062: Asking the Right Questions to Get the Best Pursuit Intelligence

05/11/22 • 10 min

Capture Planning is an essential element in winning pursuits. It is a methodical process of understanding the client and decision-makers, the potential project, and the competitive landscape; and then turning that into a winning proposal. It often requires a full team of business development, marketing, and technical professionals.

The goal is to have the right information to create compelling and compliant submissions that win! As you can imagine, much of the Capture Planning effort happens before the RFP is released. This important process assesses opportunities, and positions firms accordingly.

And, part of the Capture Planning involves meeting with clients, stakeholders, and other decision-makers to gain intelligence about the project and its goals. To help you uncover the best information, you need to know what questions to ask and how to ask them.

In this episode, I share a lesson from my Proposal Pro Course - Gap Finding. In this lesson, I explain what a gap is and why it's critical to help differentiate your firm. And then how to find gaps for your pursuits. (Hint: it involves asking great questions!)
To help you get started, download my handout that includes dozens of gap-finding questions. Use this list to help prepare your business development and technical staff before they meet with clients. You can download this free pdf on the show notes page.

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Previous Episode

061: AEC Firms: Add These LinkedIn Strategies to Your Marketing Plan

You most likely have a LinkedIn page for your firm. And, you're most likely posting employee get-togethers and industry events you're attending. Am I right?
But are you really maximizing LinkedIn to showcase your subject matter expertise and position your firm as the industry leader?
What if there were some other features of LinkedIn that you could add to your marketing strategy that actually attracts your ideal clients and prospects? And, by adding those wouldn't take too much time, effort, or resources? Would you be interested in learning about those?
That's what this week's Marketers Take Flight podcast episode is all about - introducing you to a few new LinkedIn features and why AEC firms should add those to their marketing strategies.
I've got a special guest, Mindi Rosser, who specializes in helping B2B firms build the personal brands of their SMEs as well as company brands, specifically on LinkedIn. She brings a broader perspective of how other B2B companies are leveraging LinkedIn to start meaningful conversations to fill their pipelines of potential new work.

Additionally, Mindi discusses our profile, the importance of an up-to-date profile picture, and what a good headline should include. We discuss how our firms can help us with that headline and how it can be used to acquire new prospects or clients. This episode is packed with actionable strategies.

Here are some highlights:

New features on LinkedIn: 6:02
LinkedIn newsletters: 7:16
LinkedIn live: 9:45
What happens on LinkedIn lives: 15:37
Personal vs. Firm Brand: 17:37
How to attract the right people on LinkedIn: 21:34
Headlines: 23:59
How can your firm help with headlines: 27:52
Recap: Your LinkedIn strategy and approach: 31:36

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Next Episode

063: Build Firm Credibility with Media Relations

If you have ever opened a trade magazine, you might have thought, 'I can do that.' But you aren't sure where to start. And that's exactly what we're going to discuss today. Reputation Ink's Michelle Calcote King is here and we're talking about the content sweet spot, knowledge extraction, and editorial calendars.

Consider taking notes on how to work through those steps if you have been thinking about getting published either for your own brand or for your firm. We have never discussed this topic before, so let's begin.

Here are some highlights: