Work opportunities with the right kind of clients, Winning those opportunities into the right kind of fees, Ways to retain those clients for the long-term.
This podcast is aimed at anyone who sells business to business services, whether you are an owner or Director of an SME professional/engineering consultancy or someone in a larger firm who has to win work as part of your job, this is for you.
We speak to business leaders and those ‘at the front line’ in the world of construction, engineering consultancy and law and ask them to share their experiences and ideas about what works, and what really doesn’t when growing a professional services business. We discuss strategies and tactics including how to motivate ‘reluctant’ sellers to engage in work-winning thereby unleashing a large, previously hidden salesforce.
There are some great tips and advice in areas such key client management, getting in front of target clients, structuring initial sales meetings, writing winning proposals and so much more.
How to maximise your (and others) impact - Nathan Ott, GC Index
Épisode 25
mercredi 19 octobre 2022 • Durée 36:56
People don't go to work to feel impotent, they thrive when they are doing what energises them! Gary speaks with Nathan Ott, co-creator of the GC Index - an organimetric tool that identifies people's preferences and allows them and the organisations for whom they work to thrive.
Gary Williams of Questas chats to Mark Carpenter of Master Storytelling to discuss how humans relate to stories and how they are a vital component to sales and selling. Mark shares some fantastic tips on how to structure stories to make your sales pitches stand out.
How do we win the right kind of work from the right kinds of clients? This week on Work Winning Ways, Gary brings you an episode from a series of webinars about how you can master the client experience. Find out how you can win over clients, build and maintain relationships, the importance of leaders, and how to turn your clients into advocates for your services business.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
It's five times easier to win work from existing clients than new ones. Your cost of sale is so much lower too with no need to spend on marketing.
A happy client who is well looked after becomes a powerful marketing tool, they become an advocate for us and word of mouth holds a lot of power.
It takes up to twelve positive experiences to make up for one negative one.
Communication and feedback on the communication is really one of the keys of building a good client relationship.
NPS = Net Promoter Score, essentially how likely your client is to recommend you for the services you have provided.
People always say “under promise, over deliver”, but what is more important, is doing what you say you will do. Over delivering is not always possible every time.
BEST MOMENTS
‘Client experience is the next competitive battleground'
‘Experience is as important as the product or service'
This episode looks at the inevitability of difficult conversations happening with clients and how we manage them so as not to damage (and even improve) relationships. In this episode, Gary has an EASY chat with his Questas colleague Paul Brady about what to do when the temperature rises in conversations and how we dissipate the heat. As ever there's plenty of practical tools and ideas for you to use in your next difficult conversation!
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Difficult conversations with clients can come about for two reasons. It could be the rational, such as scope creep, delivering bad news, a negotiation around finance, team issues. Those sorts of things are fairly typical and make sense for it being a difficult conversation with a client. Then it could be a more personal or irrational reason less based around work.
There are three triggers that can be the cause of the irrational difficult conversations. These three triggers are, truth, relationship, and identity.
When you notice that someone has been triggered, your aim is to dissipate the heat. Allow people to vent and don't interrupt, let them get it off their chest. Then you have to reflect back to them what their concerns are, without putting your own inflection on it. It's not agreeing, just acknowledging that you have understood and heard them.
If you can deal with the three E's, explanation, expectation, and engagement, then you will be able to manage a difficult client conversation much better.
Having the right conversations pre project can help reduce the number of difficult conversations in the future. That in itself can be a difficult conversation but one to reduce any future ones.
Depersonalise things, it's not about the people, it's the situation.
BEST MOMENTS
‘It's inevitable that there will be difficult client conversations, but you need to manage them and mitigate the impact'
‘Things always go wrong and we always remain surprised'
‘Great meetings are build upon rapport rather than negotiation'
Why Training in BD and Client Management Doesn’t Work Unless you Have Well Trained Leaders
Épisode 20
mardi 8 mars 2022 • Durée 14:53
Business development and client relation management is part of a trinity with leadership and management. That's the glue that holds organisations together that Gary will be discussing this week on Work Winning Ways. Find out why training in business development and client management doesn't work unless you have well trained leaders.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
People aren't prepared to say within an organisation where either they're fearful about what is required of them or that they're not heard. Businesses need to have psychological safety to retain good team members. You should have an environment that encourages people's ideas to be listened to and given due consideration.
The introverts among us are happy to not contribute, despite possibly having some good ideas in their heads. A good leader would be able to get those ideas out of those people and encourage thinking diversity.
The SCARF Model was developed in 2008 by David Rock, in his paper "SCARF: A Brain-Based Model for Collaborating With and Influencing Others." SCARF stands for the five key "domains" that influence our behaviour in social situations. These are:
Status – our relative importance to others.
Certainty – our ability to predict the future.
Autonomy – our sense of control over events.
