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It was not too long ago that the infrastructure and construction boom in the UAE and the surrounding Gulf Region was all the rage. Take a look at this segment from a Discovery Channel special on Dubai to see what I am talking about:

Over the course of my conversations with civil engineering professionals I  always like to ask what their take is of the marketplace and how things are going in their regions and where they see the next big area of growth (from both a disciplinary and geographical perspective).  Over the course of the past week or so I have spoken with engineering professionals and executives at numerous consulting firms who alerted me to the fact that Brazil is booming and the demand for new and upgraded infrastructure is strong; as a result, they had recently, or were in the process of, setting up shop there.  Now, that same demand can be said for the US as well,  but as you well know, the Federal government all the way down to local municipalities are so strapped for cash that nothing much is being accomplished when it comes to improving our infrastructure.  So while we sit around with our hands tied as our interstate highway system is at or exceeding capacity, while more and more US bridges become structurally deficient, and while the concept of a US high-speed rail system continues to receive much scrutiny and criticism, Brazil has a World Cup to host in 2014 and an Olympic Games to host in 2016; can you imagine the beating that their infrastructure will take (even if it is only for small period of time)?  And with these major events come a true sense of urgency for all things infrastructure …and more importantly, the deep pockets to support them!  Brazil’s National Development Bank (BNDES) will likely lend $29B for infrastructure in 2012, and the Brazilian government is projected to spend $25.3B on their national rail network alone by 2014.

With the onslaught of visitors expected, the infrastructure will need to meet the demands.  Airport expansions are underway often with monorail systems;  construction of hotels, stadiums, commercial and retail centers is booming; rail, urban transit systems and traditional highway and roadway projects are abundant, and there is a healthy investment in water and wastewater infrastructure.    And, according to an October 2011 article on Investopedia.com,

            “The sporting events are just the beginning to Brazil’s infrastructure build-out. Last year, outgoing president Luiz  Inacio Lula da Silva, launched a $900 billion infrastructure plan which focused on improving transportation, electrical supply and the nation’s ports. Similarly, current President Dilma Rousseff, has also pledged to improve infrastructure via massive public works plans.” 

With all of the investment in infrastructure, Brazil will be poised for economic growth for generations to come. 

If it hasn’t already been pounded into your head by now, we are a global economy and as opportunities arise in overseas markets for a struggling civil engineering and construction community here in the US, why not take advantage of these types of opportunities?  What has YOUR company done to get a piece of that pie?  And from a career standpoint - if you are looking for adventure, what a great opportunity!

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Featured Guest Blogger: Babette Ten Haken
Author, Do YOU Mean Business? Technical / Non Technical Collaboration, Business Development and YOU
Sales Aerobics for Engineers
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[This is the second of a two-part series. Part 1 was posted on 1/23/2012 on the Sales Aerobics for Engineers® blog. Click here to read it! http://bit.ly/wDZE3S ]

Do we really understand each other?

If you are a civil or other type of engineer involved in the sales process (which means all of you), or if you are a business development professional working for a civil engineering firm, sometimes client relationships really frustrate us!

Part 1 of this two-part series addresses what happens when our clients “go away” or disappear after what we feel is a sure-fire, slam-dunk win for us. A lot of time, it’s because we make assumptions about the way the sales close is progressing. From our perspective, not theirs.

Why else might our clients disappear during the business development or design/engineering process? Just when we thought we had them from “hello!”

One reason we are frustrated is that our customers do not make decisions in a straight line.

The straightest path towards winning business for your company is not that straight line. Of course you spoke with the CEO, another civil engineer, or their company’s business development professional, and said all the stuff you were supposed to say, created empathy and “connected”, determined what their focus and priorities were, and their timeline and budget for making the decision to do business with your company. So the next logical step should be to ask for their business and sign that contract.

Except it never quite happens that way, the majority of the time. Because there are a ton of other factors impacting your client’s ability to give you the thumbs up. And they are never going to share these factors with you, no matter how well you know them, how frequently you golf with them, no matter how many interesting bits of information you share with them.

Our customers do not make decisions the same way we do.

So while your company may have sold you on “how great they are” as a solutions provider, you are not the one making that decision to sign that contract, are you? Clear the business development process of all of your own biases and baggage. You bring a lot of “you” into the business of winning business for your company. Identify a number of potential, sometimes illogical, and certainly not straightforward, paths your customer may take on their way to signing that contract.

