Bad Times, not Bad Marketing
By Michelle Fitzpatrick
This is my fourth recession in the A/E/C industry. Given the increasing focus on sound marketing and solid business practices over the last 30 years, I had assumed that some of the unproductive reactions that were hallmarks of the previous downturns would be relics of the past.
Unfortunately I seem to be wrong. Many firms appear to be panicking and deserting the marketing principles that we now all know work. The most egregious sin is chasing almost any opportunity, whether the firm is qualified or has the client relationship that is essential to success. By recent reports, submittals–even for small assignments–have increased three- and four-fold. The ‘winner’ was 95 submittals for a small university project. The proposals were due on January 2nd, meaning that many marketers had to put in time over the holidays, fruitlessly.
And then there’s the stimulus package (more on this in a future post). It appears that too many firms are hanging their futures on that lifeline, whether they have the skill-set or relationships they need to get the work or not. One gentleman recently told me that they had put together a joint venture to purse stimulus work, even though neither firm has strong public sector relationships or experience. And, both are design firms, when the reality is that the lions’ share of stimulus dollars will go to contractors to do ‘shovel ready’ projects.
The sad part of this behavior is that instead of using their increasingly limited resources wisely, firms are squandering them on quixotic pursuits. Instead of forcing marketing staff to produce submittal after hopeless submittal, firms need to use their skills to support client the outreach, positioning and top-notch pursuits that win work.
And, even if the flow of work from clients has slowed or stopped, they still hold future potential. Now is the time to focus on and deepen relationships and determine how you can help your clients survive tough times as well.
Finally, consider imposing ‘Michelle’s Rule:’ if your firm has not had substantive conversations with the client in the last three months about the potential assignment, it’s an automatic no-go, without exception. Enforcing Michelle’s Rule compels everyone to proactively market while focusing resources on promising pursuits and clients instead of uselessly squandering dollars, staff and hope.
