Winning the New Business You Want in 2025

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by jim-piper

Strategy and prospect management + data + real conversations = new clients

Outbound new business is all about that extra 10%. A smart strategy will include inbound and referrals, but we know from our clients it is that extra 10-15% that provides the platform for growth. Winning those clients you otherwise wouldn’t have. Are you in the right place to do this in 2025?

Whether inhouse or outsourced, is your new business as good as it could be? Has lead generation become tired? Are you meeting the same old people with no prospect of a project? Have leads plateaued or fallen off a cliff or are they simply not converting or even providing real opportunities? It is easy to get into a rut, but the danger is a month becomes three months, which becomes six months very quickly and the new business targets for the year have gone. If you want to make a difference to this year, now is the time to act.


Strategy & Prospect Management:

Strategy is probably an overused word in new business, but every agency should have a plan, and that plan needs to be constantly reviewed. Do you know your value proposition, genuine points of difference, strengths and have a clear plan to communicate those to the right people? Do you understand the type of business to walk away from?

Having clear propositions to take to the right prospects and personas is critical. This can start positively with your new business resource but can become muddled and grey. Do you have a bespoke new business management tool to quickly understand what is working? Do you have the insight to adapt and evolve your strategy quickly? Too much new business is managed on spreadsheets and balls can easily be dropped.


Data:

Do you have access to the right data to fit your strategy? Data is expensive and tools such as Lusha and ZoomInfo are often out of reach for agencies but have become critical for prospecting, particularly post 2020 with hybrid working still the norm. Understanding your audience is one thing, but having the insights and data to ensure you can contact them is key.

At Alchemis, as well as our own database, we subscribe to multiple systems to ensure data is accurate and relevant to each client strategy and campaign. Managing the data and information is critical to ensuring opportunities are not missed.


Real conversations:

This has become our point of difference. Emails are a useful connection tool but need to be targeted and not scattergun. They might bring in leads, but unless a conversation has taken place, how can you know that prospect and company are right for your agency and growth objectives? Real conversations, pipeline building and prospect nurturing are core to strategic outbound prospecting and agency growth.

Conversion on outbound leads will never be as high as inbound, BUT critically, outbound leads should be exactly the kind of clients and projects you and your team want to work on and will drive the agency forwards.


If your new business plans for 2025 need refreshing, please get in touch. As part of any initial conversations, we are happy to offer help and advice on current activities and how they might be enhanced.