Consider their revenue stream and prior years’ profit margins, the number of projects and commitments they already have on their own plate, the human assets on board to oversee and manage projects, the cost of logistics and raw materials, whether they have a diverse presence in the marketplace or whether they rely on a niche market. Where does your design solution fit into their overall business and market mix? How does your design solution solve a current business priority? (Hint: this is not the same as solving a discrete project’s needs)

We are too myopic in our client relationships. It’s not about you and them. It’s about you in relation to them and their business universe.

Where do you fit into their constantly shifting, dynamic business universe? Something to think about, isn’t it?

civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion

Featured Guest Blogger: Babette Ten Haken
Author, Do YOU Mean Business?  Technical / Non Technical Collaboration, Business Development and YOU
Sales Aerobics for Engineers
Strategies and Toolkit for the Sales-Engineering Interface
Connect With Babette On Linkedin
Read The Sales Aerobics For Engineers Blog

Do you tend to stick to your own kind when having business discussions? Do you feel misunderstood, marginalized, victimized, and alone amidst the drift of sales spiel and techno-babble? In other words, is cross-functional communication on your list of things not to do during those dreaded Monday morning meetings… let alone on your list of things you never would target to do?

You know what they say about hybrid vigor in nature! A little diversity goes a long way towards the longevity of the species. Otherwise you may end up non-communicating yourself right into an endangered species status.

Yes, I know you feel you are special, that people should and do clamor for your professional expertise. And, in desiring your expertise, they should put up having to feel like they are on the outside looking in when you speak to them. How about speaking with them in dialogue? How about suspending the lingo from the wonderful world of architecture and engineering in order to be understood by your clients and, just possibly, your peers as well?

OK. If you are talking about load points in a truss system, you must be specific. However, if you gaze at everyone’s eyes while delivering this discourse – rather than a dialogue – are they interested in what you have to say or have they written you off as someone who best fits in with the flock? When your customers, and even your peers, write you off as someone who would prefer to stick to their own kind, they perceive you as a commodity. Yes, a commodity and a stereotype of what a technical professional is “supposed” to be all about. You know, only comfortable sticking with and speaking to their “own kind.”

Which doesn’t exactly make you globally competitive. Or even locally competitive.

Because thought leaders are accessible to the breadth and depth of their constituents.

Yes, we know you are very, very smart and have invested in some very expensive education. If you can’t communicate outside your flock, then how do you know you are headed in the right direction with your customers? You are on the inside, looking out, rather than at the head of that chevron. And the last time I checked, thought leaders lead a diverse mix of followers because they communicate across disciplines and levels of knowledge.

They inspire.

I spend a lot of time working with technical professionals on communicating their value to both their internal and external customers. And that value translates directly into their ability to positively impact their company’s revenue stream. And their company is run by a diverse mix of individuals, collaborating for the sake of business development and revenue generation.

Sticking to your own kind and seeking homogeneity in your professional relationships may be comfortable to you. But it won’t sustain your business over the long haul.

I strongly recommend you move at least 1 millimeter outside your comfort level.

Interested in continuing this dialogue? My book, Do YOU Mean Business? will be available 2/2012. Click on the link http://www.doyoumeanbusiness.com to continue our discussion and receive updates.

civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion

By Rich Bedell
General Counsel, Greenhorne & O’Mara, Inc. and
Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of Maryland University College, Graduate School of Management & Technology

Who is Montgomery Scott? How about Geordie La Forge, B’Elanna Tores, or Trip Tucker? Every engineer I know secretly wishes he or she could have their job. Getting close requires a lot of hard work, professional experience, dedication, and training. Formal training includes formal engineering programs that require specific engineering classes to successfully complete whichever engineering program chosen. Those programs also include various electives to help round out that young potential promising engineer. English literature, history of the western world, romantic arts, and even pottery making are known electives. Some of the more progressive schools offer Contracting 101. When I was in school, oh so long ago, I heard classmates complain that all they wanted to do was design and/or operate. The mechanics of contracting could easily be left to others. Oh how wrong they were.

By now you realize that I was talking about Star Trek, STNG, Voyager, and Enterprise. Each of them have had dealings with a race called the Ferengi. Ferengi have a mercantile obsession with profit and trade. Think about that. Without profit and trade our current society would fall into the dark ages and there would be no need for engineering or the sciences. Ferengi have what are commonly known as the Ferengi Rules of Acquisition. There are hundreds of rules. Do a Google search for yourself and you will find that many of them actually apply.

For example consider the following rules:

#138 – Law makes everyone equal, but justice goes to the highest bidder. We all know that is true.

