“What’s the difference between business development and sales”, it’s an evergreen question. Our answer is “About 18 months” !
Sales usually means dealing with incoming enquiries. The customer has been identified and its down to price, delivery and terms. Obviously, there is more than that to be aware of and be completed successfully. Customer relationship maintenance, ensuring reliable performance and the customers satisfaction among other things remain vital. After all the name of the game is “repeat sales”.
Business development is different because you start with a fairly blank page. Assuming that your products or services and their future developments are well understood, more importantly agreed, potential customer profiles have been established, then the fun can begin!
Research, defining possible customer companies and the relevant contacts, designing the approach, devising the right message which will be clearly understood by the recipient, follow up and responding to initial contacts, developing a relationship, identifying customer issues, marrying your solutions, negotiation, etc. It normally takes time.
We don’t necessarily subscribe to the “It takes 9 contacts with someone before they engage or some business can be completed” theory. But due to the time the process takes you definitely need to be persistent without being a pain, patient without becoming paranoid about the reason there is no response, and it may become a strain emotionally due to the perceived lack of progress by colleagues and yourself.
It’s fact that people are not always fair or truthful, so there is always the possibility that someone just wants a solution they can they share with other suppliers. There are many and crazy reasons why you receive no response for a long period that have nothing to do with you. “Ghosting” is fairly normal practice nowadays although is just downright unprofessional and rude!
At many stages, at differing degrees, your emotions will kick in and may affect your judgement, but the worst will be when you have developed a business idea which is then effectively stolen by a partner, investor or other collaborator.
Experience will help to assess and negotiate these daily issues and will determine the level of disappointment felt when a prospect does not work out. That’s when you start all over again !
It’s good to remember that: ‘Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.'