Unquestionably you had come across a situation when the speaker used the phrase “business development” during a business meeting, but no one fully understood what it meant. Let’s dive into some of the most critical things about its term and potential role in business.

The definition of business development

The accurate definition of business development is a set of tasks and processes designed to develop and realize growth opportunities within (and across) organizations sustainably and profitably. In practice, however, most organizations use the term differently, depending on what they need from the role. For instance, growing a business while scaling SaaS typically involves a lot of cold contact with potential customers. On the other hand, in a large multinational company, the business development department may conduct market analysis to enter a new market or product line. However, despite the differences, business developers in different companies share one common goal: identifying and implementing the best growth opportunities.

The key words here are «growth opportunities». In most cases, «new opportunities» means more than «new clients». It also includes:

• finding new partners,
• entering new markets,
• development of new products.

A business developer is a specialist who helps companies expand their business operations and value. They may work within the company as a full-time employee or as an independent consultant on a contract basis.

The difference between business development and marketing

Marketing creates, relays, and delivers value propositions to your customers or strategic partners. The key is to comprehend every available growth opportunity.

While your business professionals look for paths to reach out to target markets, your marketing team tailors their marketing skills and budget to create material that will enable that target appeal to be realized, building partnerships and long-term relationships.

Few companies expand and grow organically. Companies risk resource depletion and budget overruns if their growth is not systematically planned and designed. Therefore, business development opportunities may be the best solution if a company wants to expand and grow.