Last time I talked about the current work slowdown. I’ve kept pretty busy and I’m sure most of you have too. This is the key for independent proposal contactors. Staying busy during slow periods is a possible indicator of several things:
- Strong client relationships. Strong relationships help when things are slow because a client that trusts you will look to you for all of their proposal support, no matter what the times are like.
- Broad client base across multiple functional areas. I have clients who contract with the government for IT staffing, help desk support, cloud computing, transportation logistics, health care staffing, air traffic controller training, and many other areas. This breadth allows you to focus on areas that are somewhat immune to the slowdown.
- Flexible approach. Remember, a slowdown for you is because there has been a procurement slowdown. If you can be flexible in your approach, your clients are more likely to call on you.
Further evidence of the “stay busy” mantra is provided by my friend and colleague, Chris Simmons, the Founder and Principal of Rainmakerz Consulting, LLC. He said via email: “The best consultants are the ones that keep busy – no matter what is happening with sequestration, government shutdowns, or other industry/government comings and goings.”
The theme that the best consultants are the ones that keep busy is something I preach to the contractors I work with. There are several ways you can keep yourself busy with your clients:
- Lower your rate. It’s important to recognize that lowering your rates will help your clients and also help keep you busy. Only do this if you must and stress to your clients that it’s a one-time or temporary solution to help them out.
- Be more flexible. Flexibility in your pricing approach can be helpful too. I find that many of my smaller clients prefer a fixed price arrangement. They like to define their total cost risk up front. As a small business owner myself, I can understand and empathize with this approach.
- Get outside your comfort zone. If you do nothing but write IT staffing proposals, you might consider a client who needs help with a health care staffing proposal. The basics are the same: recruitment and retention chief among them. Each time you get outside your comfort zone, that zone grows. This allows for a broader customer base and a broader base helps alleviate the stress of a slowdown.
There are other ways to keep busy. How do you stay busy and keep your head in the game during a slowdown?
- Take on full time work, though I have seen that companies are reluctant to hire former contractors.
- Save your money and hunker down and wait it out.
- Stay involved in the industry through APMP and other organizations.
- Write blogs like this one.
If you would like to discuss this in more detail, please contact me on info@perfblue.com or via my contact page. Thanks!
Attribution
Email received on November 5, 2013 at 11:48AM Chris Simmons
About the Author
Drew Cotterman is the Founder and President of performanceBLUE, LLC, a professional proposal development firm. He founded the firm in 2010 after working in the proposal world for more than 20 years. He provides capture support; proposal development including management, writing, pricing, graphics, desktop publishing, and production support; process training; and employee mentoring.