Positioning your consulting practice is perhaps the most critical sales and marketing decision you can make, but it’s also hard, so a lot of consultants don’t really do a great job with it. This leads them to struggle unnecessarily. Why … Read More
referrals
As a consultant, are you a business owner or a subcontractor?
The phone rings and you can see the name of your client. What’s the feeling in your gut? Is it, “oh, great, I’m looking forward to talking to so-and-son”? Or is it, “not again, this so-and-so is draining the life … Read More
passing the bar test for positioning
What do you say when people ask what you do? In person? On your website? On LinkedIn? When you’re talking to your friends? What do your clients say you do for them? Is your answer consistent and authentic? For many … Read More
Our own beliefs are the biggest sales obstacle
Sales is hard for anyone, but especially when you start your own professional services business, your own beliefs are often the biggest obstacle to sales. I started with some strange, self-limited beliefs about sales. Over time, I realized that I … Read More
Reasons you don’t have a Lead Magnet on your site
After I published a 3,000 word article on using a Lead Magnet to generate leads for your professional services business, responses ranged from “hey, this is exactly what I needed”, to “this would never work for me.” Within the “never … Read More
The Reconnection Challenge
I’ve been thinking (and writing, and coding, and acting) a lot about the importance of connections. Not just social media connections, but actual social connections, which take time to nurture. Social media should (and can) facilitate real connection, but often … Read More
The Maximum Social Network
With the rise of online social networks, it’s easy to quantify our connections. Or so you’d think. How many likes? How many followers? But what does this really mean for human connection? How many connections can you actually have? And … Read More
Making Sales Call Easier
If there’s one overriding theme beyond the Mimiran product, it’s: “automate around Reuben’s weaknesses.” One of those weaknesses is calling people. I’m getting much, much better, but it’s still not my favorite thing, and I’m still behind where I should … Read More
2019 Sales and Marketing Pipeline Planning
We’ve all done our sales planning for 2019? If you’re a bit behind, like some people I’ve heard about, you can use this quick pipeline planner to get a sense of how many leads you need, what your close rate … Read More
Are you maximizing word of mouth and referrals?
Referrals are awesome, right? Just because I’m a big fan of “growing beyond word of mouth”, doesn’t mean I hate referrals. On the contrary, I love referral business. When I did consulting, all my business was word of mouth. (And … Read More