I remember the days when I first got certified, I spent countless hours connecting with corporations and government agencies which I now know would never do business with my firm. The agency/corporation I was approaching wasn’t outsourcing what I was selling, and in many cases my firm did not meet their criteria for past performance, licensing or geographic location.
Understanding that the government had a variety of programs targeting small, minority and women owned firms, I decided to narrow my scope identifying specific targets where my firm had the best chance for success. Here are some examples of how identifying my target audience improved results:
- Connect with buyers: who wanted to increase their spending with small businesses, certified MWBEs or diverse suppliers locally in my area of expertise. By focusing on local small procurement opportunities, I had frequent contact buyers (procurement fairs, pre-bid conferences and scheduled appointments) establishing meaningful relationships that ultimately led to increased sales.
- Avoid Time Wasters: as much as I wanted to respond to every opportunity, once I limited my scope, I did not waste time responding to bids/proposals or inquiries that were not a good fit for my business. This process was scary at first, but ultimately paid off in the end creating a strong focus and eliminating the common mistake of doing too many things in a haphazard manner.
- Targeted Research: by restricting our efforts to specific agencies, we were able to do extensive research and identify opportunities where our firm could be of service, help agencies meet their strategic goals and improve results. We also got real clarity on pricing and competition which has been invaluable.
- Targeted Marketing: knowing and understanding the needs of buyers through extensive research has afforded us the opportunity to create powerful and compelling marketing materials that distinguishes us from our competitors and speaks directly to buyer’s needs.
- Preparedness; since we know who target audience is we know when bids are coming out, and when contracts are expiring. We are able to prepare for success through a comprehensive analysis of our RFP win rates and close ratios.
If you’d like to learn more about our How to Identify Your Target Audience, please check our events page and join us for a complimentary tele-class on February 27th.