I couldn’t resist showing that one first but consider the top ten (10).

1) Once you have their money, never give it back.*

2) You can’t cheat an honest customer, but it never hurts to try.

3) Never buy anything for more than is absolutely necessary.*

4) Sex and profit are the two things that never last long enough.

5) If you can’t break a contract, bend it.

6) Never let family stand in the way of opportunity.*

7) Always keep your ears open.*

8) Keep count of your change.

9) Instinct plus opportunity equals profit.*

10) A dead customer can’t buy as much as a live one. Never kill a customer unless the profit you make off his death is larger than the profit you can make off his life.

Yes very funny, but consider Contracting 101 in relation to the above Top 10:

1. It is so important and difficult to collect from the client that you don’t want to do anything foolish that would require you to have to give it back. Think indemnification clauses in a contract where you indemnify for anything arising out of the performance of your services. Insurance doesn’t cover that. Insurance covers for the negligent performance of services.

2. How often have you found that the engineer is being cheated? If the engineer allows himself or herself to be cheated it is their own fault. Think about the fiduciary obligations owed.

3. Think competitive bidding and the contracting procedures associated with that.

4. Well that goes without saying.

5. How often have you found terms in a contract that allow termination for convenience?

6. How often have you been told to use a particular subconsultant only to find out that the subconsultant has some sort of relationship with the client?

By now I hope you get the idea…Some of the morals are questionable, but how true an application to Contracting 101!

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Featured Guest Blogger: Babette Ten Haken
Sales Aerobics for Engineers
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Had coffee with one of my marketing colleagues yesterday. Interesting conversation about how so many of our clients in the B2B marketplace perceive the discipline of Marketing as a superficial indulgence they engage in, reluctantly, from time to time.

After all, everyone knows Who You Are, which is the first sign and symptom of Word of Mouth syndrome. Your company has been around for a while. You’ve been drinking your own Kool-Aid® and believe your firm will be top of mind when an A/E firm is needed.

Let the newbie competitor engineering and architecture companies nipping at your heels engage in “marketing communications.” After all, the newbies are the ones who need the business, not your company, right?

Newsflash folks. No matter How Great You Think You Art, you are not as top-of-mind in the vendor selection process as you think you “art.” And those competitor companies nipping at your heels? They aren’t all local, or even domestic, competitors. Their marketing communications efforts firmly place their companies where their clients and prospects are looking and when they are looking to receive strong and consistent messages about the core competencies of their firms.  And Where They Art, You Are Not. Now who is competing with whom? And in what market space?

Marketing isn’t the sprinkles on the cupcake, folks. It IS the cupcake. Marketing is the front end of cash flow. And if you are looking to shorten your business development, sales, and order-to-cash cycles, marketing is where you start. It’s not a matter of cold calling or constantly stopping by your customers and leaving coffee, donuts and brochures. It’s not a matter of wining and dining them or inviting them to your company’s annual golf outing.

The American Marketing Association defines marketing as “the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.” Hmmm. Sounds a bit more noble than sprinkles on the cupcake. In fact, it sounds like marketing addresses how you identify prospective customers, the actions you take to secure these customers, and the strategies you use to retain these customers. Sounds like a plan to me. And it sounds like an endeavor that should be part of everyone’s job description.

Because everyone in your organization is the physical embodiment of your delivery of your core competencies against your marketing strategy and marketing communications. Yes, it’s that’s important.

So what kind of marketing strategy and communications does your company engage in? Especially since marketing appears to impact the type of cupcake you bake. Forget about the sprinkles. An annual ad in the ADA journal? A booth at a local trade show, maybe every other year? Purchase of Google ad words? A little bit of this, a little bit of that, dabbling instead of aggressively pursuing. Because the professions of architecture and engineering are noble and lofty, which preclude them from engaging in marketing communications? Huh?

Ah c’mon folks. Do you know how many people look for information about doctors on Angie’s List (yes, Angie’s List)? Do you know how many folks just type in local architect and call the company whose name starts with “A”, which usually is the local handyman or design-builder? Who ends up doing a good job?

If you don’t educate your current and prospective customers about Who Thou Art, they will never have an opportunity to find out How Great Thou Art. And you don’t have to necessarily feel like you are part of the latest chapter of Mad Men® when marketing. In fact, it might feel natural.

Marketing involves a bit more than hawking your wares. It’s more like growing your personal and corporate brand. In deeds, rather than words. In stewardship, rather than client dinners.

