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Nine Tips for Consultants

Here are some tips which consultants may find helpful:

1. Set yourself apart through great service. Make sure that you and your staff are thorough and do a complete job, for which you are properly paid an appropriate amount.

2. Choose one hat, and wear it. It’s important to specialize and to go with your strengths. It will be easier for you to do a stellar job, as well as it being easier to be recognized as the go – to person if you only do one thing, and you do it well.

3. Be prepared to work hard. Consultants are often hired to put out fires, and to deal with jobs and projects that were due yesterday.

4. Sell yourself without selling yourself. If you approach companies to try to sell your services, never try to sell to the person you are talking to. Simply describe your service and ask how you should form your company so that a company like theirs would find it useful. Ask advice, and for information, and keep it on file. Be clear what the advantages of your business are, and they’ll remember you when they need someone. Especially if you write a little thank you note thanking them for meeting with you and telling you about their company.

5. Do what’s best for the client. In the long run, what’s best for the client is what’s best for you. This loyalty to your client’s interest will sometimes be paid back in loyalty to you, but the important thing is to establish a reputation as providing a good service.

6. Screen your clients. Work for clients who will allow you to be the most effective.

7. Try to meet other consultants and business owners who serve a similar market to yours. Partner up with some of them, so you can send work to each other. Be sure that whatever individual or company you partner with is a good, reputable company with stability.

8. Continue marketing. Do not stop marketing your business just because you have two clients. Continue marketing until you’ve reached the point where your business plan says you don’t need to market anymore. At which point, you may be successful enough that you will probably want to write a new business plan, to allow for more growth potential.

9. Be flexible. While you do need to specialize, occasionally throwing a few of your side skills into a project can land you the really good client, or get a project done if no one else knows how to do it.