"We don't need to do sales, we do bid work only!"

I am currently working a major association profile and I have been taken back by a few comments from some of the members who say they do not need to do sales or marketing because they only do bid jobs.

One of the contacts said we get all of our work from winning with the lowest bid. If I had known the person better I would of said that logic is like trying to row a boat with only one oar. You will only end up spinning in circles and what happens if you lose your one oar?

What if tomorrow bid jobs disappeared and getting work relied completely on having relationships and connections, what would happen to these one trick ponies?

Survival in business means being able to adapt, test, fail and adapt again. You must be able to have a few different sources for work/revenue no matter what you do. Funny thing is some of the contacts fail to realize they are doing sales and marketing as part of being a member of an association like they are. Now the question remains are they passive members who pay their dues each year or are they active? Do they volunteer or attend events? Do they us the instant connection and common ground they have with all the other members? I hope so.

Ideally these contacts should divert 5% of the revenue generated from their bid jobs to being active members of an association, sponsorship of events and yes evening putting together a targeted marketing plan for web, print and direct mail.

Did you used to do only bid jobs in the past? If so did adapt and what caused you to change?