Is new business this simple?

There are only two ways for a studio to get more work: find more clients or get more work from existing clients.
Designers play a vital role in both.

Here’s what we know

Everyone in the world is connected through 6-degrees of separation.
Clients like to ‘discover’ new design partners and don’t like to be sold to.
Clients say it is hard to find new design partners.

So,

Look to join the dots.
Be visible.
Make it easier for clients to discover you.

It is really not complicated: the more people who know about your business, and what you do better than others, the higher your chances of getting work. That gives everyone a role in new business because the more people representing the business confidently, the better the chance of success.

The good news is potential clients don’t just live online.
They may be the cousin of the wife of your designer’s brother.
Or the parents of the wing-attack in your child’s netball team.
Or even the owner of the schnauzer at the dog park.

Best of all, all of these will be warm rather than cold leads because you’ve already got something in common.

Multiply those possibilities x your design team and you have a strong new business potential.

Here’s 5 ways to increase your success

Hone your positioning into a succinct statement everyone in the business can own. Who you are, what you do better than your competitors, and for whom you work. It’s not about activities it’s about outcomes. (Not sure? More info here)
Make new business part of everyone’s position description. Not a hard KPI, but an understanding everyone has a role representing the studio accurately when talking to existing and potential clients. Even if they don’t ‘sell’, identifying potential work is gold.
Share your studio’s pillars of strength. Worst scenario is a well-meaning designer introduces a client who is just not the right fit for the studio. To avoid conflicts, outline who the ‘dream client’ is and why.
Make sure your website is up to date. Being a trailblazer sounds great, but in reality, most clients are more comfortable following the lead of others. Not in a negative way, but in a safe, risk-averse, keep-my-job kind of way. They like precedent, and more likely to be influenced and persuaded by successful people and stories. That’s why case studies and testimonials work brilliantly to bring in new business. It lessens any perceived risk; making a change of supplier seem easier and less problematic.

It’s not about pressuring your employees to sell your business.

It’s about building a studio culture of pride in what you do well, and for whom. Owning your space and being able to articulate your strengths with authority.

So what?

It’s a mistake to assume all new business will come though one specific activity. Potential clients are everywhere.

It’s about numbers. The more people understand what your studio does different/better than your competitors, the greater the chance of success. It makes good sense to utilise every opportunity and angle at your disposal.

Want to continue the discussion? Email Carol.

Carol Mackay

Design Business Council : business advice for creatives.
We help designers build better, stronger, more sustainable, businesses.

Design Business Review is Australia’s only online design management magazine. It’s professional development information written specifically for Australian designers by Australian designers. Best of all, it’s free.

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About Carol

After 30+ years running a design studio, I accumulated a pretty special network of fellow designers. One thing most have in common: a dislike for the ‘business’ side of design. Most are impatient with any task competing for time spent doing what they love – designing.

Not me. I love that intersection between design and business. I built a career working with Ombudsman schemes, the Emergency Services sector and the Courts. My special power has always been an ability to use design to translate the difficult to understand or the unpalatable message.

I now use exactly the same skills with creative business owners. I translate the indigestible into bite-sized chunks of information. I share insights, introduce tools and embed processes to help others build confidence business decision-making skills. More confidence makes it easier to grasp opportunities. More confidence makes it easier to recognise a good client from the bad.

Outside DBC I have mentored with Womentor, AGDA and most recently with The Aunties.
And I’m a proud board member of Never Not Creative. Ask me about internships

Always happy to chat, I can be contacted here.

For a short while, an archive of my design work at mbdesign.com.au.
My current work can be viewed at designbusinesscouncil.com and designbusinessschool.com.au.