Everyone wants to be trusted, yet trustworthiness is hard to pin down. Early in your career, most of your trust is borrowed from your qualifications, your firm and the people who vouch for you. Here is how that works, and four habits that build a record of your own.
Read MoreInternal referrals are the cheapest growth your firm will ever buy, and the easiest to lose. When a colleague refers you work they lend you their standing with someone they value, so they weigh up rather more than whether you're any good at the job. Here are 8 of the questions on their mind…
Read MoreFinancial year-end and compliance deadlines have passed, the school holidays are here, and many professionals feel flat rather than triumphant. Good news: the quietest fortnight of the year is also the best relationship maintenance window in it. Ten small jobs, and none takes longer than a coffee.
Read MoreSue-Ella joined Lawyers Weekly's Boutique Lawyer Show to talk about one of the most-avoided conversations in professional services: asking for work. In under 24 minutes, they cover the mindset, the mechanics, and why the best rainmakers have made it a habit. Listen now.
Read MoreReferrals can fade for reasons that have little to do with competence. Here are four early warning signs and how professionals can rebuild trust.
Read MoreLearn practical ways to ask for client introductions without awkwardness. Build trust, grow referrals, and expand your professional network.
Read MoreThe ‘silly season’ is upon us, and if you’re an introvert like me, chances are you could be dreading it… That’s why I’ve come up with these tips to help you find it both rewarding and (dare I say) enjoyable.
Read MoreThe results are in, and most of us agree: BD is more difficult for women in the insolvency and restructuring sector. Could the opportunity for niche profiling and a shift in client profiles offer a ray of hope?
Read MoreWord-of-mouth is still king when it comes to building a professional services practice but the new business pathway is getting more tortuous.
Read MoreThe results are in, and most of us agree: in the context of professional services, BD is more difficult for women. But could the shift to online offer a ray of hope?
Read MoreBD can be more difficult if you don’t fit the stereotype…
Read MoreReferral relationships are all about reciprocity. But sometimes we’re just not in a position to refer work back to someone who sends it our way. So, if you find yourself without any clients to send back to your referrer, here’s what you can do.
Read MoreThe coffee catch-up is now officially dead thanks to COVID-19. I think that’s a very good thing too.
Read MoreThe environment we’re doing business in right now suits a different type of business development and a different type of professional. We look at the rules of doing business during COVID-19.
Read MoreThe networking events at this time of year can be a boon for BD, or a drain on our energy levels. The difference often comes down to how you approach it.
Read MoreThe 2019 Rugby World Cup is on so I thought now was a great time to think about selecting your practice's own first XV. Who should you pick?
Read MoreThe rainmaker - that charismatic senior partner who wines, dines, and charms clients - belongs in the 1980s. Today's buyers are better informed, more diverse, and turned off by traditional sales tactics. Here are the six new rules for winning work in professional services: from ditching elevator pitches to embracing delayed gratification.
Read MoreReferrals are the lifeblood of most professional practices. But it’s not always easy to negotiate your way around the etiquette of referrals so that you keep referrer and client happy. That’s why I’ve created this guide to referral etiquette.
Read MoreOne of the real keys to a strong long term professional practice is a strong network of people who’ll keep referring you work. So are your connections doing that or are they holding you back? And how to you tell if your networks are up to scratch?
Read MoreFormal networking groups have become de rigeur. But are they worth the time, effort and, most importantly, money? We explore...
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