Verdance Business Development SOP

The Runway Framework

A repeatable operating system for moving qualified opportunities from first signal to governed delivery, expansion, and referral.

✦

Commercial principle

Evidence before optimism.

The pipeline exists to make commercial decisions visible. A lead moves only when its entry criteria, proof, owner, due date, and next action are recorded—not because a conversation felt promising.

Click a numbered runway stage to open its operating objective and required evidence.

Mode 2

Near-term services

Paid, scoped work for companies with an urgent commercial, operating, trade-readiness, heritage, or infrastructure problem.

30–90 day conversionQ4 priority

Mode 1

Producer-direct programs

Governed programs for qualified volume buyers with recurring category demand, a workable receiving/import pathway, and decision access.

Long-cycleGate-controlled

Verdance role

Structure, not commodity spread

Verdance designs, validates, documents, and governs commercially usable lanes. It does not take title, hold inventory, or resell product.

DLBHPDWLS

How to use this SOP

Choose the motion, then control the evidence.

1

Identify the correct revenue motionRoute the account to Mode 2 for paid services or Mode 1 for a qualified producer-direct program.

2

Run the stage pageUse the message, questions, gates, and output template for the current stage.

3

Record an exit pathAdvance, pause, recycle, route, nurture, or disqualify. Ambiguity is not a status.

Current execution priority
Secure 1–2 signed, paid Mode 2 engagements. Mode 1 is pursued only under its volume, import/receiving, and decision-access gates.

A

LandProspecting, outreach, qualification, discovery

B

Control towerSolution design, proposal, decision

C

Take offOnboarding, activation, retention, expansion, referral

01 · Land

Outreach that earns a relevant conversation.

Begin with the account’s observable trigger and a single hypothesis. Do not lead with a general capability dump, free strategy, or a product promise.

Account-specific first touch

Core email / LinkedIn messageHi [Name] — I’m reaching out because [specific account signal]. Verdance helps founder-led and trade-heavy companies turn commercial complexity—unclear operating models, fragmented supplier or documentation workflows, or weak origin positioning—into a system that can support the next decision. I suspect [account-specific hypothesis]. If that is a live issue, would a brief conversation next week be useful to compare what is currently breaking and what needs to be in place before [trigger event]?

Before sending

Message integrity check

Named account-specific trigger
Relevant founder, executive, commercial, or operating role
One hypothesis—not a generic claim
A 15–20 minute CTA
No free diagnostic or solution design in the message

Qualified buyer first touch

Core email / LinkedIn messageHi [Name] — I noticed [specific specialty/import/category signal]. Verdance designs and governs producer-direct programs for qualified Mexican-origin ingredients. We do not buy or resell product; we help establish the documentation, operating structure, and receiving pathway that make a differentiated supply program commercially usable. I am curious whether [Company] is actively evaluating [coffee/cacao/vanilla/honey] programs where origin, traceability, and reliable execution matter alongside price. If so, I would value 20 minutes to understand the category objective and your receiving pathway.

Required account evidence

Mode 1 outreach threshold

Relevant product/category fit is identified
At least partial recurring-volume evidence
At least partial import/receiving evidence—or exact gap
Likely decision-maker role is named
Account-specific trigger and channel-conflict pre-check completed

Message builder

Create the account brief before you write.

Account

Decision role

Observable trigger

Hypothesis

CTA / next decision

02 · Land

Qualify the problem before investing founder time.

A lead is not qualified because the conversation is positive. It is qualified when the relevant gates have evidence and the route is explicit.

Service qualification opener

Meeting languageI want to make sure we are discussing a problem Verdance is actually built to solve. I will ask a few direct questions about the current operating reality, who owns the decision, what is driving timing, and what would make solving this commercially worthwhile.

The five service checks

RealityA real product, operating business, sourcing activity, or trade workflow exists.

DecisionA founder, CEO, commercial owner, procurement owner, or operations owner is accessible.

UrgencyA launch, sourcing event, compliance need, expansion, investor process, or systems failure creates near-term timing.

BudgetThe prospect can fund scoped professional work in the applicable engagement range.

ValueA defined deliverable can create commercial, operational, or compliance value.

Routing rule

Four to five checks

Actively pursue and move to discovery or a scoped solution path.

Active pursuit

Two to three checks

Qualify further before investing more founder time.

Fewer than two

Deprioritize, nurture, or disqualify with a recorded reason.

Producer-direct qualification

Meeting languageBefore we discuss a supply program, we need to establish whether there is a recurring category need, a commercially workable receiving or import pathway, and a decision-maker who can evaluate the program. Verdance does not promise supply ahead of those conditions.

Gate ADirect-volume intent. Credible recurring category demand or an evidenced pathway to a program large enough to justify lane setup.

Gate BImport / receiving pathway. An established or realistic importer-of-record, distributor, receiving, warehousing, and documentation path.

Gate CCommercial decision access. A reachable sponsor able to evaluate category fit, terms, and onboarding.

Non-negotiable

All three gates must pass.

A high fit score, buyer prestige, chef enthusiasm, or product sample request cannot override a failed core gate.

If a gate is not passed, route to evidence-only, nurture, buyer + import partner, deferred, or disqualified. Do not list it as an active lane opportunity.

Qualification record

Generate a clear route.

Account

Current motion

Confirmed checks / gates

Missing condition

Evidence note

03 · Land

Turn symptoms into a decision-ready problem.

Discovery is where Verdance distinguishes a live commercial issue from a general interest conversation. Ask directly, document precisely, and do not prescribe before the operating reality is clear.

Discovery agenda

Five questions that create a usable brief.

