Five Quick Consultancy Tips (Feb 2)
It's Friday, so who wants a long read?
A few quick tips….
Focus on organisations who are already doing well and want to do better - not those who are struggling. There’s usually reasons why they’re struggling which are difficult to solve (motivation, resources etc…).
Don’t begin hiring staff once you have more work than you can handle. First, you need to make sure that this isn’t just an outlier month (or two). Instead look back at the sales pipeline on average over the past year and see if there is an increase.
If you want to attract your first clients, focus on an overlooked, non-sexy, six-figure problem you can solve. Then share examples of how organisations are solving that problem with your advice on how they can improve their solution.
When a client expresses a minor concern, make 100% sure you resolve that concern. Politeness often prevents people from expressing their real needs. If a client expresses a minor concern in the sales or consultancy process - treat it as a dealbreaker for them.
Charge a flat rate for the project. Yes value based fees are wonderful in a fantasy world - but in reality you’re going to have competitors and smart buyers. Remove all the stress of calculating hours and uncertainty about the final fee by charging a fixed, flat, rate.
I hope you get as much mileage out of these as I have.
All great tips, as usual, Rich! About point #2: Don’t begin hiring staff once you have more work than you can handle. What do you suggest when experiencing a triple influx of business all at once? It feels like contractors will cost more than new hires, especially with year-long contracts.