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Sales & Marketing
While there are many areas of a manufacturing company that provide a clear synopsis of a company's status (such as Finance), perhaps an equally determinant of long term success is Sales Management...
We feel strongly because by it, one can measure the current activity with customers, the ability to meet customer's needs, at a mutually agreeable price and delivery. It further tells us whether you have the current and long term products needed. Additionally, it tells us what you are doing to meet tomorrow's needs, not to mention if it is profitable.
Do you know how your products and company are "Positioned" or do you just worry about getting the next order and you never really know why you got it... This sadly is how most companies try to survive and many of them fail.
Without having a passion to grow Sales, one can not grow long term... You must be aggressive, diligent, organized, visionary and methodical, among just a few adjectives. But much like being AS9100 certified, these only get you in the game, they are no guarantee of success. But, with a complete Sales Strategy around you, you can succeed above others.
And this is where we come in, helping you see the forest from the trees, so that you can plan long term how you will win business over other companies equally qualified as you. And we will help your team, in a way that is inclusive, not confrontational, so that they are part of the solution and more importantly, are completely involved and supportive. This is teamwork at it's best...
Remember, you are not the only one being pushed to deliver higher profits and increase market share. If it was that easy, everyone would be doing it.
Below are just some of the items we can help your Team in the area of Sales and Marketing...
Bid and Proposal
Business Development
Business Plans
The Bid and Proposal activity is of prime importance, because it is here where the offers will be differentiated. There are tools which will allow your offer to stand out. But it is really the process of this activity which we can help with, to understand when to bid or not, how to bid it, asking for and getting changes to the SOW, which may allow your product to shine. Every case is different.
Business Development is a necessary task which must be evaluated and tweaked from time to time. Sometimes we are guilty of allowing ourselves of becoming complacent. Other times teams need to be shown the art of Cold Calling and loving it. Or we can be a bridge to the executive level and validate your challenges. We can do that and much more, literally calling on customers with you training to be persistent and we can bring a few new tools to the table to help make the difference.
So you have been in business how long and your business plan is still unchanged? More importantly, have you done what you said you were going to do when you initially wrote it? We will help you analyze your plan, update it and even help you monitor your progress to help you stay on target or even write a new plan if needed.
Contracts
Core Competency
Corporate Development
In recent years, Terms and Conditions contracts have gotten much more demanding, with many clauses which if accepted could have devastating affects. We can help you maneuver through the land mines, so that you can agree with something that is fair and reasonable for both parties.
We will develop your T&Cs and negotiate them if needed. In the end we strive to have a win-win for all so that the customer comes back for more, without having to re-negotiate again.
Wiki-pedia defines core competency as a specific factor that a business sees as central to the way the company or its employees work. It fulfills three key criteria:
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It is not easy for competitors to imitate.
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It can be reused widely for many products and markets.
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It must contribute to the end consumer's experienced benefits and the value of the product or service to its customers.
Do you have one?
As part of the SWOT process, we will evaluate those threats which if they came to pass might cause harm. One typical concern are competitors and we have experience identifying and developing discussions with potential drop-in acquisitions so that given the right timing, they can be acquired (folded in) and together grow the pie. We also have friendly equity partners which can be leveraged to make this possible.
Cost Estimating Improvement
Customer Surveys
Customer Targeting
Cost Estimating is the seed of the revenue fruit...if it is over burdened (too much water) you don't get orders and if you do not cover costs (not enough water), you are not profitable...
We will evaluate your process and suggest tweaks if needed, so that you can start with a good cost estimate and thus allow the sales process (not the cost estimate !) to maximize your earnings.
A well designed Customer Survey will yield priceless Intel to understand the Customer purchasing patterns. This can take the form of multiple sets of questions regarding the products, service and various company departments. We have experience receiving an unprecedented >30% return! This level of customization provides actionable data to improve capture rates.
Customer Targeting is a method of first understanding who are all your current customers, who are your ideal customers, and the path to identifying who are going to bring growth. Many customers types are sometimes just slowing down growth due to their needs not being aligned with the vision of the company. It is important to know the difference and focus on what is truly important.
Marketing
Today's Marketing needs have changed and so must we to stay relevant. We can help you be in front of your customers, whether it be via Social Media channels, or online presence.
Additionally, we can provide the necessary marketing tools such as market share analysis, product positioning, and many others based on needs.
Sales & Forecasting
Sales funnel is a must, ideally via CRM. And forecasts are only as good as the input used to create it. However it need not be so challenging. We can help you focus on what programs used what product and based on historical data, provide a reasonable forecast knowing the program maturity, current build rates and other factors . Then use that to fill the pipeline which is critical for tracking potential sales.
Metrics Development
Metrics are key to any sales organization. In fact, the more the better. For by understanding all the data, we can truly understand our market. So, we will "torture" the numbers until they talk...and then we will be able to develop metrics that are easily measured ... Revenues can be misleading. It is not until we look at the details that we can assess our market share.
Tradeshow Booth &
Representation
Tradeshow booths can be built or rented, depending on the show. We have experience designing booths for large shows such as Paris Air Show, Farnborough, NBAA and Aircraft Interiors (Hamburg) among others. This can be done affordably and with growth in mind, so that it can be used for a variety of shows. And we can even represent you at the shows if desired.
Negotiations
Negotiations can be most challenging for the in-experienced. In today's market, if you are not properly trained, you are in the minority. So we will represent you if needed or provide guidance on negotiation tactics, which have worked. Just remember, "splitting the difference" is not negotiating, but yet there are times when it is to your benefit...
Care to guess when?
Strategic Planning
Strategic Planning is at the heart of every company, or at least it should be. We can plan and lead a Strategic Offsite meeting for the Management Team and start the development process. This will require lots of soul searching, market analysis, data crunching, and real time management buy-in so that end result is an acceptable plan which has executive approval.