When’s the last time your firm published a white paper, worked with Engineers Without Borders®, taught a drafting class at the local trade school or partnered on the local Habitat for Humanity® project? When’s the last time you invited your prospective and current clients to join with you in these efforts?

That’s the real marketing. Because that’s what matters. That is how you can walk your talk and show how your art and craft is all about making this place far more tolerable and habitable for society.

That’s the recipe for a well-baked cupcake. One that your clients will want to buy. Over and over again.

Think about it.

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In 2008, we posted a brief BLOG titled “Sustainability in Civil Engineering.” Now, 3 years later, I asked several civil engineering leaders to discuss this topic. For example: Do clients request or require sustainable design? Is there a difference in cost on sustainable design projects? What else do you think about this topic?  Here are their thoughts:

Mark Gabriel, Senior Vice President Strategy and Business Process, Black & Veatch

“Regarding sustainability, it is really about the efficient use of resources and has morphed into the realization of the triple bottom line. From an energy perspective all facets of construction (or deferral of construction) are now taken into account. For example, water use is a huge issue. In our 2011 Strategic Directions of the Utility Industry survey, water was the number one environmental issue by the 700 respondents. The challenge is that there is a cost to sustainable options that needs to be borne by someone–either the public or the shareholders. And, therein lies the challenge.

Sustainability in many ways is being “cooked” into the fabric of construction decisions as opposed to simply being another factor “sprinkled in” at the last minute to get a project constructed.”

Richard Diaz, PE, President, Diaz Pearson & Associates, Inc.

“In some respects, today’s Sustainability is a revival of the conservation movement back in the 1970’s. It still can be thought of as the wise use of our resources, the consciousness of designing infrastructure for the long term, and awareness that short term replacement and reconstruction are not realistic options. I think many would agree that there is more awareness today in our dwindling resources, many of which are precious.

Sustainable Development is more than just water cooler talk. For Civil Engineers, it’s also more than the ‘green theme’ architectural flavor of the day. Civil engineers have traditionally been concerned about sustainable design; as far back as I can remember. Life cycle cost and the creation of long term value have been civil engineering issues for a long time, not just current topics. Clearly there’s an appreciation for civil engineering’s ‘sustainability’ value that went into the Hoover Dam, Brooklyn Bridge and so many other notable landmarks still operating today.

Sustainability in design is critical, if nothing more, than to craft meaningful solutions to our infrastructure needs in competition with limited financial resources. Sadly, so much of our nation’s infrastructure has been overlooked and is in need of replacement. Arguably, one might believe that because of civil engineering’s core sustainability value, our nation’s infrastructure has been able to enjoy little maintenance attention. That’s no longer the case. We’re at the critical point in meeting our expected service needs for energy, transportation, water supply, and wastewater treatment.

Everywhere one looks there are social, educational, and medical issues competing for financial support. More than ever, sustainability in civil engineering design must be the central theme for creative solutions that match limited financial resources. I believe civil engineering’s core sustainability value will continue to provide reasonable solutions without compromise for the future. Perhaps more than ever this is an exciting and challenging time for civil engineering leadership!”

Jeanne Acutanza, PE,  CH2M HILL and http://www.greengrowthcc.com

“Infrastructure clients, generally public agencies, are not only interested in sustainability to preserve natural environments and reduce energy use, but increasingly to save money.  Measuring sustainability in infrastructure (like LEED certifications for buildings) is becoming necessary to compare and prioritize projects for funding as well as to optimize project efficiency.  CH2M HILL pioneered one rating system with the University of Washington called the Greenroads rating system http://www.greenroads.org/.  This tool is being used by funding agencies to help agencies enhance and optimize sustainability on their project grant submittals.  CH2M HILL is leading a team to develop a rating tool for FHWA.  The tool http://www.sustainablehighways.org/ builds on context sensitive solutions principles to evaluate highway projects.  The tool is in its pilot testing phase.  FHWA is seeking feedback from agencies using the tool.”

Confidential

“The concept of sustainability is just beginning to get traction at least in the US public sector. We are starting to see some RFP’s that discuss or request sustainable design. However, clients are also being cautious in implementation. Will sustainable concepts increase costs? If yes, how much? Do sustainable designs add value to the project? If yes, can we demonstrate the benefits added. In the global marketplace, sustainability is more frequently cited in solicitations.”

As we continue to pursue resource conservation, what changes are you seeing from your clients and within your projects? Thoughts?

