A business development executive is a senior manager tasked with the job of helping his or her business grow and therefore, they are high-level sales professionals.

• Their priority is to assist their companies acquire new customers and sell additional products or services to existing ones; this means the role is a crucial one for any business with the ambition to expand or the necessity to diversify its clientele
  
•  It also means that effective business development managers are in high demand in nearly every job sector there is, including business-to-business, business-to-customer, and even non-profit organisations
  

A business development professional has three primary responsibilities

• Identifying new sales leads
  
• Pitching products and/or services
  
• Maintaining fruitful relationships with existing customers
  

When it comes to generating leads, day-to-day duties typically include:

• Researching organisations and individuals online (especially on social media) to identify new leads and potential new markets
• Researching the needs of other companies and learning who makes decisions about purchasing
• Contacting potential clients via email or phone to establish rapport and set up meetings
• Planning and overseeing new marketing initiatives
• Attending conferences, meetings, and industry events

When it comes to the challenge of actually selling, other typical duties include:

• Preparing PowerPoint presentations and sales displays
• Contacting clients to inform them about new developments in the company’s products
• Developing quotes and proposals
• Negotiating and renegotiating by phone, email, and in person
• Developing sales goals for the team and ensuring they are met
• Training personnel and helping team members develop their skills

To keep healthy relationships with clients, this mostly requires socialisation. So from simple chats on the phone to lunches and events or conferences business development managers must be sure to keep their customers happy. Of course, as with all office jobs, documentation is also a big part of the work. Business development professionals are also obligated to write reports and provide feedback to upper management about what is and is not working.

Freshers Can Apply