Relatedness – how safe we feel with others.
Fairness – how fair we perceive the exchanges between people to be.
BEST MOMENTS
‘The client is at the heart of everything we do'
‘There are a lot of people at a junior level who can contribute to how things develop but aren't given a platform'
The RIGHT Way to Win and Maintain Clients With Frank Lippert
Épisode 19
mardi 22 février 2022 • Durée 45:32
I am very pleased to speak to Frank Lippert - one half of the PSM (Professional Services Marketing) Podcast. Frank is based in Sacramento California and in our discussion we were looking for the differences in marketing and business development between the UK and US. So far, it seems that there really aren't too many differences but Frank speaks very eloquently about the RIGHT way to do business and how to win and maintain clients. There are some interesting differences depending on which state you're in but by and large, we agreed that being genuine, caring and curious are your best friends in work winning!
KEY TAKEAWAYS
There is a problem with the lack of talent coming through the pipeline in the professional services space. There is especially a gap of people with between 5 and 20 years experience.
All the magic in marketing actually happens in delivering the project in the mannar the client wants. How did you make the client feel while working together? The word of mouth you receive from doing that is better than any marketing you can do yourself.
What differentiates you from your competitors is the experience that your customers can have with you on a consistent basis. If you have that then you'll have the edge in the market.
You will find different ways of doing business all over the world, but you also find different ways of doing business within the same country. For example In the Southern United States, there's going to be some chat and conversation before the business talk, whereas in other places, if the meeting starts at 11am, then you start talking business at 11am.
BEST MOMENTS
‘Often the biggest client, isn't the most profitable one'
‘If you deliver the project well, your clients will talk about it, that's the marketing'
‘Meetings with clients are a bit like a first date'
Winning More Than Your Share of the Pie
Épisode 18
mardi 8 février 2022 • Durée 41:06
On this episode Gary speaks to Mark Anders, who is an Operations and Framework Director at Mace. Mark tells a great story about how he came to be doing what he does today (you would never guess!). He shares his many years experience in managing Client Frameworks and offers some sage advice on how to get the most out of the client and, importantly, how to win more than your fair share of the pie!
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Mark thinks the most economic way of bringing in services is not to go out to the open market every time, it's to build a framework of businesses who meet a certain set of criteria. This way you will only have to do your research on them once, you get a high level contractor, and it will save you time and money.
The key part of your engagement on the framework is that it lets you know more about the client and what the client needs. The old question ‘what keeps you awake at night' is more relevant than ever.
Frameworks allow you to learn and understand what direction the client wants to head in and what the future looks like for them. Be part of framework management and have those community meetings where they discuss what their buying power is.
You can also use a framework to understand buying habits. You can gain tangible added value by observing and understanding the scope and feeding that information back to the client.
If you can not just meet and deliver on client expectations, but exceed them, then that client is going to try and bring you back.
BEST MOMENTS
‘Save yourself the time and energy and go to that supplier'
‘As a client it's about how risk averse you are'
‘You don't just say what you're going to say, you do what you're going to do'
‘You have two ears and one mouth and should use them in that proportion'
An interview with Gurminder Sagoo, Client Director WSP Middle East
Épisode 17
mardi 25 janvier 2022 • Durée 40:15
This is a fascinating interview with someone who has worked in the Middle East for more than 10 years. Gurminder shares some insights about winning work in the region as well as busting some myths about how the building industry works. If you work in the built environment in the Middle East or are planning to, this is for you!
KEY TAKEAWAYS
You may think that there is a big cultural difference in business in the Middle East as opposed to the UK. Yes there are differences, but at the end of the day we are all people and we use the skills we've developed to find that common ground.
In the Middle East the pace of planning in the built world is so much quicker than the UK. There isn't as much red tape and there is an ambition to grow and expand. For example Dubai wants to be twice the size it is now by 2040.
You will often find that in the Middle East there is a lot of communication and decision making between the top of your organisation and the ruling body of the country. You are essentially closer to the ultimate business decision maker and they are closer to the front line.
There is a desire from the clients to gain an access all areas relationship with your business.
Because workers move in and out of the country relatively regularly, people understand the importance of having multiple strong relationships across the business.
BEST MOMENTS
‘You have to put yourself in the right position to take advantage of opportunities'
‘Strong relationships build on a sold trust will come back to reward you'
‘Let's not make this more complicated than it is, it's all about relationships'
Ziba Goddard is a behavioural scientist and Chief Consulting Officer at Cowry Consulting and joins Gary Williams on this episode of Work Winning Ways. Ziba specialises in human behaviour and how we make decisions. If you've ever heard of Nudge Theory and wonder why we make the decisions we make particularly in the context of buying, this is for you!
KEY TAKEAWAYS
People are wired to make snap judgements and rarely are making decisions based on having all of the information available. Thinking is often less rational than people would assume.
