by the questions you asked) Uh... no, I didn't know that... tell me more.

He told me all kinds of things I didn’t know (Business development tip #4 - describe only the benefits or features of your service or product that the Client needs). I learned that I could do everything that I was doing now on a Mac. I also learned that Apple is about to come out with a new operating system that will let the Mac work more like an iPad, which I love. Plus, no more endless virus and spam issues or blue screens of death (if you've ever used a Windows computer, you are painfully aware that this is slang for a software crash that takes the whole computer to its knees and leaves you curled up in a little ball praying that when it comes back – if it comes back - you haven't lost several hours of work just because you had forgotten to hit 'save').

I also learned that Apple calls their tech support folks Geniuses for a reason. Let's be clear - going into that store, I had zero expectation of getting my problem fixed. I was asking Apple to troubleshoot a problem that I thought was almost certainly caused by a Windows driver. Plus, the keyboard really wasn't even meant to be used with Windows computers… and I had purchased it a while ago… and not at an Apple store.

The Genius didn't care. He said he would try to help - and he did. He got it to sync up right away, but it wouldn't stay connected. He said he thought this probably meant it was a Windows issue, but since I was there, let's at least try a new keyboard first. Did I have a receipt that he could look up? No, since I was on the road - and since I didn't even buy the keyboard at an Apple store (please don’t tell the Genius).

Anyway, the Genius opened up a bright, shiny new keyboard and tried it. It worked perfectly and stayed connected. Then he offered to have an Apple business consultant talk me through how  Apple computers could work for my business. What did I owe him, I asked? No worries, he said - and no charge. Then he even gave me a new set of keyboard batteries. 


Guess what? That day that I became an Apple customer. And I don't even care that their computers cost more. I'll pay top dollar for that kind of service.  

Can you say that you are providing this Apple-like service to your Clients? If you aren't, it's ok... someone else will. 

Client Service Stories Part 1: HP

At ClientsFirst, we are passionate about Client service. You could probably have figured that out since the company is called ClientsFirst and since we capitalize the word Client in most of our messages. Anyway, because we put such a strong focus on Client service, every once in a while we will take time out from our regular discussions about building business through relationship development and Client Relationship Management (CRM) to talk about Client service, which is a core element of both. These posts will usually involve a particularly good or bad Client service experience that we encountered that we think may be instructive for developing business and relationships. This 2-part post involves both.

For years, I have had computers from HP. I have enjoyed working with them, have had good experiences with their salespeople and have found their products to perform well and be relatively problem free. On the rare occasion when there are problems, they have been good about fixing them. As a result, in the past I have made recommendations of their products and influenced several sales.

Recently however, the keyboard failed on my HP Tablet. The machine has a service contract, so I decided to get it repaired. But it’s also three years old, so I thought it made sense to get a new one too. Being a technology consultant, I was intrigued by the new HP Slate, one of the only tablet computers that runs Windows. I like to use a small computer when I travel, and while I also have an iPad, which I find to be a great device for e-Mail and e-Books and other types of ‘e-Ntertainment,’ I just haven't been able to make it work for business since I am a real power user of Word, Excel and PowerPoint. The prospect of having my business applications on a tablet was appealing, so I went online and purchased the Slate – in early November.  

I then called HP for service on my current machine. After spending hours on the phone with someone from another country going through diagnostics they told me what I already knew: the keyboard was fried. I would need to ship them the laptop in the next 30 days so they could repair it. Oh, and I had to give them permission to wipe my hard drive and erase all my data if they decided that was the problem – or they would not even look at it. Not pleased at that prospect, I thought it prudent to wait for my new machine so I could transfer my data in case the inevitable happened.

30 days passed – and no Slate. Apparently HP underestimated the popularity of the little device and they were on backorder. I continued to wait and called HP repair to tell them I would need to delay sending my old machine for repairs until the new one arrived. They assured me they had the ticket number and I could just call back to let them know when I was ready to send it. 

60 days passed - still no Slate. But a message did arrive from HP telling me that to make up for the delay they were providing a coupon for $100 of my next purchase. Since I thought that I might need another computer for the office since the hard drive on the Slate was pretty small, I went online and found one I liked for $799 and called to place the order. The sales rep was very helpful. I ordered the machine and he upsold me to the new Office two-pack that could be installed on both machines. But when I got to checkout, the eCoupon didn’t work. He said it was only for a purchase from the Business division of HP, not the Home Office division. When he transferred me, the HP Business rep said that he would happy to honor the coupon, but the only comparable machine they had was $1600. When I asked what justified double the price for a similar machine, he said it was ‘a business machine.’ I passed.

But I still needed the software. His answer: sorry, the coupon wasn’t good for that. When I asked for a manager, the rep said he would transfer me, but he said the manager ‘would only waste another 10 minutes of my time’ because a lot of people had problems with the coupons and they hadn’t been able to help any of them. Now I really wanted to talk to the manager.

Surprisingly, the manager did some damage control. While I vented, he listened patiently (Business development tip number one: when a Client is frustrated, be quiet, let them talk and listen. Often all they want is to be heard). He then he apologized for the problems (Business development tip number two: often, all a frustrated customer needs is an apology. Give one. Apologizing for a problem or bad situation is not the same as admitting responsibility for it.) The manager then told me the one thing that the coupon was good for: an external DVD drive that could be helpful for loading the software onto the Slate, since it didn’t come with one. It was $99 and he said he would pay for the overnight shipping because of all the issues. Done.  

I finally received the Slate computer at the end of January, almost 3 months after placing the order. The DVD player never arrived. Then HP sent me a survey to tell them about my experience. Boy did I. I was shocked when someone from the company actually called to follow up. He didn’t acknowledge or apologize for anything, but he said he had looked into the reason I hadn’t received the DVD drive. Somehow the order was canceled. He said he would reinstate the order and overnight it to me. That was almost a month ago. I’m still waiting.

I then called to send my old computer off for repairs. I went through the automated system to get to a technician who was very pleasant, but had some challenges with English. I politely gave him my ticket number and explained the situation. He said we would need to go through all the diagnostics again since the old ticket was canceled – even though he was able to access it and to see the issues on it.

When I asked why I would need to spend hours doing the diagnostics again, even though nothing had changed since the original call, he said that was how they do things. (Business development tip number 3: ‘Because that is how we have always done things’ is a very bad way to try to do business and keep customers in today’s competitive marketplace and challenging economy) For a better way to do business – and keep customers – check out next week’s post: Customer Service Stories Part 2: Apple… 

Optimizing Social Media

Great video on social media.