Much of business development depends on timing (Photo by Heavenly Shell)
My husband and I purchased a house this summer, and while the location is ideal (it’s on a beautiful recreational lake), the house is in rough condition. Green and purple shag carpeting installed in the 1980s that looks as though it hasn’t been vacuumed since. Rainbow colored tile in the master bath that looks like it was done on the weekend while drinking a case of beer. A drop ceiling that at one time was white…and I don’t think I need to describe what it looks like now.
Needless to say, we are in the midst of a major house renovation. And everywhere I go I notice another tile shop, kitchen showroom, and granite countertop store. I look out my office window, and there’s an appliance repair truck at the ATM.
Is there a sudden influx of home improvement services, stores, and products? I doubt it. I just never “tuned in” to these types of stores before. It wasn’t a priority, and the numerous home stores got mixed up in all the noise that is out there.
So what does that mean for professional services marketing and business development?
There is no way our minds can process all that we see and hear. Our brains subconsciously register what is important to us and tune out the rest. As marketers and business developers, this means we need to consistently touch our prospects with messages. The right timing for one prospect isn’t going to be the same for another. You could send the same letter to the same list two different months and get different people to respond because the offer isn’t going to be relevant to everyone at the same time.
A steady stream of touches using integrated media will allow you to stay top of mind, so when the elusive time of need does arise for each of your prospects, they are tuned in to your message and not one of your competitor’s.