Featured Guest Blogger: Babette Ten Haken
Sales Aerobics for Engineers
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This is the time of year when many civil engineering and A/E consulting firms start pressuring their employees to complete outstanding projects for invoicing by year’s end. Now is the time of year when companies start pressuring their business development folks to bring in more work, win more contracts, make appointments with more people, talk to somebody, anybody who appears mildly interested in doing business with your company. It’s also the time when management simultaneously starts to threaten and cajole employees to become more productive and generate more revenue…. “or else.”  It’s the time of year when we sometimes sit with our collective heads in our hands and wonder how we ever got ourselves into all this.

OK. Time to climb off your mental ledge and get your feet firmly back into the building. While I am not about to wave a magic wand and tell you that all will be OK, there are some things you should think about doing if you haven’t already started. Regardless of whether your corporate fiscal year aligns with the calendar year. 

Some thoughts for teeing up for this fiscal year’s end and beyond….

1. Next year’s business development campaign starts January 1 of the previous year. Clients’ and prospects’ sales years and cash flow simply do not align with your or your company’s need to generate revenue. You work for them, not the opposite. As you identify prospects and projects, put them into your “mental file folder:” is this particular project or client worth your time and effort, should they not be in a position to move forward for, say 12 months? Some of the big projects are won in this manner. You have to work differently with these types of clients and develop a strong understanding of how decisions are made within their corporate culture and infrastructure.
2. Providing value to your clients doesn’t involve constantly jumping through their hoops. Some clients are sadistic: they treat all of their vendors in this manner, constantly changing their minds, upping the ante, and expecting not to be charged for their indecision and vanity. (You are not an advertising agency which self-selects for individuals who like living on the edge like this). Perhaps these are not the types of clients your company should be pursuing, even though they may offer the potential for landing big, juicy, high-profile projects. They may not treat you very well, while expecting you to put up with them and rack up a huge amount of non-billable hours in the process. If all of your clients are like this, how compromised and exhausted do you feel by the end of the year? Perhaps it’s time to clean out your client closet.
3. Best may be better than optimal. While you pursue your technical quest for the optimal solution, how much is it costing your company? Unless you are an architectural or engineering genius and are the only reason your company was awarded the contract in the first place, you are part of a collaborative team effort. So communicate and determine whether the optimal solution really is optimal in the long run, before you pursue that design path. Depending on where we sit around the table, we see the same thing differently. Make sure you validate your ideas along with everyone else’s perspective. The best solution may be the most robust, in the long run.

What is your strategy for finishing up the current fiscal year? Let me know.

I read a book not too long ago entitled Getting Things Done by David Allan.  The book provides strategies and an overall process for getting organized and becoming more productive.  One strategy that I’ve been able to take from this book and not only use myself, but also help engineers to implement through coaching is David’s A to Z filing system.

It is common amongst us civil engineers for papers to pile up on our desk throughout the course of the day.  Papers, plans, invoices, etc can swallow up our office.  Every once in a while it will become so overbearing that we’ll take a whole day and clean out our office which usually consists of throwing most of these items out.  Does this sound familiar?

David’s A to Z system is a great process that will help you to get and STAY organized.  Here is how it works.  Start by designating one large filing drawer or an entire filing cabinet for you’re A to Z system.  Fill the cabinet with 26 hanging folders and label them A through Z.  Next, start making a list of all of the items that you might file away (i.e. example, specifications, estimates, manufacturers information, stormwater guidelines, etc.).  Then create a file folder for each one of these items and be sure to label them clearly.  Then the fun part begins.  Starting with your desk begin to file away items into the proper folders.  You may have to create new folders along the way or slightly modify the system over the first few weeks.  For example, you might have to decide on whether you want to use the word ‘drainage’ or ‘stormwater’ which will determine whether that folder ends up in ‘D’ or ‘S.’

After a few weeks of implementing this system, your office will be clean!  Then you just have to work on keeping it clean, which is pretty easy with this system.  As items come across your desk simply file them into the proper folder or create a new one, when necessary.

You may think that this system is extremely simplistic and actually it is.  I have successfully implemented this system both in my office and in my home and I never have a problem finding something.  I hope this tip is helpful for you can bring more balance to both your career and your life.

Please share any organizational strategies that you are currently using!

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Last week I decided to reach out to a client that I had not spoken to in a few months.  They are a very respectable mid-sized consulting civil engineering firm with a couple hundred employees spread over 7 or 8 offices.  I had successfully completed a search earlier this year for them, but I knew they were having some cash flow problems based upon the current economic conditions.  That said,  I thought I would check in and see if they were seeing any light at the end of the tunnel .  In checking in with the president, things were looking a little more rosier on some fronts and he was confident they would pull through this leeeeennnnnggggttttthhhhhyyyyyyy downturn with a strong team still in place and without getting knocked around the way many of his competitors have (not only is he a good engineer, but he is a better business man).  In any event, we were talking shop and he began to educate me on their most recent hurdle – getting squeezed!

