MedTech Business Development Expert Explains How to Identify the Right Clients | Pressure Tested

Hi, I’m Zara. I’m a business development executive at Test Labs, and today I’m going to be pressure tested. Today, I’m going to be explaining how to identify the right client and also about lead generation.

What is a business development role and what does my day-to-day look like?
So as a business development executive, most of my role is about finding new leads, helping with the revenue and strategic growth of the company. Whether this includes attending industry events, networking, nurturing existing relationships with clients, also handling inquiries, and also finding new clients that could also work and partner with us. A lot of this also includes research with potential clients or customers, alongside continuing building on our existing relationships. So it’s also a balance between both of them, in order to build the best, perfect relationship going forwards to help future clients.

Do you do cold calling?
So cold calling is one of the methods that we use for lead generation and outreach communications. In terms of effectiveness, I would use that combined with emails, LinkedIn communications, depending on the customer and our previous conversations and interactions. And then going from there, I tend to tailor my communication based on the customer preference.

How do you manage your leads?
So when it comes to managing my leads, I use a structured CRM system and also have a day-to-day to-do list. When I’m going through my leads, it’s important to also manage the existing clients and relationships I’ve built. So whether that’s tailored, personalized check-ins, alongside making sure that I build and create new relationships on a daily basis. So it’s really important to manage both of those aspects of the role, whether it’s finding new business, but also maintain the existing business. And that’s the best way to approach managing the current leads and also finding new ones.

How do you identify finding the right fit of client?
So finding the right client, there’s a few key points that’s really important. Firstly, it’s their timelines. So if they’re looking for something that’s quite immediate or imminent, then it’s really important to understand where they’re going for that and what their testing or regulatory challenges might be. And also, if we can align with that, and if those are services that we can also offer. So, a lot of what my role is, also doing discovery meetings and calls. And that’s the best place to identify those needs, whether it’s budget, times, where they’re going and what process they’re up to in terms of launching their medical device to market. Because oftentimes, there might be clients that might not be ready, but they might be ready in the future, and it’s really important establishing those first three needs in order to move forwards.

How do you get the right balance and not follow up too often?
So when it comes to finding a balance between following up and also being consistent in your communication, I think it’s really important to have personalized and tailored communication. So if I have an existing relationship with a client, then I think it’s really important to have value-driven communication and follow-ups with them. So rather than having check-ins with a client, it would be something that’s offering providing them value, as a form of a follow-up.

So for example, if it’s sharing a recent blog from our Outlook publication that might be relevant to them, if it’s something that’s an interesting update in the medical device or regulatory space that I think might be relevant to our previous communications. I think it’s really important to align what their needs are based on our previous communications as a form of follow-up. So, I would frame it as almost personalized touch points along their journey, up to the point where they’re ready to get towards testing compliance and where we come in. So I think it’s important to not view it as an end stage goal. Rather, it’s an ongoing journey, and those follow-ups act as touch points throughout that journey.

How do you create value for your clients?
So I think when it comes to creating value for the clients, it’s really important to research first what their device is, where they’re being occupied in the market, who they’re marketing towards, what’s the demographic, and really understanding what they’re looking for and what the regulatory challenge that they are facing. I think research is the most important aspect for moving forwards.

And in terms of creating that value and showing that value, it’s really understanding them first, being an active listener, and moving forwards from what they’ve told you and what you’ve communicated, whether it’s through a discovery call, a meeting, an email communication. Using the information they give you and going forwards is the best way to prioritize and create value for the client. And alongside this, I act as someone that connects those in the new clients with the technical team or anyone else that’s relevant in the business development team in order to move current and existing projects and also new projects forward within the team.

What questions qualify a serious lead?
So there’s a few questions that come to mind when qualifying a serious lead. The first one are timelines. Depending on what they’re looking at and if they’re looking at for registering for the MDR, the FDA, if their timelines are imminent, then it’s really important understanding what journey they are in terms of launching their medical device to market. Secondly, it’s about budgets. Looking at who the key decision-makers are, where their budgets are being aligned to certain projects, and how urgent those projects are.

