How%20to%20market%20your%20consulting%20business[1]

How to market your consulting
business
„Take Charge‟ Session # 2
July 21st, 2009
Walsh College, Novi Campus
Lee E. Meadows, Professor of Management

Marketing your consulting business
Workshop objectives:
1. To discuss basic marketing techniques.
2. To analyze applicable marketing ideas.
3. To benchmark ideas with workshop
participants.
4. To move forward on consulting
possibilities.
5. To have fun!

What is marketing?
It is a mindset which puts the customer
first and ensures that the consultant's
philosophy is “without customers there is no
consulting.”
“An integrated set of strategies for selling
products and services or ideas.”

Marketing perspective:
Sold by Joseph Enterprises, Inc.
of San Francisco, Calif. under
the trademark Chia Pet.
These figurines have hollow, clay
bodies in the general form of
the animal represented.
A large torso portion of the clay
body has many small grooves
in which moistened chia
seeds (Salvia Columbariae)
are positioned.
The moistened chia seeds
produce a thick, gel-like paste
which binds the seeds to the
clay surface.

Marketing questions that MUST be
answered.
 What is the appeal of your product/service?
 How will you attract and maintain your market?
 What are your marketing priorities among segments and
applications?
 How will you identify prospective clients?
 How will you reach the decision makers?
 How will you decide whom to contact?
 What level of prospecting effort will you implement?
 What advertising/promotion medium will you use?
 What will your pricing strategy be?

One of the most important
aspects of marketing is to
give your customers a reason
to use your service


Who needs you? Who loves you, baby?
Dr. Phil Kojak

Keys to marketing
Segmentation
 Recognize the market clusters that exist in your target
audience.
• What differentiates each group? What makes them
unique?
Targeting
 choose the service that will be the focus of your
campaign.
Positioning
 What message do you want to convey?
 How do you want your audience to see you?

What Marketing does?
 Opportunity for long-term planning, promise of a
positive and productive relationship with the clientele.
 Analyses client needs.
 Determines how the resulting service will be packaged,
promoted and distributed.


Promotion Products

Target
Market

Place Price


Target market: a group of
customers to whom the
consultant aims the marketing
effort.

Marketing Plan Elements
 Positioning
◦ how do you want you and your service
perceived by your different client groups?
◦ write a statement that embodies the above
◦ consider how your actions help convey your
positioning message

Marketing options
Radio
Newspaper
Trade Journals
Magazines
Television
Exhibitions
Direct Mail
Email
Web

Today‟s Marketing &
Advertising
 PR Through News Media, TV/Newspaper/Magazine Interview or Article
 Publications in Journals, White Paper, Product Brochures and Press Releases
 Seminar Presentations,Tradeshows and Networking Events
 TV, Radio and Print Advertising
 Brand Name and Product Promotion by Offering Free Samples or Gifts or Discount
Coupons
 Web Site Marketing and Advertising
 Direct Marketing by Mail and Email
 Telemarketing
 Other Media Such As Bill Boards (Highway, Public Transportation, Public Space)
 Video/Audio Tape and CD

For Small Businesses, Most Items above Are Not Affordable Due to Capital Constraints
On the Other Hand, Any Business Big or Small Must Do Marketing to Succeed
Telemarketing and Direct Emailing Are Selected for Low Cost Not for Effectiveness

Start with your Social Capital
The set of norms, networks, and
organizations through which consultants
gain access to clients and resources, and
through which opportunities to do
business may occur”

What is Social Capital?
This refers to connection among individuals.

Social Capital = Referrals!!

Ways of obtaining referrals:
 Start by asking people you come in contact with on
a regular basis.
 Ask for referrals with your signature file in your e-
mails.
 Ask readers to forward your e-mail newsletter to
people who might interested.
 Ask your current customers and clients for referrals.
First you must make them happy.
 Barter for referrals.
 Swap referrals with other consultants.
 To be effective quickly follow up and keep records.

Reward those that give:
 Always reward people who give you referrals.

 Mail or e-mail them a thank-you note.
 Send them a thank you gift.
 Give them a gift certificate or coupon.
 Send them flowers.

 Give them discounts on other products or services.

 Offer them a percentage of the profit on each
referred sale.

The Internet
 Now a Mass Medium
 Fundamentally Changing Consumers‟
Media Consumption Habits
 Opportunity to Get in Front of
Consumers When They are in a “Buy”
Mindset

Why a website?

Word-of-Mouth 57%
Site Mentioned in
42%
Magazine/Newspaper Article
24%
Online Ad for the Site
20%
Magazine/Newspaper Ad
Site Mentioned in a TV 18% What compels
you to visit a
News Segment
12% Web site?
TV Ad for the Site (choose two)
7%
Radio Ad for the Site
0% 20% 40% 60%
Source: Jupiter/NFO; n=1,671

E-mail Marketing Emerging as a Powerful
Force
E-mails from Commerce/Content Ventures Focused
 Driving Repeat Visits
• Driving Loyalty
 Acquiring New Clients • Promoting Products
• Reinforcing the Brand
Efficiencies of E-mail:
 It’s Cheap – no postage, or per piece production
costs
 It’s Fast – quick time to market and response time
 It Works – higher response rates than direct mail

Internet Usage is High
60% 56%

50%
“How often do
40% you use the
30% Internet?”
24%

20%
8% 8%
10% 4%
0%
Almost At least At least Once Only a
every day once a once a every few few times
week month months in his/her
life

Commerce Opportunities
Books 45%

CDs, tapes, albums 33%

Computer peripherals 29%

Flowers or gifts 24%
“Which of the
Hotel reservations 20%
following
Clothing 16% products or
Airplane tickets 14% services have you
Entertainment tickets 12% purchased
Electronics 12% online?”
PCs 10%

None of these 14%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Importance of Word-of-Mouth Tactics
When a friend tells you about a site how many other people are you
likely to pass the information on to?

No one:
10+ People:8% 1 Person:
7% 12%
7-9 People:
4% 69% of Consumers
Tell Between 2 and 6
People
4-6 People:
20%

2-3 People:
49%

The 5 Most Important Questions
1. What is your Business (Mission)?
2. Who is your client?
3. What does the client consider value?
4. What is the plan?
5. What are our evaluation criteria?

Marketing your web site
4 Ways to Promote site:
◦ leverage traditional media
◦ garner press attention
◦ hyperlinks to other site
◦ buy electronic ads

Even the smallest business can compete in
the Web‟s global “Marketspace”
◦ Any business can go global with
unprecedented ease and low cost
◦ Well designed storefronts enable small
companies to act “big” and enable big
companies to act as if they are as flexible and
responsive as startups.
 Language matters

Agility rules: web sites must continually
adapt to the market
◦ Competitive advantage may only last a few
weeks or months
◦ Take feedback, and respond promptly and
seriously to what you hear
◦ Add new features regularly
◦ Recognize that disruptive technologies alter
the way the web economy works. How will
you capitalize on these technologies?

Other tips…
 Remember that your business card has
two sides.
 This allows you the opportunity to inform
about your contact details on one side
and make promotional statements on the
other side.
 Gather and use excellent testimonials

„I‟ll tell you, chum it‟s time to

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How%20to%20market%20your%20consulting%20business[1]