Ask yourself how many client visits you or your business development team have taken where you’ve come away with a “bloody nose” or met a commercial “dead-end”.  Count up the cost of the flights, hotel rooms, wasted time and the delay in growing your business before you honed your message and got it right.  It took a few road-trips before you got that killer presentation, didn’t it.  Or are you still trying?

Before you go any further, why not consider hosting an Opinion Leader Forum?  Used widely in big pharma for gaining critical insight into prescribing practices and unmet medical need, it can be adapted for enabling technology companies and CROs to help them with their commercial strategy.

The practicalities of hosting a forum are simple:

1. Select a location and timing to coincide with a major relevant industry conference.
2. Invite a selection of large pharma/small biotech, existing clients and people you would like to do business with in the future, using the conference speaker lists or pre-attendee list if available.
3. Book a meeting room from 3-6pm at a respectable hotel and a private restaurant room suitable for around 12 people (8-10 guests + 2 company participants) from around 6:30pm onwards.
4. Offer a small honorarium or donation to a charity as an incentive.
5. If possible use a third party host to send out the invitations so that it doesn’t look like a selling opportunity (which it isn’t by the way).

Structure the forum around some key questions relating to your market, your proposition and ask open questions to gain advice and comment about potential new applications or services.   By all means have a couple of slides at the start to introduce your company and why you’re there, but DON’T be tempted to give a 20 minute presentation on your company and services as you currently define them.  This isn’t a sales pitch, it’s a LISTENING opportunity, where you get to understand what your customers actually want and need.  Make sure that there are at least a couple of people from your company there to take notes (but DON’T crowd out the room with all your people).  To make it more powerful, use a third party consultant who knows the industry to chair the forum.

You should get a better idea of the market need, ideas for new product development, a selection of the most appropriate key messages and positioning for your product/services and a strong steer for your commercial strategy.  And remember that people always like to be asked for their advice.  For your potential customers this might mean that they remember you the next time you knock on their door.  You’ll certainly stand out from the crowd because you actually listened and invited their opinion.  Not many of them to the pound as they say around here.