Marketing Your Consulting Business by Robert H.

Transcript:Marketing Your Consulting Business by Robert H.:
Marketing Your Consulting Business by Robert H. Badgley, Ph.D. Outline How the Consultant Works Getting Contracts 3. Types of Marketing 4. Examples of Marketing 1. How The Consultant Works A Consultant --- Is an independent professional, retained by an organization, and sells results by the hour or day Brings his / her own knowledge and a substantial set of files to meet the client’s requirements Is his / her own boss Has no routine work hours at the client’s firm Is not one of the group, and is not a contractor Often works on relatively short projects The Consultant as a Subject Matter Expert The Consultant fills a specific technical niche, which is sometimes quite narrow The Consultant is in demand because of in-depth knowledge of a topic in which a Client needs help People skills and organizational boundaries are not usually important to solving the Client’s problem Single projects are common, and might result in a long-term support effort Results are often difficult to predict in advance The Consultant as a Process Expert The Consultant understands most aspects of entire processes, which may be quite broad The Consultant is in demand because of knowledge of how organizations function People skills and organizational boundaries are usually important to solving the Client’s problem Client process problems usually require a continuing effort and are often cyclical in nature Consulting – Positive Aspects Great autonomy in selecting and conducting jobs Great variety in work Business can be set up and conducted with little investment Potential for high income Great job satisfaction. Consulting – Negative Aspects Little involvement with client firm’s staff No support system Irregular cash flow Regular retraining may be necessary Work level may cause problems at home The Successful Consultant Has --- A strong drive to maximize his / her income A clear belief in his / her unique ability to solve Clients’ problems better than anyone else An exceptional interest in becoming and remaining an acknowledged expert in his / her chosen field Strong self confidence that no matter what type of Client problem is encountered, it can be solved The Successful Consultant Also --- Has inherently strong skills at reading peoples’ moods, and is unusually good at understanding motivations and agendas Communicates well over a range of organizational levels Understands and practices self-promotion continuously to keep the contracts coming Deals well with change and rejection, and is pragmatic 2.