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Outsourced New Business FAQ for B2B Firms: these are the questions firm leaders ask most, answered directly so you can make a smart decision about your next step.
For many B2B firms, whether you’re a principal, a practice leader, or a business development executive, sustained new business outreach rarely gets the attention it needs. Client delivery, internal priorities, and organizational complexity all compete for the same bandwidth.
RSW/B2B was built to close that gap, giving B2B firms a professionally managed, consistent pipeline without the cost and complexity of building an in-house team.
If something isn’t covered in this Outsourced New Business FAQ for B2B Firms, contact us here, we’re easy to reach.
Outsourced New Business FAQ for B2B Firms: Jump to a Question
- How long does it take to see results from outsourced new business development for a professional services firm?
- What’s the difference between hiring an in-house business development person and outsourcing it?
- Is outsourced business development a good fit for professional services firm?
- Why isn’t our firm getting enough new business from referrals alone?
- How do professional services firms get new clients outside their existing network?
- How much day-to-day work will I need to put in?
- What does a realistic new business pipeline look like for a professional services firm?
- How much does an outsourced new business program cost?
- What should I look for when evaluating outsourced new business firms?
- How do I know if our firm is ready to start?
1. How long does it take to see results from outsourced new business development for a professional services firm?
RSW/B2B clients typically begin seeing qualified meetings within the first 30 to 45 days of active prospecting. Every program starts with three to four weeks of preparation: defining your target account profile, building your prospect list, developing messaging that reflects your firm’s expertise, and immersing your New Business Director in what you do and who you serve best.
Once prospecting begins, the pace of results depends on your firm’s sales cycle.
Professional services engagements are relationship-driven and rarely close fast, but the pipeline activity, first conversations, follow-up interest, and introductory meetings, builds steadily from the start. We help you track and advance those relationships over time, not just generate names.
2. What’s the difference between hiring an in-house business development person and outsourcing it?
An in-house hire is one person, typically without a team behind them, research support, or a proven process for professional services outreach. An RSW/B2B program is a full team: a dedicated New Business Director, list specialists, and strategists, all for a comparable or lower total cost than a senior in-house sales hire when you factor in salary, benefits, ramp time, and tools. According to LinkedIn research, sales roles consistently rank among the highest turnover positions across industries.
BD roles at professional services firms are notoriously hard to hire for and even harder to retain. The profile is narrow: someone with enough technical credibility to speak your language and enough sales discipline to prospect consistently, and turnover is high. When that person leaves, you start over. With RSW/B2B, you get continuity, a full support structure, and a director who’s accountable to results, not just activity.
RSW/B2B installs a structured, dedicated sales function that runs consistently regardless of how full your plate is.
3. Is outsourced business development a good fit for professional services firm?
For most professional services firms, whether you’re a 10-person boutique or a 200-person practice (or larger), RSW/B2B is the most practical path to consistent new business, because the realistic alternatives are limited.
Some firms are doing nothing at all on the proactive side, relying entirely on referrals and existing relationships. Others have tried multiple sales hires, found those roles difficult to fill and even harder to sustain, and ended up back where they started. RSW/B2B installs a dedicated BD function without the hiring risk, the ramp time, or the turnover problem.
The firms that see the strongest results with us treat the program as a real partnership: sharing their best client stories, engaging on strategy calls, and leaning on their RSW/B2B director as a genuine extension of their team.
4. Why isn’t our firm getting enough new business from referrals alone?
Referrals are real and valuable and we encourage every client to keep cultivating them.
But referrals are passive and they arrive on someone else’s schedule, not yours.
When a key client relationship ends or revenue dips unexpectedly, a referral won’t necessarily appear to fill the gap. And if your growth goals require breaking into a new industry vertical, a new geography, or a new buyer type, your existing network probably won’t get you there on its own.
Many firms recognize this and try to fix it by adding BD responsibility to a senior person’s plate, hiring salespeople who don’t last, or making a few sporadic outreach pushes that don’t stick. None of those approaches solve the underlying problem, which is the absence of a consistent, structured process. RSW/B2B runs alongside your referral base and fills that gap with a proactive pipeline you can actually count on.
