Jeff Weiss is the Chief Revenue Officer at CMICa global leader in next-generation construction management software.
When you work in business development, especially in the B2B software sector, it can be all too easy to focus exclusively on how great your product is when talking to customers and prospects. You can get so wrapped up in touting the features, upgrades, functionality, tech stack and enhancements that you lose sight of what really matters in that conversation—the customer.
In my 30 years leading sales teams and scaling revenue in the B2B software space, I’ve found that the most successful strategies put the customers at the center rather than the product. As we head into 2025, business development professionals should shift their approach.
Here are five strategies that can scale revenue and boost customer retention in 2025.
1. Shift to a value-based model and a consultative approach.
Don’t give into the pressure to promote your product in a traditional way—through slides and flashy feature highlights and an emphasis on “here’s why our product is great.” That won’t resonate with a customer seeking a solution to improve their business.
Instead, change your process to a value-based sales model.
This is a very consultative process and tailors the conversation to demonstrate how the product will impact that specific customer and address their pain points. Solve business problems instead of selling software.
Incorporate data whenever possible to further prove your company’s value. Work to deeply understand each customer and prospect—their industry, business model and needs—so that when you get in front of them, you can very tangibly show how a partnership will drive measurable outcomes. Powerful data points to leverage include margin improvements, potential profit increases, process efficiencies, scalability and time and cost savings.
Using a value-based model and becoming a consultative partner to customers can differentiate you from competitors, build trust and help you seal more deals.
2. Focus, focus, focus: Find your niche and own it.
To be successful in business development, you have to understand your market, and you have to define it. Especially in B2B tech, you have to find your niche and build expertise within it.
Deep specialization within a specific industry or for a highly targeted audience is a cornerstone of success. I’ve seen many companies get sidetracked and try to appeal to too many verticals, diluting their value and capabilities.
At CMiC, our focus on the construction industry has been pivotal to our success. By staying within a single vertical, we can understand customers’ business needs at a granular level, allowing us to tailor solutions to solve industry challenges.
Specialization gives you a competitive edge, strengthens customer relationships and solidifies your position as a true industry partner.
3. Invest in customer success and a collaborative community.
Customer retention is as important as acquisition for long-term growth. Retaining customers also costs less than acquiring new ones. Focusing on customer retention should be a top priority for any business development professional.
Invest in a customer success department not just as a channel where customers can troubleshoot issues but also one where your team can proactively check in with customers and make sure you’re helping them achieve their goals. Tracking usage metrics and customer satisfaction scores can also help identify unhappy customers so your team can course-correct.
At CMiC, the sales team works very closely with the product team to share feedback from customers and make sure we’re delivering what they want and need. We’ve built a symbiotic community—our product gets better through consistent customer feedback, and customers feel heard and connected to our company, which reduces churn.
4. Use AI and technology to scale business opportunities.
Technology advancements can vastly improve B2B software products and support business development by unlocking new market opportunities and optimizing the sales process.
Make sure that your team is leveraging emerging technology to drive business growth. For example:
• Cloud deployment: In the software market, offering cloud delivery can open up new market opportunities. It lowers implementation costs and makes the product exponentially more accessible. If you’re working exclusively with large enterprise customers right now, expanding to the cloud could make it possible for you to attract mid-market customers, potentially increasing your customer base by orders of magnitude annually. Talk to your product team to see what technologies could be implemented to serve more customers.
• AI tools: AI can vastly improve the sales process and help business development teams reach a larger pool of customers more effectively. These tools are especially useful for teams working within a large market.
You can use AI for lead scoring, customer sentiment analysis, personalized outreach automation, supporting remote sales presentations and more. Also, AI analysis can provide data-driven insights that improve your value proposition when targeting high-potential accounts.
5. Develop and mentor your team to increase tenure.
When it comes to scaling revenue and building long-term partnerships, you’re only as strong as your team. Experienced, longer-tenured sales teams are more likely to deliver better results. They provide a consistent presence for customers, maintain deep relationships and become true experts on the product and industries they serve.
I’m proud to have high retention rates within my team, and it hasn’t happened by accident. We make sure to foster a culture of learning, mentorship and ongoing support. And we keep teams motivated not just through fun events and compensation, but by showing them the impact of their work and what they’re helping to achieve.
If you can establish a strong sense of purpose within your team, it can have a direct effect on the bottom line.
In 2025, make your customers your specialty.
The new year marks a new opportunity to scale revenue, and a chance to change your sales process. Whatever moves you make this year, make sure that your focus remains on your customers and your specific market.
Tailoring every initiative (even new technology adoption and team culture) around answering the question, “How can I bring value to this customer?” can lead to remarkable customer retention rates and significant business expansion.
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