A company's (commercial) influence strategy, with all its challenges and procedures, can easily be compared to lobbying in the political sphere. It is often a complex game built around a win-win objective.
And to achieve this, companies have every interest in using their influence. Among themselves, in their environment or, why not, in the political sphere. The aim is both to limit the risks of too much influence from competitors and, conversely, to increase their own influence in their own field. This is where an influence strategy can be likened to lobbying. The terms "lobbying" and "lobbyists" often appear in the media and in the business press to describe the games of influence that promote commercial developments. Yannick Awé, an expert in commercial strategy, explains what commercial lobbying is and what it covers, followed by some good practices.
What is influence strategy or lobbying?
Lobbying is a commercial or diplomatic tactic used to influence decision-makers in major companies.
And while in France, lobbying consists mainly of defending one's interests against institutional decisions or a company's dominance over an environment, commercial lobbying can also be used to influence decision-makers in order to gain a foothold in inhospitable territories and win market share. This is a common method in the United States, for example, where it is possible to use influence to bring about fraternisation between companies in order to expand into an initially inaccessible environment.
What's at stake?
In a B 2 B context, lobbying involves issues such as larger contracts, partnerships or raising the profile of the company. It can also involve working together on a joint innovation project and building a common strategy.
By forging links between companies and/or public authorities, lobbying meets a major challenge: the long-term development of a structure, whether at local or national level.
Structure and mechanisms of commercial lobbying
Whether it's a game of power or a game of influence, lobbying is part of a strategy. And strategy means a structured approach. First of all, there are two different approaches to lobbying:
- Direct lobbying > it involves direct interaction with key decision-makers (written letters, telephone calls, meetings, etc.).
- Indirect lobbying > it's about getting a message across to the media and gaining public support to influence decision-makers.
Understanding the mechanisms of lobbying
B 2 B commercial lobbying consists of representing and defending the commercial interests of a product, service or company to decision-makers in other companies. The aim is to convince them of their legitimacy and of the relevance of the need being put forward. To do this, the lobbying company must cultivate in-depth contacts with decision-makers: organising meetings, series of conferences or any other means of persuading and influencing legislators and other companies.
Lobbying also facilitates interaction between decision-makers and businesses. Without lobbying, it would be less easy for companies to put themselves in contact with other companies in order to promote their goods and services. A strategy of influence is first and foremost a matter of networking, which must serve the interests of all concerned.. The win-win relationship therefore lies in the exchange of services. Companies can, for example, support certain competitors' projects when these competitors, in turn, favour commercial strategies that are in the interests of the former.
Implementing a commercial lobbying strategy
Sometimes impartial and fair, holding companies can also be self-serving. Despite adhering to a model of governance, command and control, a decision-maker is neither coherent nor cohesive. Every day, he or she is in a position to call on different partners in all directions at once. An influence strategy must therefore be meticulously prepared.
1. Plan an action plan
The aim of lobbying is first and foremost to establish relations with the target company in a process that is manageable, predictable and productive in terms of the interests of the various stakeholders. This process or action plan is ideally developed as follows:
- identifying a target with a deadline ;
- structuring/organising time and priorities ;
- analysis of the obstacles and levers around the objective ;
- gathering information on decision-making power ;
- identification of the sources of influence and the various stakeholders (favourable or blocking) ;
- Identification of contextual factors that may influence decisions (political, economic, sociological factors, etc.);
- developing its own position;
- value creation.
A well-structured action plan is the surest way of asserting your commercial influence.
2. Analysing your sales portfolio and your circle of influence?
To gain more control over your strategy, ask yourself the right questions about your customers or partners:
- Who are they? Who has the power and who are the influential intermediaries?
- What goods or services have they bought or can they buy from you?
- How often do they buy?
Once you have all the information you need to draw up a profile, you can collect the information that is essential for the specific features of your business (company size, decision-maker, affiliations, turnover, etc.).
3. Developing a network
The basis of effective lobbying is to build a solid network It's about building long-term, mutually beneficial links and relationships: with family, friends, customers, partners, suppliers, policy-makers, legislators and industry partners. It's about building long-term, mutually beneficial links and relationships. These links act as a catalyst for finding the right people and expanding your sphere of influence, thereby improving your commercial position and increasing your profits.
Top 5 commercial lobbying tools
Direct contact
As with any relationship, direct contact is the best way to ensure your lobbying. There are several options for communicating directly with a target, including telephone calls, e-mails and private messages. via professional social networks such as LinkedIn, etc.
For e-mails, we always prefer a personalised e-mail to a generic one. It has a greater impact and really engages the recipient. On the other hand, telephone calls are more effective than letters, which are themselves more effective than e-mails in some cases.
Personal contact
If the direct contact involves via Personal contact is, as its name suggests, a "face-to-face" contact and is the most effective of all. This personal contact can take place in a number of places: meetings or the decision-maker's office, trade shows, business lunches, conferences and seminars, etc.
Commitments and surveys
These are surveys or engagement letters sent to decision-makers and influencers asking them for a public statement of their position on a specific issue. L'commitment can be useful for both parties by offering legitimacy to the lobbying company as much as to the targeted company.
Social networks
Social media can play a key role. Networks such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube can be useful not only as media aggregators for reporting, but also for disseminate key messages. Even if social media are not a magic solution, they do have the advantage of potentially huge reach with little initial investment.
SMS or text messaging
With the democratisation of smartphones, the very use of text messages has also become widespread, particularly in marketing and communication practices. The use of SMS as a commercial message has therefore become widespread. By offering instant updates, details of events, campaign messages and links to websites, it is becoming a formidable weapon for reaching a target audience.
About the "Building your commercial influence strategy" course
In a competitive environment, developing the finesse and quality of relationships with key contacts is a fundamental performance lever. The workshops in this course will enable you to develop the tools and best practices needed to meet the new challenges of commercial lobbying. The programme includes developing a clear strategy and identifying the key players and factors in a context that concerns the participants.
