WBENC Annual Conference 22
Lessons Learned
Real talk about what to expect from Corporate Buyers in 2022, according to Corporate Buyers.
Where's the Opportunity?
It's a great time to be a diverse and woman business owner. There was a distinct theme and we ARE becoming the New Majority. If we weren't such a big deal, these Corporations wouldn't be making such an effort to find and do business with us. Let me show you the money, ladies.
Target
Help us see things through a more diverse and inclusive lens.
AT&T
Prove you are a diverse team (how many women, Black, Latin, disabled, veteran, LGBTQ+ are on your team, board, etc).
JP Morgan Chase
If you have gaps but can help us meet our diverse spending goals, we will find grants to help you fill those gaps so we can do business with you.
Amazon
We have a $25B spend this year. If we don't meet that spending goal, then, our people have failed us.
Proctor & Gamble
We have a 5% black-owned business spend, which is $2B
AT&T
We realized our Diversity Supplier team was not diverse, so we have new leadership and replaced 6 people to make sure the OUR team was more diverse.
UPS
We are making company policy exceptions to ensure black and brown women get our money, especially in advanced technology areas (drones, blockchain, etc)
Accenture
Our suppliers (and our leadership and our company) should look like the faces and diverse educational and economic makeup of our country, not a bunch of white men.
Setting the Right Expectations for Doing Business with Corporations
Let's get really, really, real for a sec, shall we? Here's what I learned from Buyers at the show:
TIMING
- Plan to spend 2 years getting to know us and 2-3 MORE years before we start to do business together
- We get 1,000 new suppliers a year and we only work with 4-5 new ones per year
INSPIRATION: Do you HAVE to wait this long, not necessarily. You could follow up at the perfect time when the Corporate buyer is looking for you.
EXPECTATIONS
- Be clear on your value to OUR organization. How can you save us money or time? How can you make us money?
- If you don't have cybersecurity procedures, vetted financials, and a sustainability policy, you aren't for us.
- Understand our business and how you can help us get to where we want to go.
TIP FOR SUCCESS: Always ask the Buyer how they wish to engage with you. When should you follow up? Do they prefer Email or call?
FINANCIAL OUTLOOK
- You should have at least 70% more revenue than the total value of our contract. So, if the contract value with us is $300K, you need to have $700K in revenue from other clients before we would consider doing business with you.
- We cannot be your largest contract or client. Period.
- You are a risk if we are 30% of your book of business.
- You must have past performance of equal sized contracts or length of agreement (ie 2 years, 3 years, etc)
- We pay slow (90-120 days), so make sure you have enough runway to do business with us.
- Ensure you have cash, because one bad order, can bankrupt you. (this was from an automotive manufacturer, referring to a part stopping their production line - this does NOT apply to all of us)
WHAT NEXT: Get your financial house in order. If it's not already, start getting it together so it shows how awesome you are.
A Quick Message from Bethanie
I would love to connect you with the right people or resources you may need right now.
Our Proven Approach to Grow Your Visibility, Leads, and Business
SEEN
Prepare yourself to be seen. Get clear on your vision. Get clear on your purpose. Get clear on your value. Own your worth. Have 100,000% confidence in what you do and the value you have!
SOUGHT
Once you are clear and concise on your message, your value, and your most profitable customer. Then, you have to build rapport, trust, and credibility. Once you have these two things, you will be sought after. Stop being the hunter and become the hunted.
SOLD
Price is only an issue IF value is a mystery. If you do the work in the Seen Phase (see phase 1), then this is not a hard sell. In fact, it is not selling at all. It is you doing your best to share your brilliance with the world.
Do you want to attract more customers and increase profits in 90 days?
We can help. That's our most fav thing in the world to do!
If you want to make more money so have more free time to what you love, let's see if we are a fit to work together. Book a 15 min call with Bethanie below to find out.
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