How do professional services firms get new clients outside their existing network? An Outsourced New Business FAQ for B2B Firms perspective.
For many professional services firms, the answer is they’re not doing much of anything systematic outside their network. A few outreach emails here, a trade show there, maybe a salesperson who wasn’t the right fit. The activity exists but the discipline doesn’t.
The most reliable path to consistent new clients is proactive, multi-channel outreach to a well-defined list of target accounts, with messaging built around the problems you solve, not just the services you offer.
The approach RSW/B2B has developed is built on three things: the right list, the right message, and consistent execution. We build targeted account lists specific to your firm, reach out through phone, email, LinkedIn, and physical mail used in concert, and maintain contact over time.
Most professional services relationships begin after multiple meaningful touches, not the first one. Firms that grow consistently treat new business as a discipline with dedicated people and a clear process, not something that happens when someone has a spare hour.
6. How much day-to-day work will I need to put in?
Less than you expect, and the most intensive period is the first four weeks, before prospecting even starts. The front end of an RSW/B2B program is the most work you’ll ever do with us. Roughly 70% of that work is reviewing and reacting to what we put in front of you: positioning drafts, messaging, target account lists, and collateral recommendations. We do the building. You review, refine, and approve.
Once active prospecting begins, your ongoing commitment comes down to a weekly call with your New Business Director and reasonable preparation before any meetings we book.
Before every meeting, your director provides background on the company, the prospect’s role, and relevant context, so you walk in prepared and confident, not just briefed. The program is designed to run without pulling you away from client work.
7. What does a realistic new business pipeline look like for a professional services firm?
A healthy pipeline has active outreach running to hundreds of target accounts, ongoing conversations at any given time, and one to three qualified meetings per month. The specific numbers shift based on your firm’s focus, target account size, and how long your RSW/B2B program has been running, but the shape is consistent.
What RSW/B2B also delivers is post-meeting support to help move promising conversations forward. Professional services relationships require patience and sustained follow-through. The firms that see the strongest pipeline results are the ones who stay engaged through the early months, when the groundwork is being laid and relationships are just beginning to form.
8. How much does an outsourced new business program cost?
RSW/B2B program costs vary based on the level of support your firm needs, and the best path to accurate pricing is a direct conversation.
What we can say is that our programs are consistently competitive with, and often less expensive than, a single senior in-house sales hire, and that comparison doesn’t account for the real cost of turnover.
Sales roles at professional services firms churn.
When you factor in the time to recruit, onboard, and ramp a new hire (only to potentially start over in 12 to 18 months), the economics of an outsourced new business program for B2B firms look even stronger. With RSW/B2B, you get a full team, continuity, and accountability from day one. We’re glad to walk you through exactly what a program would look like for your firm. Just reach out.
9. What should I look for when evaluating outsourced new business firms?
Start by asking who will actually be doing the work, and what their experience level is. Some firms sell senior expertise and deliver junior execution.
At RSW/B2B, every New Business Director has a minimum of 15 years of sales and marketing experience, with real background in professional services environments. Look for a firm that can give clear answers about process, metrics, and expected timelines, not sensational guarantees.
Look for firms that work across multiple outreach channels, not just one platform or one tactic. And look for a firm that can explain what happens before, during, and after a prospect meeting. Vague answers to those questions are a red flag.
10. How do I know if our firm is ready to start an outsourced new business program?
If you have strong work and a willingness to engage, you’re ready. The timing will never be perfect, and RSW/B2B will help you close the gap.
There will always be a proposal in progress, a client situation to manage, a website that needs updating, or messaging that needs tightening. Waiting for everything to align means waiting indefinitely.
What you actually need to get started is solid work or product offerings, an openness to the process, and a realistic view of where your firm stands.
RSW/B2B handles the rest. Positioning work, messaging development, and target account strategy are all built into every program before we make any outreach. The firms that see results fastest are the ones who start.
Still have questions about this Outsourced New Business FAQ for B2B Firms? We’re easy to reach. Contact us directly — we’re glad to walk you through what a program would look like for your firm.
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This Outsourced New Business FAQ for B2B Firms answers the questions firm leaders ask most. Decide if RSW/B2B is the right fit.
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