Early in my career, I thought a great pitch meant walking into a room armed with slides, company qualifications, past performance, and polished talking points.
I was wrong.
Over the years, across commercial and federal clients alike, I’ve learned something much more important: no one is sitting there wondering how impressive your company is. They’re wondering if you understand their problems and more importantly, if you can help solve them.
Every successful conversation starts before you even walk in the door.
It starts with understanding your client’s pain points. What’s keeping them up at night? Where are the bottlenecks? What does “faster, cheaper, better” mean in their world, not as a slogan, but as a necessity?
Because today, that expectation is real.
I’ve found that one of the most effective ways to build trust is to move beyond talking and start demonstrating. Showing, not telling, how you can advance the mission or drive outcomes changes everything.
At 9th Way, we’ve leaned heavily into that mindset. Whether it’s our IPA tool that brings transparency to program and project management, from onboarding to financials to ROI, or ZT-MAP, which helps automate zero trust implementation, the goal is the same: give clients something tangible that makes their lives easier from day one.
But tools alone don’t build trust.
People do.
The strongest partnerships I’ve built didn’t come from a perfect pitch. They came from showing up. Sitting side by side with clients, supporting them on site, being responsive, and demonstrating that their challenges are your challenges. That you’re just as invested in moving the mission forward or achieving their business goals as they are.
Trust deepens when clients believe you’re not just there for the contract; you’re there for them.
And over time, that trust grows beyond the work itself. You start talking about family, food, sports, hobbies, the things that remind us we’re all human first. Those connections matter more than we often realize, because real partnerships aren’t transactional, they’re personal.
The psychology of the pitch isn’t about persuasion.
It’s about understanding, demonstrating value, and consistently showing up as someone your client can rely on.
When you do that, it’s no longer a pitch.
It’s the beginning of a partnership. What’s one thing you’ve found builds trust faster than anything else with your clients?
Nancy Van Balen – Chief Growth Officer