Now – the company has spent many years brewing up the perfect balance of public and private clients.  On the private side, they are 25% commercial/25% industrial, and on the public side they are 25% transportation, 25% other government.  Because of their diverse client base, they have been able to fight through these difficult times with a just a few bruises; but now they are getting squeezed…by municipalities, cities, and even by their main DOT client; a client that has recognized them as one of their top, if not THE top consultant for them over the past 15 years.

I know, I know,  what do I mean by “squeezed?”

Well first of all, the DOT, as well as other government clients,  have been cancelling contracts and absorbing much of the work that they had previously awarded…and started!  So I get that; its happening in many different parts of the country, and I get the rhyme and reason behind it…I don’t necessarily agree with it, but I get it.  So that is one way they are getting squeezed.

But now the state DOT is requiring that any prime consultant who bids for a project must have, not 2 or 3…not 4 or 5…but 6+ sub-consultants tied to the contract.  Most states require civil engineering consultants to spread the wealth by teaming with DBE’s, MBE’s, etc. to help them get a piece of the action.  But for a mid-sized company who is too big to chase the small stuff, and not large enough to go after the $100M projects, how can they expect to grow or expand, or even maintain for that matter with those types of restrictions? I will tell you, knowing this organization as well as I do, they will end up making lemonade out of the lemons that have been dealt to them, but my question to you is…

Is this fair?  Is your civil engineering firm getting squeezed as well?

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Featured Guest Blogger: Babette Ten Haken
Sales Aerobics for Engineers
Strategies and Toolkit for the Sales-Engineering Interface
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So how do you handle business development for your company? You do realize that every time you speak with a customer, you are making some sort of impression that will either make the customer: 1) want to do business with you; or 2) not. That’s business development. It’s about developing a customer and retaining them. It’s not about simply closing a sale or answering a technical question and then rushing on to the next one. Business development: it’s in your job description. Even if you are an engineer. Yes, you read me correctly.

So, how do you develop business for your company? Do you let your customers choose from an endless list of options and then add it all up? Or are you the voice of reason that stops them at a certain point and weighs the pros and cons about their choices? What directives does your company give you on how far to let the customer go before you jerk them back into reality? Or are you constantly participating in the bid process as your sole strategy for customer acquisition? You know, giving away everything for practically nothing.

If you are a “custom” company, then everything is a la carte. Cha-ching for you! How many of your customers are repeat customers as a result of this process? How many of your clients tell their friends about their experience with your company, which hopefully was positive? And does being “custom” set you above your competitors, in terms of the products, services and complete experience the customer receives from working with your company? Or are you perceived as a bunch of divas at the high end of the price-value continuum who niche market to, well, other divas? You create a great design at a high cost and people brag about how much they spent…while they complain about various aspects of their experience. It’s all part of “your” package.

OK, so you aren’t a custom shop. Perhaps semi-custom. Neither a la carte nor all-inclusive. That means you have retained customers who have provided repeat business for your company because they were happy with the products, services, price and experience you provided to them. Which means you are doing “similar but different” iterations of set pieces across the country or in various local municipalities. The customer knows what to anticipate from similar builds you’ve created either for them or other folks. You have created a great formula and understand how to build and maintain relationships starting with the person answering the phone to the person ordering materials to the individual doing the build. As far as the price-value thing goes, your customers feel they are getting a great deal (meaning a lot) for their investment because you include a bunch of practical stuff in the build package, based on your experience with other customers. It’s all part of “your” package.

Or you are known as the third bid, all-inclusive folks. The ones to whom the bid is always awarded based on price alone. That means you have a solid and successful track record of participating in public works projects and receiving the contracts on these projects. Because you possibly have turned your company into low-ball specialists. It’s all part of “your” package, which is basically 100% “their” package, anyway.

You know, there’s nothing wrong with any of these business development approaches. As long as you, your employees, and your customers “get it.” I mean, you should be focusing your marketing and sales efforts on the type of customers you prefer doing business with. Right? You just need to constantly ask yourself whether you are the a la carte folks, the folks in the middle or the all-inclusive low-ball folks. And whether you are doing business with the type of customers you actually prefer doing business with. So you understand why your customer base, and your profit margins, look the way they do.

Think about it.

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