The foundation of a thriving design practice is underscored by basic fundamentals, from knowing how to develop new business, to successfully communicating your work and differentiating your firm in a crowded landscape. But small firms are fighting an uphill battle, with limited time, budget and resources to commit to growing their businesses while also delivering for their clients. The result? Often, the firms with the most resources muscle their way in and win. This session provides access and equity, leveling the playing field with tools and tactics small firms can utilize to better define their competitive advantage, tell their story with more confidence, and claim their stake in hypercompetitive markets.

Whether you’re new to marketing and business development, have been at it a while and need some inspiration, or you’re a principal who also moonlights as the CMO, this session will remove the mystery and needless complexity of how to set and obtain your firm's goals – from optimizing what’s working well and adjusting your trajectory, to proving your firm’s value and enhancing your reputation to win the work you want.

Learning Objectives

Execute improved storytelling that conveys the value of your work. Your potential clients may want to hire you, but they need to make a case for why they did.
Stay perennially optimistic while also prepared for downturns, abrupt changes and firm transitions. Understand how these scenarios may impact your ability to develop business and how to pivot.
Applying tested strategies and proven tactics, attendees will be inspired to envision their own processes to improve hit rates, decrease redundant busy work, and generate a united marketing approach for their firm that accelerates progress.
Avoid common pitfalls and instead create an intentional center of excellence for your marketing function – from one part time person to dozens of team members, learn how to set up this aspect of your business for success.

About the Speakers

Jayme Gately and Pam Raymond have worked together for two decades – directing business development, marketing and communications initiatives for extra large, multi-disciplinary, international design firms. Fast forward several years, we left the world of XL firms and the intensity of competing against the best talent in the world and started our own consulting practices. Now, we collaborate with clients coast to coast. We aggregated everything we learned, refined it to its essence, and bring these strategies and best practices to support smaller-scale firms in our shared practice, Blueprint.

With years of strategy and tactics that secured over a billion dollars in design fees, we feel qualified to give you the scalable advice and encouragement you need to set up for success and, ultimately, win. We are curious, tireless, and believe more than ever that firms of all sizes should benefit from the rigor and refinement we learned early on. We are motivated by quality and the reward of seeing plans work. We understand how challenging this profession is, and our ultimate goal is to remove the mystery and confusion surrounding great marketing, communications and business development for firms of all sizes.

Contact

Jayme Gately
Co-Founder, Blueprint
[email protected]
210.379.7978

Pam Raymond
Co-Founder, Blueprint
[email protected]
415.601.5361