Category Archives: Business Development and Selling

How to Be More Creative at Work

Posted on 14 May 2019 by

The results of client surveys are clear. Clients are increasingly looking for more creative solutions to their problems. So let’s get more creative! In a previous life I led the project team that invented CLOVER – the first spreadable ‘butter’. … Continue reading →

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All Advisers Should Have a Personal Marketing Plan

Posted on 15 October 2018 by

And it’s easy to write one…here’s how! Firstly, why is a personal plan important? There are several reasons, but a key one is that it makes your career less open to random chance and makes you more focused on doing … Continue reading →

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How to Deal with Objections when Selling

Posted on 11 September 2018 by

When selling your services, you are bound to receive objections and need to deal with what feel like tricky conversations. Here are some tips for dealing with push back from clients. Firstly, what type of conversations am I talking about? … Continue reading →

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Pricing for Profit for Professional Firms

Posted on 7 September 2018 by

Margins for professional firms are under pressure. It’s a tougher, more commercial world and clients are becoming more demanding when negotiating on fees. Here’s the 3-step process we used in my consulting firm to improve margins: Establishing and building the … Continue reading →

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How to Walk in Your Client’s Shoes

Posted on 4 June 2018 by

We all know we should try to put ourselves in our client’s shoes. But it can be hard to do that when there’s so much going on in our own shoes. So here are some thoughts about what clients might … Continue reading →

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Selling is About Asking the Right Questions – Try BICS

Posted on 24 May 2018 by

The average professional adviser talks too much in selling situations. The art to winning work is to build credibility, rapport and trust in client relationships. And the best way to do that is primarily through asking questions and demonstrating that … Continue reading →

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Business Development in Professional Firms is Still Lacking – Part 2: The Remedies

Posted on 23 October 2017 by

Part 1 of this article outlines the case that senior income generators in professional service firms are still not fully committed to carrying out effective BD. And that this lack of commitment isn’t their fault. I point out that there’s … Continue reading →

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