It’s not what you say…
Most professionals obsess over what to send.
The best ones take a step back and think about when to send it.
Clients operate in cycles. Some predictable, some not. Busy periods, planning windows, holidays, regulatory spikes, industry moments… all of it impacts whether your message lands or gets ignored.
Yet most BD still runs on instinct: “I’ve got a gap… I’ll drop them a note.”
Instead, take a bit of time to plan your communications across the year.
You won’t get it perfect. There will always be curveballs. But if you understand the broad rhythms, seasonal, cultural, personal, you’ll dramatically improve your chances of cutting through.
Here are three ways to do it. Enjoy.
A simple way to think about timing your BD & sales comms
#1. Build your annual comms tempo
Most clients don’t behave randomly. They move in patterns.
- January → planning mode
- Feb/March → heads down, very busy
- Summer → patchy availability (especially those with kids)
- September → power up before year-end
This isn’t exact science. But it’s directionally right more often than not.
The opportunity:
Start building a broad annual tempo for your key clients.
Ask yourself:
- When are they likely planning?
- When are they likely slammed?
- When are they more open to conversations?
Do this for your top 10–15 relationships and your outreach instantly gets more intelligent.
Practical tip:
Block 30 minutes this week and sketch a simple “client year” for each of your top accounts. It won’t be perfect. Doesn’t matter. It’ll still be miles better than guessing.
Reality check:
You are not the most important thing on your client’s mind.
The sooner you accept that, the better your timing gets.
#2. Match your activity to their moment
Getting the timing right is only half the job. You also need to match the type of interaction to the moment.
- Planning periods → breakfasts / lunches (more time, more open thinking)
- Busy periods → quick coffees (low friction, more likely to happen)
- Quieter times (e.g. between transactions) → events (people actually turn up)
- Holiday periods → light-touch messages (not “shall we catch up?”)
And within the week:
- Tues–Thurs = prime time
- Friday = cautiously back for lunch drinks
- Dinner = reserved for something more meaningful
On dinners:
Save them for celebratory or relationship moments:
- end of a deal, dispute, or project
- new job or promotion
- or simply a chance to have a good evening
And crucially… don’t talk about work.
Not everything needs to be transactional. Sometimes the best BD is just being good company.
The mistake:
Going in too heavy/light at the wrong time.
Big lunch ask in March, when they’re drowning in transactions? Overplayed your hand.
“Quick coffee?” in September, when they’re scrambling to spend budget before Christmas? Underplayed it.
Simple rule:
Before you reach out, ask: “Is this a coffee moment or a lunch moment?” Get that right and your hit rate improves overnight.
#3. Recognise trigger points
The best BD people don’t remember more. They just build better systems.
Start with three types of triggers:
- Calendar triggers
- Late June → line up summer catch-ups
- Mid-August → book “back to school” September meetings
- Post-Easter → re-engage
- Cultural & industry triggers
- Christmas, Thanksgiving, religious holidays
- Industry events (e.g. MIPIM, IBA conference etc)
- Regulatory moments (especially in financial services)
- Major cases settling or market-moving events
Not everything needs to lead to a meeting. A well-timed, relevant message often lands better than a forced catch-up.
- Personal triggers
- Job moves
- Promotions
- Kids’ birthdays
- Sporting interests (Six Nations tickets, anyone?)
This is where relationships actually deepen.
Practical tip:
Create a simple trigger list for your top clients. Better yet, build it into your CRM or get an agent like Tina to nudge you.
Because if you’re relying on memory… you’re already behind someone who isn’t.
Chat to Tina by voice, when you’re between meetings, on the commute to/from work, or heading into something you’d rather avoid.
Final thought
Most people think BD is about saying the right thing. The best people know it’s about saying it at the right time.
We’re building a team of voice enabled AI assistants to support you with BD activities and allow you to spend more time being human. Interested? We’d love to chat.