And lastly, it’s also just building that relationship to begin with. In terms of finding a qualified lead, it’s really important to have that research, understand their needs, alongside who the key decision-makers are, and moving forwards to connect them with the right people. And if it’s not for us, then we’ll know that they’ll be able to circle back to us when they are ready for that in the future.

How do you prioritize high-value leads?
So in terms of prioritizing high-value leads, it’s really important to have a weekly and a daily planner or update system. So using our CRM system is also a really helpful way of doing this. But it’s important to also rely on the previous communications you’ve had with a client. So even if a client doesn’t have existing or testing needs right now, that’s not to say that they won’t have that in the future. So in terms of creating high-value leads, it’ll be those that have very imminent or nearby testing requirements, and then also valuing those that I’ve had conversations with in the past and also creating touch points for when I’m keeping in touch with them, for when the time does come, that they know who to reach out to in the future.

How do you build trust early?
So building trust early, it’s really important to build a rapport with the key decision-makers. This is because they’re the ones that are going to be deciding where the project moves forward, budgets, the timelines. They’re going to be your friends in this project and knowing the best way going forward about what they’re looking for. So when it comes to building that trust, it’s really understanding them and valuing their concerns and their priorities.

That’s why we tend to have a consultative approach at Test Labs, which often involves these discovery initial calls, whereby I might connect someone from a business development team, and someone from the lab to give an introduction of what they might be looking for in terms of their testing requirements, and really understand and be an active listener in terms of what they’re looking for and how we can move forwards from that going on.

What defines a productive first call?
So a productive first call is firstly understanding the decision-makers involved in the business, understanding the regulatory challenges that they might be facing, how they’ve been sort of tackling that at the moment and what they’re looking for, and also the timelines and their budgets. Those are a few points, and it’s really important to build that relationship going forwards, understanding those points and how we can contribute to that in the future. Whether if it’s not now, then in the future, how we can understand that, and also keep in communication with them for when that time does come.

What do you wish your clients know before your first point of contact? So one thing I think I wish that clients would know is the unique and consultative approach that Test Labs takes. In terms of medical device testing compliance, it’s really quite common that there might be lack of communication when it comes to getting through that regulatory hurdle, and that often falls quite short when it comes to going past that and going towards testing and regulatory submissions.

And I think at Test Labs, it’s really important to understand the different approach that we take. And my role in particular is connecting these potential clients with our technical team and experts in order to really move a deal forward and move a project as quickly as possible, because we’re really big about testing with efficiency, clarity, and consistency.

What is your biggest challenge in your role?
So the biggest challenge in my role is probably keeping in touch and maintaining existing relationships. I think it’s quite easy to lose contacts with relationships that you’ve built, and it’s really important to nurture those relationships. Despite if there’s not an existing need that might come out of it immediately from a discovery call, it’s really important to not frame the discovery call as the first need of testing requirements that could come out of that call, because that is our first point of contact with a potential client.

And often sometimes I do see that that first discovery call, someone months down the line, will come back to me when they do actually have something in the pipeline or do have something that they would need being tested. So I think it’s important that an introduction doesn’t necessarily always mean that something will come out immediately from a testing requirement perspective, but that also doesn’t mean that it won’t in the future. It’s about nurturing those relationships for when that time does eventually come.

How do you manage client expectations?
So when managing client expectations, it’s really important to understand who the key decision-makers are and what they’re looking for and how that aligns with what we can offer. So the best way to do that is obviously having a discovery call where I connect someone from our business development team and our technical team, and really select the right technical expert aligned with what their project needs are.

In order to do that, that would be aligning the first call, really understanding what they’re looking for based on their project inquiry details, and making sure that we can help and connect them with the right people in our team at Test Labs. And then going forwards, really understand how we can communicate and keep on top of that and see how we can help with their project.

