Business Development: A Changing Environment
Source: Accounting Today
In this article, Bill Carlino offers insights about the changing role of business development within accounting firms. Here are a few ideas Carlino gathered from industry insiders:
- Partners must stand together on the firm's plan for business development, and their business decisions need to reflect their commitment to that plan.
- Firms need to merge their marketing and business development efforts.
- Firms should pursue opportunities to serve as consultants on smaller issues in order to develop relationships with clients. The consulting brings in additional revenue, and the foundational relationship with the client may lead to larger engagements such as taxes and audits.
- Hire salespeople, perhaps according to niche specialties, to coordinate development efforts with partners. Utilizing salespeople enables partners to focus more on their areas of expertise and decrease their nonbillable hours previously spent on business development.
For the complete article, read “If you want sales, hire a salesman.”
From Accounting Today, March 1, 2011, SourceMedia Inc., One State Street Plaza, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10004, 800-221-1809.