Editor's Note: Take a look at our featured best practice, Marketing Plan of a Consulting Firm (34-page PDF document). This document is a marketing plan for "ABC's Consulting Firm." MARKETING MISSION: To expand the brand equity of ABC to include our consulting solutions. MARKETING OBJECTIVES: Internally - Align business consulting marketing activities with business plan priorities and strategic [read more]
Six Tips Consultants Should Consider to Generate More Clients
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Running a business is hard work. That’s why many small business owners seek professional advice from consulting firms. But just like any other type of company, running a business that provides consulting services is no easy feat. It’s not every day that you land big clients. Many consulting firms are constantly on the lookout for new prospects to convert them into clients.
With so many consultants offering their services to different business owners, it may be challenging to find new clients for your consulting firm. But don’t worry, there are several ways to land new clients and grow your company. Here are six tips that consultants should consider to stay ahead of the game and generate more clients:
1. Optimize your LinkedIn profile. LinkedIn is a network designed for professionals across industries, making it an ideal place to look for new prospects. But before anything else, make sure to optimize your profile to inform people that you are an industry expert and you can help them grow their company.
- Highlight your core skills and years of experience in consulting.
- Establish a solid presence by writing relevant articles.
- Use online tools to know which keywords are commonly used when people look for consulting services, then include those keywords in your articles.
- Of course, engage with other professionals. The great thing about this is that you can slowly grow your network while strengthening your LinkedIn presence, and with any luck, word will spread about your expertise, and you can attract new prospects.
2. Include email marketing in your strategy. Generate more clients by sending direct emails or newsletters regularly. With email marketing, you can reach a wider audience and promote your consulting services without spending a lot. Make sure, though, to do it properly.
- Keep each email or newsletter brief and straightforward.
- Avoid sending too many emails as your target market may find this annoying; the last thing you want is people hitting the “unsubscribe” button.
- You can use an email newsletter service to make it much easier to send emails to a long list of recipients, these tools can also help you analyze how many people are opening your emails.
- Keep in mind that, at first, most of your messages may go unread. It’s a reality that many digital marketers and other professionals face, but don’t let this discourage you. Keep improving on the content in your emails or newsletter and you’ll see the benefits.
3. Take the traditional route on generating new clients.
The digital age presents various online tools and strategies that are beneficial to consultants, but it’s essential to have the right mix of digital presence and human touch to attract more prospects. You can do this by being proactive in industry conferences, networking events, and guest speaking engagements. There are many local events, seminars, and workshops where you can be a guest speaker to talk about consulting and the services that you offer.
- With this strategy, you can reach a wider audience, expand your network, and add a more personalized touch to your marketing efforts.
- Be sure to tell event organizers that you are open to guest speaking opportunities.
- If you really don’t feel comfortable with public speaking, you should definitely improve that skill by enrolling in public speaking workshops.
4. Stay relevant and up-to-date.
Just like any other businesses, consulting companies go through changes. You need to embrace change and learn to adapt and evolve to keep up with the ever-evolving needs of your clients. As a consultant, it’s essential to continue learning new skills and staying updated on industry trends and strategies.
- Take a closer look at your current skills and see what companies are looking for in a consulting firm.
- Read up on what’s happening in the industry. Take short courses to learn new skills that big companies typically need.
- In general, the more relevant skills you have, the more sought-after you will become.
5. Get the most out of your company’s website.
Gone are the days when a company website just contained necessary information like contact details, the company history, services, and the people behind it. Nowadays, standing out of the competition means publishing fresh and relevant content regularly. This is necessary to improve site traffic and search engine optimization so people can reach your site easily when looking for consulting services. It’s also important to offer different types of content.
- You can create videos, infographics, case studies, and animations so people will be more interested in your content.
- Another great way to keep your company website updated is to add a blog section where you can share your knowledge and expertise and make yourself known in the digital space as an expert in your field.
- The more site visitors you have, the more likely you’ll generate new clients for your consulting firm.
6. Ask social media influencers to help you.
More and more people are turning into bloggers and social media influencers. As a consultant, you can utilize them to promote your consulting services. Popular influencers can significantly help you promote what you offer and create brand awareness in their respective networks.
- If you have new services to offer, you can hold an event and invite influencers who can share information about your company on their accounts.
- Just be sure to reach out to relevant influencers, someone who has a large social media following that is not your target market will be useless to you.
These are just some of the things that consultants should consider to generate more clients. Promoting your services entails a lot of time, energy, and hard work. It’s beneficial to strike a balance between digital and traditional strategies so you can reach a wider audience and stay relevant in the industry. By establishing a strong presence online and in your local area, you can promote your brand and be the first consulting company that people think of when they want to grow their business.
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About Emily Lazration
Emily is the Content Marketing Specialist at CoverWallet, a tech company that makes it easy for businesses to understand, buy and manage commercial insurance online.Top 8 Recommended Documents on Consulting Sales
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