One thing never changes in the business world

When Covid brought lockdown to the UK early in 2020, it introduced me to a new world of digital technology in the business world, as it did for people worldwide. I’d never imagined that one day I’d be delivering my professional “speaking” and “training” activities to an audience of up to 100 + faces, just visible in little boxes on a computer screen. Not being unable to judge the audience’s reaction isn’t good, but it seems we have to get used to it.

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Without minimising the tragic events of the past two years, in a changing world, my belief that change invariably creates opportunities stands firm.

Within four months of the lockdown being introduced, I was delivering on-line mentoring to young people in America, Mexico, Europe, North America and Australia, all seeking help in the increasingly important skill of acquiring commercial partners to help fund their motorsport plans.

It took some getting used to the changes in my working schedule, to cope with the time differences to suit various nationalities, but it wasn’t long before I found myself sitting in boardrooms of some amazing companies worldwide, virtually of course, monitoring the performance of my individual clients.

Slowly, positive results became the norm and sponsorship deals successfully concluded, albeit often quite small initial agreements. It became apparent that the programme was working.

Importantly, I was constantly being told by my clients that they were surprised at how simple the acquisition process that I had been outlining, actually was. This endorsed my findings throughout many years of training young drivers; too many of them complicate the sponsorship sales process.

I’ve always found that if you focus on the fact that every company has to sell more products or services to stay in business, there is usually a conversation to be had. How a company achieves that, of course, has changed dramatically over the years and it’s all too easy to forget that primary objective.

Another critical factor in the sponsorship acquisition process is to get to the decision-makers in a business. Don’t get stuck in what I call the “middle-management mire”; critical decision-making doesn’t usually happen at that level. Speak to the man or woman at the top, it’s easier to work down rather than up.

Getting in at the right level is the major reason that I have done so many deals. Cold calling, as it is often called,…