Welcome to Red Splash, specialists in the creation and management of business development strategies that enable companies to grow.
Business Development - Shaping Your Future
"I just wanted to drop you a line to say thank you for all the work you have done for us so far. We are very happy with the web site and have already had some great feedback from our colleagues and clients. I feel that we are now in a much more credible proposition as a company and it really fills me with confidence when I am out prospecting for business, and also it makes me feel excited for the future. I have really appreciated your honesty and flexibility working with us and we now see you as part of our team." - Debra at SOT
Our Stepping Stone Process
Our Stepping Stone process is developed using the proven methods that successful organisations use to drive their sales. The skills and experience that we share with our clients, along with our understanding of the challenges companies face today, means that we will create a real sense of direction for your business that will deliver increased sales.
Discover how we work and the outcomes we deliver and then if you think we can help, just get in touch for a chat, or perhaps book a workshop where we can help you gather together your thoughts and ideas to initiate that first step.
Step 1
Knowledge
The first step in creating any plan or strategy has to be to ask the questions "what do we know?" and probably more importantly "what don't we know?". These questions can relate to any number of situations, both within our client's businesses and the markets in which they operate.
Knowledge provides the understanding we need in order to ensure the strategies and activities we create and manage are focused and based upon the reality of a situation. Not on a series of assumptions that will invariably lead to wasted opportunities and budgets.
We use a number of different techniques to gather the information. We often start with a client workshop using a structured process to highlight areas of opportunity within the business and help us formulate the actions that will be necessary in order to make those opportunities accessible.
We also firmly believe in asking our client's customers what they think both about the company and its products or services. This is frequently an enlightening experience for all concerned. Focus groups or other relevant research techniques are also employed that allow a better insight into what the dynamics really are within the market and how our clients interact with their customers.
Step 2
Shape
Armed with the insight gained in the Knowledge step, we are now able to shape strategies that are relevant to market needs. We are also better able to create propositions along with supportive creative, media and sales strategies that are in tune with and relevant to market expectations.
In this initial creative stage we make decisions about key target markets, the people who inhabit those markets and the products and services that will be sold to them. Here we create concepts - how the product or service will be positioned and presented to its target audience.
Step 3
Test
Having written the briefs, we take the concepts we have created on how we might position and sell a product or service, back to the people we talked to in the previous Knowledge step. By doing so we can again benefit and perhaps adjust our proposals based upon their insight.
This work is done with a high degree of discretion and the people we talk to are carefully chosen to ensure the information is not made available to a client's competitors and the opinions we seek are valid and have weight within the markets in which we are operating.
Step 4
Create
Now we finalise the business, marketing and sales strategies that have been shaped with the aid of the knowledge gained through the previous steps.
These are therefore well grounded strategies with realistic expectations of success - no finger in the air hope and see thinking based on false assumptions and outdated information.
Step 5
Manage
Using our knowledge and experience we now deliver the chosen strategies to the market place in whatever form that might take. We understand the importance of being flexible, carrying our audience with us and attending to the detail that might well make the difference between a good idea being delivered to the appropriate target audience or simply being wasted through lack of support and commitment.
Working closely with our clients we drive the activity forward, drawing on the specific resources required for each task. These can be from the client, our own team or other external resources, but we manage all of these skills to achieve the successful completion of all the activities.
Step 6
Analyse
As the activity progresses we continually monitor its effect and its ability to achieve the agreed objectives. By evaluating the effectiveness throughout the process we have the opportunity to adjust future tasks in order to ensure that they continue to achieve maximum impact.
Whatever information we gather from these activities is also stored to better inform future strategies.
Step 7
Exploit
Our client now has new assets to exploit, new clients to grow, perhaps new product or service ideas that have been unearthed through the work undertaken, and certainly new information on which to further develop the strategies we have created and put into practice.
Now is the time to use what has been newly won and to push forward and exploit its value.
