Winning Public Sector Business - a rough guide

4. Winning business

So how do you go about winning public sector business? Well, it’s not so different from any market:

4.1 Finding your customer

Your first problem is that there are so many potential target organisations, it will take time and effort to pin down your likely customers. And they are all individual – there is almost no level of generalisation that will be of any value to developing a sales approach or engaging with them.

However they are all listed in published directories and although finding the right person in the organisation can be time-consuming, it is relatively easier to contact them and get a meeting than in the private sector. If you haven’t tried selling to this sector you will be surprised by the openness of the culture - most of the information you need is available on the web or in the phone book and a few phone calls will always get you to the right person.

First, take a look at the organisation’s website. There should be a set of pages under the heading ‘How to sell to us’ or something similar. This should identify what the organisation buys and any partnerships or outsourced services, where you may need to pursue the partner or prime contractor organisation. Councils are always looking to improve the way they provide best value to their communities and this can mean local companies are given every opportunity to bid for business.

4.2 Understanding your customer

Public sector buyers complain that too many would-be suppliers try to sell them products and services without first really understanding their needs.

Most buying in public sector organisations, other than the big contracts, has traditionally been undertaken in the relevant Department by the person directly responsible for delivering the service – ie they are unlikely to be professional procurement managers. Where framework agreements have been implemented (see 6.2), usually for cataloguable goods and services such as stationery, furniture, printing, temporary staff and photocopiers, the ordering is carried out locally but the contract is placed by a central contracts or procurement manager

Because they are relatively easy to find, buyers are deluged with sales calls and literature, so there is a reluctance to being ‘sold to’ that will need to be managed down if you are to succeed. To win their business, you really need to start by finding out more about them and their needs. In the case of Local Authorities this means finding opportunities to meet Councillors (elected members who have influence and can dictate policy but do not manage the purchasing process) and Officers (the managers and staff who do the work) in non-sales environments. Luckily there are always functions and open meetings you can attend.

For central government and other agencies, it is also important to get to know the decision-makers and buyers in a non-sales environment but this can be more difficult. Some public sector organisations hold Meet the Buyer events, but in other cases it’s a matter of getting in to see the right people or inviting them to come to an event or function that is relevant to their interests.

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For information or help in breaking into this sector or improving your market share, contact us for a free initial consultation.

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