‘Twas the night before the Big Pitch

Christmas in September

Christmas in September

All the plans have been hatched. The presentations prepared. The rehearsals held.

Now all we have to do is get through one more sleep to see if we’ve been very, very good or …

One of the realities of a consultant’s life is the new business pitch.

We have a really big one coming up tomorrow morning – at 8AM.

I know that many agency folk don’t like being asked for creative as part of the pitch process. I take a different approach. As long as the potential client restricts the pitch to a short list of agencies they have pre-screened, I’m keen for my team to give it our very best. How else can the potential client get a sense of our creativity and how we think? How else can they get a good sense of whether we’ll be a match for them?

As I see it, the creative pitch ensures that clients know what they are getting. In Thornley Fallis’ case, a team with a definite perspective on best practices and the standards that are established by the transparency that social media has thrust upon every organization. We’re prepared to work hard, but we won’t compromise our principles. And we get a chance to convey this when we present to potential clients.

This approach means that Thornley Fallis isn’t the right agency for every client. But for those who want advisors who will tell truth regardless of whether it’s comfortable or convenient, we fit right in.

So, tomorrow’s a big pitch day. And we really want a chance to work with this client. We’ve done everything we possibly could to prepare. So, I’m happy.

This is the way I like to feel the night before a high stakes competition. Whether we win or lose, we’ve done everything we could to prepare.

  • http://www.canentrepreneur.com Rick Spence

    Good luck, Joe! I have a feeling your team will pull through.
    But c’mon. In the interests of transparency, tell us something about the pitch. How many people are in on it? How many rehearsals?
    Are you seeing more or fewer of these pitches in the current economy?
    And is there an upside to a shoot-out like this, even if you don’t win the business? I bet the ideas, the sparks, the collaboration and the passion all spell big wins, regardless.
    Looking back, after all, I think it is the Christmas Eves I remember most fondly, not the tumult of the morning….

    • http://www.propr.ca Joseph Thornley

      Hi Rick,
      If we win, I’ll most assuredly be posting a great big W00t! And if we lose, I’ll probably leave it to the winner to post their happiness. Then I’ll congratulate them. :-)

      This has been a great pitch. Our first with two new team members we recruited in Ottawa. So, a chance for our team to integrate new perspectives. I’ll probably post about that later.

  • http://www.gypsybandito.com CT Moore

    So how did it go? When do you find out?

    • http://www.propr.ca Joseph Thornley

      We came out of the presentation with the feeling that we’d made our best case. Spoke directly to the client’s interests. Answered all the questions. Demonstrated experience, expertise and creativity. All boxes ticked off.

      Bottom line: We felt that we delivered a winning pitch.

      Of course, that doesn’t mean we’ll win. Winning engages emotionally factors as well as logical factors. And it’s impossible for us to read what’s really going on with the client.

      But we’re happy that we delivered the best we could.

      So, now we wait. Not sure how long. Large clients often have several stakeholders with a voice in the decision. But we’re happy to get the decision on their timetable.