However, research (and the author's personal experience) shows that pitch winners do elicit behaviour during this courtship process that's different to what the losers do.
Here are ten such differences:
| Winners | Losers |
| Allocate a budget (indirectly empowering the pitch team) | Pay as they go (unintentionally disempowering the pitch team) |
| Are not scared of getting it wrong (they understand the maxim: You are not employed for getting it right - you are employed because they think you could get it right) | Focus on not making a mistake |
| Focus on story structure | Focus on rehearsing |
| Have a culture of wanting business | Have a culture of accepting what comes their way |
| Focus on working with what they have (showing how they could add value) | Focus on knowledge (showing what they know) |
| Tell a clear story that they take all the way | Tell a convoluted story, stopping short of execution |
| Are clearly remembered for one thing | Are vaguely remembered for many things |
| Understand how the client makes his/her money, and what keeps them up at night | Are not familiar with the client's value chain |
| Focus on the clients' needs early on | Talk about their own skills right to the end |
| Don't think twice about window dressing, but do it to make the client feel important (not themselves) | Underestimate the importance of having senior people present (even if they do not contribute) |
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