A one-to-many ABM programme for local government, moving from one flagship customer to credible visibility across the UK's largest County and City Councils.
The challenge
Local Government had been identified as a strategic growth sector, with ambitions to expand beyond an existing flagship customer.
With hundreds of UK councils, the challenge was deciding where to focus effort, creating a proposition that would resonate, and building credibility with the right audiences.
The approach
Success depended on deciding where to focus, understanding the pressures local authorities faced, and building credibility around issues that genuinely mattered to them.
Working closely with sales, County and City Councils were identified as the primary target audience due to their scale, complexity and breadth of responsibilities.
Three priority councils were selected for deeper research and analysis, alongside validation with a long-standing local authority customer.
The research revealed a common challenge: local authorities constantly needing to do more with less. Tight budgets, increasing demand and growing expectations meant efficiency and value for money were central to decision-making.
Planned preventative maintenance emerged as a significant opportunity, with reactive maintenance often creating unnecessary cost, disruption and operational inefficiency.
The proposition focused on helping councils improve outcomes while making limited resources go further.
A practical maturity model was developed, enabling local authorities to assess their current position, identify opportunities for improvement and benchmark their approach.
Credibility mattered as much as visibility. The programme included sector event sponsorship, a leadership roundtable, support for the Public Sector Challenge charity initiative and relationship-building across key local government networks.
The impact
The programme engaged 40 of the UK's largest local authorities, helping build visibility and credibility within a highly competitive market.
The maturity model provided councils with a practical framework for assessing their current approach, identifying gaps and prioritising opportunities for improvement, while giving sales teams a more strategic conversation to have with stakeholders.
Most importantly, the programme helped establish the organisation as a credible partner to local authorities, creating stronger relationships and a platform for future growth.
The results
40
local authorities engaged
3
priority councils researched in depth to shape the proposition
1
maturity model providing a practical self-assessment framework
1:many ABM. Programme led by Amanda Weekes during her in house career, before AWX.
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