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Hunting New Business: A Primer

January 8, 2008 on 5:04 pm | In Lead Generation, New Business, Buzz, DC (digital colleague), New Business Primer, Email Marketing, Media Relations, PR, Public Relations, Branding, Promotion, Marketing |

DC (digital colleague) Rodger Johnson asked me recently about how a new PR Counselor can acquire new accounts. I don’t know that I have any words of wisdom but I do know how I did it successfully. So, that will be the story of this new series of posts. If you have other advice, please wade in.

I’ll start from the beginning, and I mean the beginning.

I was making a new business pitch to a Charlotte area professional services firm shortly after going out on my own. The second meeting took place after I had provided a detailed proposal to the company on how I work. From the two meetings and the proposal it was made abundantly clear that mine was a comprehensive, strategic approach to communications.

One of the partners asked me if there was a “PR light” alternative. This meant that he wanted a tactical program that required very little involvement or input from him and the other partners. I assured him there was, but that was not my approach.

I guess I could have taken the company’s money every month just to perform a few tactical activities, but it would have been wrong for both of us. I wouldn’t feel right taking their money, nor would I be happy implementing a program that a PR intern could accomplish easily.

Needless to say, the firm selected another communications agency. To understand why this new business loss was a success, we need to look at a definition of positioning. That’s up next time.

New Business Primer - Part 2

New Business Primer - Part 3

New Business Primer - Part 4

New Business Primer - Part 5

New Business Primer - Part 6

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Pingback by THINKing » New Business: Positioning — January 9, 2008 #
Harry, thank you. While I want to practice strategic communication, I know that many organizations continue to look at PR as a tactical exercise. Which squares me face to face with a very important ethical question — the same one you mentioned above. Addressing the question as you did, and as I would do, leads me to think that attracting clients and business development will be slow. But my question about attracting clients is even more primitive than your post. How did you get to the pitch? This might be a question better suited for my professional mentor here in Indianapolis. Did you just cold call a business, send them a pitch letter, meet them at a conference, convention, Chamber of Commerce function — I suspect the answer to all these is ‘yes.’

Comment by Rodger D. Johnson — January 9, 2008 #
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Hunting New Business: A Primer

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