People are the most important factor in business development. Business growth is not just about strategies, numbers, or products—it’s about relationships, trust, and then the opportunity to provide product and services.
Here’s why:
1. Relationships Drive Opportunities
Business development relies heavily on networks, partnerships, and client trust. People build and must maintain those relationships. A warm conversation, trust-based negotiation, or long-term partnership can and will open doors that no marketing campaign alone can.
2. Understanding Customer Needs:- (Note: not wants!) (Needs are now, wants are the future.)
People, not systems, listen, empathise, and react to client needs. Good business developers uncover hidden pain points and tailor solutions, creating value where competitors may just sell a product or service. IE: Solve the client’s problem or issue.
3. Negotiation and Influence
Closing deals requires nuance: reading body language, understanding cultural contexts, building rapport, and influencing outcomes. These are inherently people skills.
4. Innovation and Creativity
People bring creativity to problem-solving, finding new ways to structure partnerships, develop markets, or offer solutions. This human element fuels growth and makes you stand out from the rest.
5. Trust and Reputation
Reputation in business development is built on personal credibility, integrity, and consistency. Companies may have strong brands, but it’s the people behind them who give clients confidence to commit.
6. Execution and Follow-through
Business development is not just about signing contracts but managing the delivery of what is promised. Along the way things may go wrong, but people can steer projects to get back on track, ensure that communication stays clear, and relationships are nurtured long after the initial deal.
7. It takes time.
Business development is an investment that takes time to mature. It may take 2 weeks or 2 years to deliver orders or contracts but people are the beating heart of the process to build trust and growth.