Here are 5 major mistakes new consultants make when starting a consulting business and what they should do to avoid making these mistakes:
1. The consultant has no business or marketing plan on how to select and serve a niche market. As a consultant, your job it to select a niche market you can help the most and proactively go after those clients.
2. The consultant sees marketing as an expense instead of an investment. Marketing is the most lucrative investment platform in the world and consultants that wisely see marketing as an investment in building their business will succeed. To get clients, you have to invest in marketing, even if that marketing is just picking up the phone and cold calling.
3. Consultants do not have any experience in sales. Strong sales skills are incredibly important in running a consulting business. Without understanding how to sell using consultative selling techniques such as SPIN, you are going to be a very hungry and poor consultant.
4. Trying to compete on low price instead of on the quality of your service. Clients care more about positive results than about saving a few bucks. Focus on producing amazing results for your clients so you never have to compete on price.
5. Never, ever do work on a handshake or verbal deal. You must prepare detailed contracts that outline the exact services your will provide, and the more detailed the better. If you do not create detailed contracts that outline every step of your consulting process, I guarantee you will get burned on payment. Contracts are your bodyguard as a consultant. Use them or you will pay dearly for not using them.
To Your Success!
Peter Geisheker, CEO
The Geisheker Group marketing companies
http://www.geisheker.com
(920) 471-1638
"We don't help you compete, we help you dominate!"
Tweet
1 comments:
Very good points Peter.
One more mistake I see among most consultants, coaches, trainers, and almost any small business is that their marketing message is "I am a business consultant" or "I am a coach."
NO ONE sees any reason to talk to them further. Developing a marketing message that gives the prospect a COMPELLING reason to talk further, and to hire the consultant is the key. The number of people who start responding will be 10 times or more higher.
Post a Comment