How to End the Cycle that Stifles Consulting Growth

Two business functions rule consulting businesses in the early days. Sometimes they rule for years. Read this before the vid 👇

The two functions: 

Sales and fulfillment. 

You land a random referral. Close the sale. Fulfill the engagement. ♻️

You land another random referral. Close the sale. Fulfill the engagement. ♻️

And so on.

Most consulting businesses operate this way and it can be terrifying because: 

• You lose revenue between engagements, affecting your take-home income
• You become an order taker, doing whatever any client asks because you don’t have options
• You don’t prioritize your health as much as you would like to

If you’re not intentional about breaking the sales and fulfillment cycle, it could go on for years. At some point, you’re bound to burn out. 

So what should you do to break out of this cycle? 

This → Marketing. 

The first system to introduce to your business is marketing. An effective marketing system generates demand for your business and increases your gross profit, some of which you could use to invest back into the business. 

To me, “marketing” is everything that goes into creating and generating demand for your business, some of which include: 

✅ Understanding how and why buyers buy
✅ Picking markets based on your strengths
✅ Creating offerings that are hard to say “no” to
✅ Nurturing relationships with existing clients
✅ Building awareness and cultivating relationships with new prospects
✅ Crafting narratives that communicate undeniable value and pique curiosity
✅ Sharing your knowledge and expertise so others see you as a dependable resource
And so on…

As you can tell, effective marketing requires a systematic approach. It can’t be random. 

And you’ve got to be intentional about it and learn it. That’s why I created Consulting Growth Hour, a bi-weekly community and event series about all things consulting growth.

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Ready to add $100k-$500k revenue to your consulting business in 12 months or less without burning out? Schedule a call and let me show you how.

Image credit: Daniel Loveday | Saatchi Art