How do you get clients to open up about real challenges rather than surface-level points?
So when getting clients to open up about real level challenges that might be happening, it’s really important to speak to the right person because the right person will be the person that will be going through it. So those are our decision-makers, the ones that will know the budget, know the timelines, and know what’s actually been happening, what’s being experienced in terms of their projects.

Going through that in terms of building value and really understanding what they’re looking for, I think it’s being an active listener, researching the company, and also just keeping up to date, I think, with what’s happening in the medical device industry in general, because I think often industry trends and patterns often correlate with what a client or customer might be feeling. And I think when you resonate those kind of facts, news, or changes that might be happening in the industry, oftentimes clients might feel seen, valued, or heard, and I think that’s the most important part of what you’re looking for in that communication, especially the first point of contact.

So I tailor my approach to different types of clients based on firstly their communication preferences, based on our previous correspondence, and what we’ve spoken about before. So it’s really important, for example, depending on where in the medical device industry they occupy, whether they’re a consultant, whether in design development, wounds care, surgical instruments. It’s really important to understand what niche in the medical device industry they’re in.

Once I’ve understood that and I’ve researched the company and I’ve had an existing relationship with them, I can then tailor my communication based on that. So whether it’s understanding what regulatory hurdles they might be facing in the surgical instrument industry versus what they might be facing if they’re a consultancy or in the design and development industry. It’s really important to tailor feedback based on where they occupy in the industry and going forwards from there, seeing how we can align with them in the future.

How do you measure success day to day and week to week?
I measure success based on weekly and daily KPIs, whether that’s from the leads I’ve generated, the industry events I’ve attended, or the connections I made and the initial calls that we’ve established. From there, it’s really important to keep a track of those, and see which ones might translate into inquiries, which ones might translate into potential interest along the way, and really categorizing each lead, whether it’s someone I’ve connected with, whether it’s someone that might be meeting booked, or someone that is a post-meeting follow-up, which essentially means that it’s going to form a part of relationships that I will continue to nurture, but when the time does come, that they are ready to looking at testing and compliance.

What is a MSI?
So MSI is a form of a KPI. It stands for Meaningful Sale Interaction, and essentially that means anyone that I’ve spoken to, have communicated with, and had a meaningful or productive conversation with them. If I’ve spoken to the right decision-maker, we’ve had a communication about what they’re looking for or what they’re experiencing, and they’ve felt some alignment with what we do, that would count as an MSI.

And that doesn’t necessarily have to lead into a meeting. That’s just establishing a first point of contact and a valuable form of communication, because from then onwards, that would form as part of me tracking my KPIs and seeing how the MSI can obviously translate into something further down the line.

What would your advice be for someone starting in the BD role?
So my advice would be definitely being proactive and being an active listener. I think it’s really important to make people feel valued. Do your research and really understand what you’re talking about and who you’re talking to. The most important part is people feeling valued and really understanding that you understand them, and that you’re talking to the right people. And whether that’s, for example, going out of your way to find someone that you think might be relevant, whether that’s building on existing relationships that you have, it’s really important to be consistent with them because that will eventually lead to a really meaningful relationship in the long term.

What is the most enjoyable part of your role?
So the most enjoyable part of my role, I would say, is managing and building on and nurturing existing relationships. It’s really interesting to have formed and created relationships, whether they’re from industry events I’ve attended or people that I might know of, someone that I’ve also been connected to. And also just some relationships that I’ve been responsible for nurturing and really am looking after in the long term.

I think it’s really important to really take these short-term relationships and see how they can benefit in the long term. And I think that’s the most rewarding part, really seeing how a first point of contact can eventually turn into an actual requirement or a potential customer in the future, and really maintaining how one initial contact can really go a long way down the journey.

Okay, thank you for watching. This is me being pressure tested. If you’re looking for testing compliance for your medical device, then you know who to reach out to at Test Labs in our business development team.