Business Development can be summarized as work that combines Sales and Marketing. This includes increasing revenue, growing business expansion, increasing profits by building strategic partnerships, and making strategic business decisions.
Business development activities include sales, marketing, project management, product management, and supplier management. All activities are promoted and designed according to business development goals.
A Business Developer is a specialist focused on identifying and creating new business opportunities to drive the growth and expansion of a company. Their role can be highly varied depending on the type of company and specific industry.
Key Responsibilities of a Business Developer include:
Market Research: Analyzing the market, competitors, and potential customers to identify new business opportunities.
Building Relationships: Creating and maintaining relationships with partners, potential customers, and other stakeholders to foster business opportunities.
Developing Business Strategies: Proposing and implementing strategies to expand the market, increase revenue, and grow the business.
Negotiating and Contracting: Conducting negotiations with customers and partners to reach agreements that benefit the company.
Product and Service Development: Suggesting improvements or new developments for the company's products and services to meet market demands.
Project Planning and Management: Managing business development projects from the planning stage through to implementation and completion.
What is business development? Mainly they are tasked with developing and diversifying business to increase revenue and ensure organizational growth.
The business development role is very important, with some key duties and responsibilities that must be completed to achieve short and long-term goals. Aniday lists the job description of a business development position below:
Develop growth strategies and plans
Manage and maintain relationships with current customers
Increase customer quantity
Have in-depth knowledge of business products and propose value
Write business proposals
Negotiate with stakeholders
Identify and map business strengths and customer needs
Research viable business opportunities
Update domestic and international industry trends
Draft and review contracts
Report on successes and areas for improvement
Creative thinking - Whether seeing new ways to develop current opportunities or finding entirely new marketing avenues, creativity is essential for the role.
Analytical skills - However, for business development, this creativity must be built upon a foundation of an analytical mindset.
Communication skills - Business development is not for those who prefer solo work. You'll need support from management, marketing, finance, and product/service specialists. You may be required to coordinate with account managers and sales teams with traditional focus areas and priorities elsewhere.
Negotiation skills - New business always requires new terms and you'll be responsible for ensuring negotiated terms are favorable to your organization.
Goal focus - New business is rarely won overnight. You must prove you can maintain and develop relationships long-term while still having the ability to score quick wins to meet targets and deadlines.
Organization skills - Many balls to juggle and not all will drop at the same rate. You must respond quickly to meet tight deadlines while still nurturing and developing slower-burning opportunities.