B2B business developmentSales problems are only a symptom. The causes lie deeper: inside the company and in the market.
When sales fall or become unstable, the first reflex is usually a new salesperson, a campaign or a CRM. Yet the causes can be internal, such as strategy, culture or the offer, or external, such as competitors and shifts in the market. We analyse the company across six layers to find the real one, then implement the changes with you, all the way to the first signed contracts.
Diagnosis
Where do sales problems really start?
The board sees the outcome: a missed target, shrinking margins, pressure on price. But the outcome is only the last link in the chain. In most of our projects the root cause sits one or two layers higher: inside the company (strategy, culture, offer, process) or outside it (competition, market).
Revenue has been flat for two years
The team keeps missing target
Salespeople cannot close deals
Customers only talk about price
Plenty of enquiries, few of them close
The new salesperson left after six months
Model
Six layers of B2B business development we analyse before any recommendation
We work from the top down, because each layer sets the frame for the next. Optimising the sales process alone, without this understanding, usually just speeds up movement in the wrong direction.
Company goals and strategy
Before asking how to sell more, we establish what the company should sell, to whom and why. Sales growth without a clear goal from the owners usually ends in more turnover on low-margin products, or in segments the company plans to exit anyway.
Culture and organisation
Strategy loses to culture more often than boards care to admit. We look at how decisions are really made, who actually sells (often still the owner) and whether delivery can keep the promises that sales make.
Value proposition
Most companies describe what they do, while the customer buys what they will gain. We translate the offer into the buyer's problem, expressed in time, risk and money, and then test it in conversations with the market rather than in a board meeting.
Competitive landscape
Companies usually benchmark themselves against the competitors they meet at trade fairs. The customer compares them with something else: the current supplier, cheaper imports, an in-house team or the decision to change nothing. We map these real alternatives.
Market and target customer
Choosing a segment is above all a decision about what not to do. We score segments on demand, competition, margin and the length of the decision cycle, then map who on the customer side initiates the purchase, who decides and who can block it.
Channels and sales process
Only at this stage do we turn to the pipeline, CRM, sales materials and the team. We choose the channels that pay off at your contract value and set leading indicators. The process is designed on the answers from the layers above.
Results
What it looks like in practice
Every project goes through the same cycle: market research, first contact with customers, partner selection, first meetings and contracts.
Voltage Group
Project portfolio built across four European Union markets within 12 months.
Ostapiv Dachy
A flat-roofing contractor for industrial halls and warehouses. An established company that wanted to put structure into its sales and move into new segments.
- Market research and choice of the most promising segment
- Value proposition built on the investor's risk and cost
- Sales materials and sales strategy
- Launch of the business development process
Process
Five stages, each ending in a decision
From the first conversation to the first contracts. The internal diagnosis and the market interviews usually run in parallel.
Conversation
We establish where the company stands and whether now is the right time for a project.
Internal diagnosis
Interviews with the board and the team, analysis of CRM data, prices and margins.
Market interviews
Conversations with current and lost customers and with partners.
Strategy and plan
Focus, value proposition, channels and KPIs. A recommendation for the board.
Implementation
We approach the market on your behalf and carry it through to the first contracts.
This is for you if
- Sales rely on referrals and on one person
- Growth has stalled for two or three quarters
- Revenue depends on one or two key accounts
- Someone on your side will own the implementation
It is too early if
- The product has not found its first customers yet
- You need a report rather than implementation
- You operate a B2C, e-commerce or retail model
- The investment decision is a year away
Who leads the projects
Dima V. Nechyporenko
Founder of the nech · B2B business development consultant
Nineteen years of B2B experience, from building sales teams to leading growth and market entry projects. He headed business development and strategy at EPC companies delivering energy projects in Ukraine, France, Spain, Italy and Latvia. As strategy director at the Canadian engineering firm RWDI he gained a global perspective.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Your question is not here? Ask it in the first conversation.
Write to usHow is B2B business development different from sales?
Sales closes what it is given. Business development decides what sales should be given: which segments to focus on, how to stand out and which channels to use. It works on the conditions that determine how many deals appear in the first place.
Why analyse strategy and culture if the problem is sales?
Because in most projects the reason growth stalls sits above the sales team: in unclear goals, in a value proposition the customer does not buy, or in an incentive scheme that rewards different behaviour from what the company needs. Fixing the sales process alone in that situation only speeds up the road to nowhere.
How soon will we see first results?
First findings from the diagnosis arrive after two weeks. First sales conversations under the new model usually follow within two to three months. The first signed contract, depending on the industry, comes between the fourth and ninth month.
Do you talk to our customers?
Yes. We run 10 to 20 interviews with current, former and lost customers and with partners, in the interviewee's language. It is the fastest way to check whether the value proposition works in the buyer's eyes.
Do you guarantee a specific sales increase?
No. The result depends on the product, the resources on your side and the pace of work. We guarantee an honest diagnosis, a plan that can be implemented and our presence during implementation. If we conclude that the project in its current form makes no sense, we will say so plainly.
How much does a business development project cost?
We quote after the first conversation, once we understand the industry, the business model and the scope. You receive a proposal with scope, timeline and checkpoints within two to three working days.
Do you sign NDAs?
Yes, before any sensitive data is shared, usually even before the second conversation. We can sign your template or send ours.
Next step
Before you hire another salesperson, let's talk.
Thirty minutes is usually enough to pinpoint where your sales system has stalled. Write a few sentences about the company, and we will reply with specific questions rather than a ready-made offer.
Book a conversation Free of charge and with no obligation. We reply within 24 hours.