What changed, or what is about to change, that makes this important now?
Where does the current process create cost, delay, risk, lost visibility, or reduced buyer confidence?
Who owns the outcome, and what decision must they make?
What has been tried, and why did it not resolve the problem?
What would make this work an unambiguous commercial win?

Mode 1 additions

Supply-program discovery.

Which ingredient category has real recurring demand?
Is this a program, a sourcing exploration, or a sample evaluation?
Who owns category approval, commercial terms, and receiving?
What importer, distributor, or receiving pathway exists?
What documentation, traceability, and onboarding standards apply?

Discovery canvas

Create the internal recap before solution design.

Account / opportunity

Decision owner

Urgency driver

Target decision date

Current-state problem

Desired end state

Dependencies / constraints

04 · Control Tower

Design the smallest credible intervention.

The proposal is not a capability brochure. It is a commercial decision document: problem, outcome, scope, responsibilities, timeline, investment, assumptions, and next commitment.

Mode 2 service lanes

Route the work correctly.

1

Heritage & Identity DiagnosticPositioning, heritage mapping, narrative architecture, commercialization recommendations.

2

Operating System & Commercial InfrastructureBusiness-model clarity, decision logic, workflow architecture, roles, operating system.

3

Validation, Compliance & Trade-ReadinessFSVP readiness, documentation frameworks, producer qualification, traceability requirements.

4

Platform & Infrastructure BuildWorkflow infrastructure for deals, suppliers, shipments, invoices, documentation, and integrations.

Proposal language

Decision-ready framingBased on what we heard, the immediate need is not [generic symptom]. The immediate need is to create [specific capability] before [business event]. Verdance would address that through [service lane or program structure], producing [defined deliverables], so your team can make [decision or operating move] with a documented, repeatable foundation.

Commitment askIf the scope reflects the problem accurately, can we use this meeting to confirm the executive owner, commercial decision process, and path to a signed start? If something prevents that, I would rather name it directly than leave the opportunity ambiguous.

Proposal brief generator

Create a scoped commercial recommendation.

Account

Recommended lane

Immediate business need

Primary deliverable(s)

Target delivery window

Commercial investment

Executive owner

Material assumptions / dependencies

05 · Take Off & Expand

Deliver proof, then earn the next decision.

Expansion follows documented value and a distinct, funded need. It is not assumed at signature and should never be hidden inside an unbounded initial scope.

08 · Onboarding

Establish operating control.

Align outcome, decision rights, working cadence, source materials, access, and acceptance criteria before work begins.

Client languageOur first priority is shared operating control. We will confirm the outcome, decision rights, work cadence, source materials, and acceptance criteria so delivery does not depend on assumptions.

09–10 · Activation & retention

Deliver a visible first unit of value.

Make the problem clearer, reduce risk, and establish whether a governed next phase is justified.

Client languageThe first delivery is designed to make the problem clearer, reduce risk, and give your team a usable operating artifact—not just analysis.

11–12 · Expansion & referral

Separate the next opportunity.

Name the newly discovered problem, owner, outcome, investment, and decision—then qualify it as its own opportunity.

Client languageThe next opportunity should follow from what the first engagement revealed—not from a generic upsell.

Post-delivery review

The evidence required to retain or expand.

Stage	What must be true	Commercial action	Do not do
Onboarding	Scope, owners, cadence, source materials, and acceptance criteria are confirmed.	Launch the working plan and establish the shared record.	Start delivery on verbal assumptions.
Activation	A practical artifact makes the client’s decision or operation clearer.	Review early value and reconfirm the priority.	Deliver analysis without an applied decision path.
Retention	A defined continuing governance or implementation need exists.	Propose a bounded next phase or retainer.	Extend the original scope informally.
Expansion	A distinct need, sponsor, budget, and success condition are visible.	Create a new qualified opportunity.	Assume adjacencies will convert.
Referral	Delivery produced clear value and the client knows a relevant peer.	Request a targeted introduction tied to a real trigger.	Ask for broad, unqualified introductions.

Internal reference

Commercial controls and claim boundaries.

Use these boundaries in every outreach, discovery, proposal, and delivery conversation. They preserve buyer clarity, producer protection, and truthful commercial positioning.

Verdance positioning

What we can say.

Approved core statementVerdance designs, validates, and governs producer-direct commercial lanes for qualified Mexican origin ingredients; it is paid for the structure and governance of trade, not for buying and reselling the product.

Verdance may coordinate with an importer of record or distributor inside a governed lane.
Verdance can deliver buyer-facing operating playbooks, documentation, lane design, and ongoing governance where contracted.
VHC is an internal controlled validation and authorization program in Phase 1.

Do not state or imply

Claim discipline.

Verdance is an importer, distributor, broker, retailer, commodity trader, or reseller.
Verdance will promise supply before commercial, importer/receiving, documentation, and operating roles are defined.
VHC is a third-party certification, certification mark, collective mark, geographic indication, FDA approval, or blanket compliance conclusion.
A sample, pilot, chef endorsement, or one-time transaction proves recurring commercial demand.
Unverified FSVP, producer, partner-authority, or market statistics.

CRM minimum record

Every active opportunity needs these fields.

Field	Required record	Purpose
Account & route	Account type, Mode 1/Mode 2, direct/distributor-led/service/deferred route	Prevents misclassification and channel ambiguity.
Stage evidence	Observable evidence, source/date, gate/check status	Enforces evidence before optimism.
Decision owner	Named sponsor and relevant authority	Prevents founder time spent below the decision line.
Commercial record	Need, urgency, scope, investment signal, next decision	Makes a proposal decision-ready.
Execution record	Account owner, next action, due date, exit path	Keeps the pipeline operational rather than descriptive.