Nudge Theory is the idea of using encouragement or suggestions to change people's behaviour while still giving them freedom to make their own decisions. For example governments have used this recently to encourage people to socially distance during the pandemic.
We have two systems of thinking, the cerebellum based thinking, which is subconscious and primal. Then there's the prefrontal cortex that allows us as humans to deduct and reason and use language. Think of them as the Homer Simpson brain and the Dr Spock brain.
90% of our decisions come from our Homer Simpson brain.
There is a toolkit of around 200 shortcuts that scientists use to connect directly to our primal thinking.
Ziba has done some work with construction companies to increase health and safety. After 4 days on site observing, Ziba's team painted the canteen area a shade of pink that essentially has a calming effect and reduced the amount of people taking risks. She also changed the card system used for keeping track of safety to one of reward rather than punishment. This reduced unsafe behaviours by 85% at this site.
reframing sales to a personal relationship makes it easier for sellers. It's not about using clients to achieve goals, it's about forming a bond and doing a favour for one another.
We have an inherent bias towards those people we think are specialists, for example we trust doctors with stethoscopes around their necks more than doctors without one.
BEST MOMENTS
‘People aren't rational and don't have perfect knowledge'
Winning Bids and Tenders with Richard Williams
Épisode 15
mardi 14 décembre 2021 • Durée 49:00
How do you make your business proposals stand out and stick in your clients minds? This week on Work Winning Ways Gary brings you a module from the Questas Academy hosted by Richard Williams all about winning your bid. Listen in to this recording of the live seminar and don't forget to sign up for the Questas Academy in the link below.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
The first thing you need to do on day one of your bid is to read the question. Are you actually able to bid on this project? Does the timescale work for you? Are you sure you're the right fit? Because if you're not the right fit then you're just wasting time.
The second most important thing is to set a winning bid strategy. Think, how do we deliver the best bid in the time we have, and how do I best position myself to win the bid.
Structure that proposal document appropriately for that bid. Make it look great and bea easy to read.
Use everything you can through writing that brief to make it clear to the client that you are the obvious choice.
Be very clear about the objectives, who is handling it, and when it needs to be done by.
Get people involved early on, don't leave it until half way through the bid to get input from the people who will be involved.
The RFP tells you what the client wants, you have to answer those questions. There are always other things that matter to the client. Understanding what really matters to them can help win a bid.
Have an executive summary on page one of your proposal.
Start with you talking about the problem they have, this shows that you understand it. Then tell them the things that you will do to solve their problem and exactly how you will go about it.
BEST MOMENTS
‘Just like on an exam, read and re-read the question'
‘Treat your bid like you would a project'
‘More words is not necessarily better'
Podcasts Similaires Basées sur le Contenu
Découvrez des podcasts liées à Work Winning Ways. Explorez des podcasts avec des thèmes, sujets, et formats similaires. Ces similarités sont calculées grâce à des données tangibles, pas d'extrapolations !
Gary Williams has been in sales and marketing his entire career. The past 10 years have been dedicated to helping technically minded non-salespeople become skilled and confident in selling themselves and their services.
Gary Williams has been in sales and marketing his entire career. The past 10 years have been dedicated to helping technically minded non-salespeople become skilled and confident in selling themselves and their services.
Gary Williams has been in sales and marketing his entire career. The past 10 years have been dedicated to helping technically minded non-salespeople become skilled and confident in selling themselves and their services. http://linkedin.com/in/garyquestas https://www.questas.co.uk Instagram: @bdcoachinghub
Gary Williams has been in sales and marketing his entire career. The past 10 years have been dedicated to helping technically minded non-salespeople become skilled and confident in selling themselves and their services.
Gary Williams has been in sales and marketing his entire career. The past 10 years have been dedicated to helping technically minded non-salespeople become skilled and confident in selling themselves and their services.
Gary Williams has been in sales and marketing his entire career. The past 10 years have been dedicated to helping technically minded non-salespeople become skilled and confident in selling themselves and their services.
Following an undergraduate degree in Experimental Psychology and a Masters in Clinical Psychology, Ziba was drawn to business and spent time working in organisational effectiveness at Bank of New York Mellon.
Ziba is Chief Consulting Officer at Cowry and leads the client 'Pilots and Programmes' within the business. Ziba spends the majority of her time identifying the cognitive friction in the current customer journeys to help inform the creative process within Cowry at the key Design stage.
ABOUT THE HOST
Gary Williams has been in sales and marketing his entire career. The past 10 years have been dedicated to helping technically minded non-salespeople become skilled and confident in selling themselves and their services.
Gary Williams has been in sales and marketing his entire career. The past 10 years have been dedicated to helping technically minded non-salespeople become skilled and confident in selling themselves and their services.
