I've continuously emphasized simple steps for MWBE's to get more business, but maybe a few words from an "expert" will add more credibility to these simple steps. Steven Strauss a lawyer, author and speaker who specializes in small business and entrepreneurships. In a recent USA Today column, Strauss quickly gets across some key points. Summarizing these key points for the AEC industry, they are:
- Identify the problem(s) and have solutions ready, find their pain and relate it to your service solution.
- Deal with the right person, find the decision maker. Strauss particularly emphasizes following up, as he says "follow up, and then follow up some more". He also emphasizes a good presentation. From my experience in hiring MWBE's I can tell you it is critical for the client to believe you can support their efforts.
- Strauss also discusses appreciating the budget. In the case of direct contracting knowing or understanding the budget is important and you need to ask the question - what is the budget? As a prospective sub you should make every attempt to identify that same budget info AND persuade the prime that your efforts will reduce their proposal costs.
- Have a great proposal and presentation. This should be obvious, especially when dealing with direct contract opportunities. When dealing with a prime it becomes especially important that you demonstrate you can work within their system, provide timely responses, contribute to their presentation, and provide the flash that shows the end client that the prime has choosen their MWBE component well.
- Strauss also stresses the need to check out supplier diversity programs, specifically mentioning AT&T's supplier diversity program. We often publish links to corporate programs, check with us frequently.
Read Strauss' article at http://www.usatoday.com/money/smallbusiness/columnist/strauss/2008-09-28-selling-to-big-business_N.htm
You can also visit his (one of many) web site at www.MrAllBiz.com
Strauss (unlike me) says a lot with a few words, get his RSS feed, a few minutes a week may be the pick me up you need to stay focused!
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1 year ago
2 comments:
Hi,
I just found your blog. I think it's really great. For the past 10 years, I've had a WBE firm located in NYC (although I've just recently relocated to Dutchess County in NY, an hour or so north of the City) which provides construction cost estimating services to architects, engineers, etc., and continue to be massively disappointed, angry, frustrated over
a) the lack of support given to WBE's by public agencies as well as the "big" companies that are supposedly tasked with encouraging small disadvantaged business to flourish, and
b) the fact that so many firms out there marketing themselves as M or WBE's that are in fact NOT M or WBE's, but are actually cynical attempts to manipulate the system.
All of the above results in companies like my own struggling to an extent over over and above what they should and, even, failing, because we lack the political expertise, tools, savvy, whatever, to make a real goal of it.
Anyway, I'm definitely going to keep checking in.
Also, I've recently started my own "blog" which will (if it really gets going) focus on issues related to construction cost estimating. I hope you don't mind if I link your blog to mine.
Keep up the good work.
Christine
Hi Christine,
Glad you like the blog, I feel your pain! As a former upstater (Utica)now on the Carolina coast I can also remember fall in the Hudson Valley - cool but beautiful.
Before I get into this - have you registered for the DASNY (dasny.org) mwsbe conference 10/24&25 yet? That's a great conference not only for the content but moreso for the contacts. Make up some quick and easy handouts and bring plenty of biz cards!
When I had the responsibility to put together teams for major projects whether they were public or private my policy was to seek out MWBE's that filled a gap in our capabilities. Firms like yours would be preferred as a specialist in a niche part of the market. It's what I refer to as a compelling component, i.e. an architect who brings on another architect is just meeting a goal - an architect who brings on a library, food service or estimating specialist is adding to their team. Small to medium sized AEP firms, should be seeking your firm out. Make it easy for them by having all your form work in order and get in their face at the early stages of the project solicitations. If there are pre-proposal meetings make sure you attend, get the list of attendees and hand out cards (and get theirs) with a quick summary of your relevant capabilites for this particular project. Those that you can't get to during or after the meeting - call and/or email the same info. Then make sure you quickly follow-up with the right info in the right format. If you can get in the door the key to keeping it open is to make the marketing coordinator's job easy by having the right info in the right format and being quick about it. Once you've shown you can do that (and of course do a great estimate), you will quickly lock in.
Another sales tool is when you call on majority firms - see if you can bring something to the table by paying attention to local projects and letting them know about the projects - even if it is not something you can participate in. If you have special insights or know the local players, decision makers let the majority firm know that. The good firms look for every angle - be their angle!
Please keep in touch, and let me know when your blog starts up. We would love to link to it on our blog and on the DMWBE.com website.
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