The Conversion Series: Part 2 - Preparing the Ground

Photo by Adél Grőber on Unsplash‍ ‍

In the last article, we laid some foundations: that conversion is a moment in a conversation when you and your client agree to do something together. Maybe it’s a whiteboard session. Maybe it’s a proposal. The form doesn’t matter. What matters is that it’s mutual and beneficial for the client.

Sometimes that can happen organically. But for many people it’s important to prepare ourselves – our thoughts, our intention and our mood. This article, part 2 of 4, is about that preparation.

Here are four things that help:

1. Reconnect with Your Purpose

What are you here to help create?

Before you step into any BD conversation, pause. Other than you, who benefits if this goes well? What difference do you want to make—and for whom?

This isn’t about a slick mission statement. It’s about tuning into what your work enables for others. You don’t need to name it perfectly. But clients will feel it when you’re speaking from that place. Confidence wobbles and that’s human. Separate yourself from the work. Your work is in service of something bigger. What is that?

2. Clarify Your Value Proposition

Assuming a base level of competence, everyone brings something distinct to their work. What do you bring that’s distinct—and how does it help? It’s not just what you do, but how you do it. The way you interact. The perspective you bring. The way people feel after working with you. If you don’t know, ask your clients.

3. Remember: Value Starts Before the Contract

You don’t have to wait to be hired to be helpful. You can invite, educate or connect. You can offer a thinking partner session, a walkthrough, a way of seeing that helps.

Every request or offer is part of a conversational loop. Some loops end in a project. Others just leave the client better off. Either way, trust builds.

Keep a few pre-engagement offers in your pocket—and when a moment presents itself, say: “Let’s explore this together.”

4. Turn up with Conviction, Curiosity, and Care

Without these, none of the above matters.

• Conviction: Do you trust in the impact of your work?

• Curiosity: Are you truly interested in what’s happening for the client?

• Care: Can they feel that you’re in it with them—not just selling to them?

These aren’t tactics but attitudes that need to be cultivated. They shape how clients perceive you.

About Erika

Erika. She ran mid-sized construction projects. Brilliant at the work. Allergic to BD. She saw LinkedIn as a stream of self-promotion. She didn’t want to be “one of those people.” Didn’t want to waste anyone’s time. And she definitely didn’t want to “sell.”

Through conversations, a few things changed.

She stopped seeing BD as performance and about self-promotion—and started seeing it as service and learning.

Her clients didn’t hire her just for project plans. They hired her because they were exhausted by budget blowouts and strained relationships. They wanted construction projects delivered with trust and confidence.

That was her purpose: to help deliver construction projects that left a legacy—for the community, and the relationships that built it, so that they would want to work together again.

She had the tools and the skills to delicately raise sensitive topics and get agreement. The track record. And her firm had credibility and people with complimentary skills, who could also help clients. She realised that his isn’t about blowing her own trumpet. It’s about showing up as a partner and being curious.

So she reached out to a few people she got on well with. Nothing pushy. Just: “Let’s catch up.”

That was enough to begin.

Stay tuned for part 3.

Article by Mark Raymond