Podcast: 4 business development strategies that will deliver success in 2025

No time to listen? Prefer to read? Here is an edited podcast transcript:

Bob Tullio: When I was an operator, I would always ask myself in January, “What new business development tactics will I employ in the new year to reflect the changing business climate?” As a consultant and a content creator, I have the benefit of conducting about 100 interviews each year, which typically provide the answers to those questions.

I’ve done a version of this podcast before. Let’s look back at the strategies that I recommended in 2023 and 2024. How did those work out for you? You might find that these strategies are still very relevant and applicable.

Here’s what I suggested in 2023 in our debut podcast

“Instead of beating the bushes cold calling prospects, making as many calls in a day as you can, and knocking on doors which are almost always closed to you today, let the new business opportunities come to you. Be prepared to spend some money on business development and make a commitment to pay-per-click search engine advertising. Not the hocus-pocus keyword approach of SEO, search engine optimization, but pay-per-click advertising where you’re buying the one, two or three position using a specific search term like coffee service, office coffee, vending and micro markets. And you will be at the very top of the search engine all the time, one, two or three on Google, Yahoo and Bing, with Google being the most important of all.”

And I’m still a believer in pay-per-click advertising.

Business development strategy number two requires a different perspective on the part of a sales rep or business owner. It’s about putting the cart before the horse. When an exciting product comes along, it’s very easy to say, “Let’s give this to our existing clients and grow our business that way.” That’s fine. But sometimes we overlook the fact that a tremendous piece of technology or something with an awesome design can be used as a conduit that connects you to a new opportunity.

What applies perfectly today to this 2023 strategy? How about smart markets. As an operator, do you bring that technology into an existing account? Or use it to land a new high-volume car dealership, for example.

That brings us to business development strategy number three: paid strategic partnerships, a business development solution that is being used commonly today by leading credit card companies and banks. It’s a pay-to-play concept that has worked for years. It was perfect in 2023, and it certainly works today when you find motivated people — clients or other vendors who want to help you and help themselves.

Remember, here is how you lay out the offer:

“You introduce us to a colleague, and when we get the appointment, you get a $100 gift card. When we get the account, you get another $100 gift card.”

With inflation, I’d probably advise you to increase the size of the gift to $150 or $200 on each leg of the journey.

Why does it work so well? Well, it won’t work for 90 to 95% of your clients. It’s just not in their DNA. But that 5 to 10% who are motivated by this type of incentive can drive your business development program tremendously.