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Case
study: Business development Edward
hired me to help in getting his new practice off the ground.
He had worked for another firm for nearly 5 years before going on his own
and brought a few clients with him, along with promises of referrals, but Edward
did not have sufficient work to show a profit when he began coaching with me. Working
together, we defined Edward's ideal practice in terms of the kind of work he'd
be doing, the kinds of clients he'd represent, how much time he would spend in
practice, and how much income he would generate.
We then created a business development plan designed to help him attain
his goals. Using the Rainmaker
Accelerator, Edward identified the client development approaches that had been
most successful for him in the past and those that he would be willing to try. One
of Edward's challenges was his discomfort in marketing generally.
Edward told me during our initial conversation that he would prefer to be
retained on the basis of his legal skill alone.
Several of our early conversations revolved around coming to terms with
the necessity of marketing and determining how he could market his practice with
integrity, which permitted him to feel more comfortable with those activities.
Edward
was also uncomfortable with networking. We
talked about what constitutes effective networking, and Edward discovered that
he could enjoy networking if he shifted his perspective to see the opportunity
to meet people he could help. He
also developed systems for following up with his contacts, and he generated
several new clients within two months simply through his networking.
By
consistently working through his business development plan, taking on new
activities, and reaching out to those who were in a position to refer business
to him, Edward's practice became profitable before the end of our six-month
coaching engagement. He
created routines to keep his marketing operating so that he now has a consistent
flow of new clients and referrals, and he's well on his way to reaching his
initial income goal.
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