Step 1: Analysis and strategy development
Every successful business development process begins with a solid analysis phase.
Internal and external factors are considered:
- Market analysis: What trends are shaping the industry? Where are new customer segments emerging?
Surveys of existing and potential customers provide direct feedback on needs, expectations, and pain points, complementing traditional market analyses. - Competitive analysis: Who are the relevant competitors, what strategies are they pursuing, and where are there opportunities for differentiation?
Surveys of customers or industry experts can help identify perceptions of competitors and potential opportunities for differentiation. - Internal analysis: What are your company’s strengths and weaknesses? Are there any skills or resources that are particularly scalable?
Internal surveys can help to systematically capture employees’ knowledge and assessments of strengths, innovation potential, or process weaknesses.
Example: A medium-sized mechanical engineering company discovers through market analyses and customer surveys that its technology can also be used in medical technology. This results in a new growth strategy.
The results lead to a clearly formulated business development strategy that takes opportunities and risks into account.
Step 2: Defining goals and prioritizing
Strategy alone is not enough — it must be translated into concrete goals.
The SMART rule applies here (specific, measurable, attractive, realistic, time-bound):
- Short-term goals: e.g., generating 20 qualified leads per quarter.
- Medium-term goals: Entering a new geographic market within two years.
- Long-term goals: Establishing yourself as the market leader in a specific segment.
Surveys can also help here: by questioning customers or sales partners, realistic targets can be derived and priorities set. This enables companies to identify early on which initiatives are actually resonating.
Prioritization is crucial, as resources such as personnel and budget are limited.
A clear focus significantly increases the likelihood of success.
Step 3: Pipeline and lead management
Business development thrives on a structured process of initiating business relationships:
- Lead identification: Potential customers or partners are found through networking, trade fairs, LinkedIn, research, or recommendations.
- Lead qualification: Not every contact is valuable. Criteria such as sales potential, decision-making authority, and market access help with prioritization.
- Relationship building: Business development is relationship work. It often takes months or years for a contact to turn into a deal. A professional CRM system creates transparency, enables forecasts, and ensures that no opportunities are lost.
Customer satisfaction or market response surveys can support lead qualification and help identify opportunities early on.
Example: A SaaS startup uses HubSpot and accompanying surveys to ask webinar participants about their needs. The responses are directly incorporated into lead nurturing and content strategy.
Step 4: Build partnerships and networks
An essential part of business development is creating win-win situations:
- Strategic alliances: Companies with complementary strengths join forces to tap into markets together.
- Cooperation with start-ups: Established companies benefit from innovative strength, start-ups from market access.
- Industry ecosystems: Associations, clusters, or networks offer opportunities to build visibility and contacts.
Surveys of partners or within networks can help identify interests, willingness to cooperate, and potential synergies.
Example: An e-commerce company cooperates with a logistics provider and asks its customers about their delivery preferences via a survey. This results in a targeted joint offer.
Step 5: Offer development and negotiation
As soon as there is concrete interest, the offer design phase begins:
- Creation of business cases with ROI calculations
- Adaptation of products or services to market or customer requirements
- Negotiations on prices, terms, and joint investments
Surveys help to precisely understand customer needs and tailor offers accordingly.
Example: An IT service provider develops a special support model for a major customer after a survey of key stakeholders reveals specific requirements.
Step 6: Implementation and follow-up
The work is not finished once completion is achieved.
Sustainable success requires:
- Handover to operational teams (e.g., sales, project management, customer service)
- Supporting implementation to ensure that expectations are met
- Monitoring KPIs and feedback loops
Regular customer surveys after implementation help to identify weaknesses, adjust processes, and ensure long-term satisfaction.
Step 7: Continuous optimization
Business development is not a static process:
- Markets change due to technology and regulation.
- Competitors develop new strategies.
- Customer needs are constantly changing.
Surveys are an ongoing tool for identifying changes in customer preferences, market trends, or partner satisfaction at an early stage.
Regular evaluation of KPIs, lessons learned, and targeted process optimizations ensure sustainable growth.
Conclusion
Business development is a complex but structurable process.
It encompasses much more than just acquisition: from market and competition analysis to strategy and goal development, the establishment of pipelines and partnerships, to the preparation of offers, implementation, and continuous optimization.
Surveys are a versatile tool for directly identifying needs, priorities, and trends—internally among employees and externally among customers and partners.
Companies that establish these processes professionally and systematically gather feedback not only gain new customers but also secure a sustainable competitive advantage.
