Published in Modern Steel Construction Your clients are eager to talk. Now is the time to set up a client perception survey to connect with them and collect their thoughts. As we enter month ten of the pandemic, everyone remains stretched thin, both personally and … [Read more...] about Collect and Connect
Articles
Business Development and marketing in challenging times
Anne Scarlett has authored over 75 published articles. They are organized by topic in the sidebar to the right. Often, Anne expands upon these topics, presenting to audiences in intimate training sessions as well as at highly-attended conferences. In addition, her insights are frequently quoted in A/E/C industry publications. Representative articles:
Smile, You’re on Camera!
Published in Modern Steel Construction. It’s Q2 2020, and the world as we know it has changed. Video calls are now ubiquitous. Whether using Zoom, Google Hangouts, Skype, Facetime, or countless other video applications, many of us have been expected to abruptly replace in-person … [Read more...] about Smile, You’re on Camera!
The Millennials: How to Sell to This New Generation of Buyers
Selling services to Millennials Published in RainToday and Modern Steel Construction. Let's paint the scenario. Through your network, you uncover this hot lead: a local community college has completed its master plan and will now begin hiring a variety of firms (to spread the work!) for project … [Read more...] about The Millennials: How to Sell to This New Generation of Buyers
Ideas-Driven Networking Connects You with the Right People
Published in RainToday and Modern Steel Construction. An interactive breakout session during a conference. Lunch and socializing before a panel discussion. A celebratory event held at a prospective client's office. An elevator. The valet queue. Wherever. As we know so well, networking opportunities … [Read more...] about Ideas-Driven Networking Connects You with the Right People
Best Practices for Business Relationships
Give credit where credit is due--liberally! Published in RainToday and PSMJ's AE Rainmaker. We've seen some spikes of (selective) optimism in the economy in this past year. This has led us to believe that the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry could be improving in certain … [Read more...] about Best Practices for Business Relationships
Walking in another’s shoes.
Empathy is a surefire way to demonstrate business development leadership. Published in RainToday and PSMJ. As business development professionals, we know that leadership embodies key traits such as vision; integrity; diplomacy; dedication, and a flexible, open mind. We also know that---leader or … [Read more...] about Walking in another’s shoes.
AEC Team-Building in Tough Times
Three ingredients to make it happen. Published in Modern Steel Construction. Everyone feels the pain of layoffs. Everyone. In the earlier rounds, we rationalize by painting a silver lining: “Our firm got rid of fat, and subsequently, operational efficiencies have improved.” That version of layoffs … [Read more...] about AEC Team-Building in Tough Times
Give ‘em something to talk about
Identifying value propositions so they will listen, and buy! Published in PSMJ's AE Rainmaker. In any economic climate, it’s important to offer value propositions that will both intrigue---and ‘stick’ within the minds of---your prospective clients. But in an economy where more competitors are … [Read more...] about Give ‘em something to talk about
Turning lemons into lemonade: Part II of II
Mobilizing under-utilized staff to contribute to your firm's business development solution. Published in PSMJ Rainmaker and RainToday. Part I spoke about structuring a program where you—as the marketing/business development professional—can guide your ‘expanded marketing team’ (aka underutilized … [Read more...] about Turning lemons into lemonade: Part II of II
Turning lemons Into lemonade, Part I
Mobilizing under-utilized staff to contribute to your firm's business development solution. Published in PSMJ Rainmaker and RainToday. Of course, in theory we know that ‘every person in the firm is a marketer.’ Savvy architecture and engineering firms go the extra mile to train their people at all … [Read more...] about Turning lemons Into lemonade, Part I