Late in 2017, a friend of mine recommended that I start my own consulting business after helping her with her own business. One of my goals for 2018 was to start consulting and get my first client. I want to share how I was able to successfully acquire my first consulting clients to show you how to get your first consulting client today.
1) What are your skills?
What would you consider yourself to be an expert in? If you do not know the answer to this off of the top of your head, I recommend writing a list of every skill that you posses. If you have a LinkedIn profile (here’s mine as an example) or have resume/cover letter, I would use what you have written there as a great place to start. It’s also helpful to look at other people’s LinkedIn profile to see what they have written to use a blueprint of skill sets that you can use.
Once you have a list of your skills, it is time to expand and explain why those skills are important (few an example here). By giving a deeper explanation of those skills, it gives the reader a perception that you have thought deeply about how a specific skill could assist their needs. Additionally, it gives sort of a portfolio of things you have already worked on, thus giving you credibility.
2) What is your niche?
After taking a deeper dive into your skills, you will begin to see that there are certain niches that align with your skills. Maybe you have an extensive knowledge of fashion, app development, or social media management. Whatever your niche is, begin to think of how you can package your skills together to provide a certain service.
3) What services can you provide?
Your services are your headline of skills that you can provide to your clients. Maybe you provide straight forward services like website creation, SEO implementation, or accounting. A great way to offer your various services is to package them together at a discounted rate.
For example, you could create a package where you build a website, implement initial SEO, and create an initial online social media presence for your client. Individually the services would cost more, but packaged together they would cost less. This gives your client more bang for their buck and also increases the chances that they will not only spend more money with you, but will keep you on retainer. Retainer means they pay you a fixed fee per month (or other specified amount of time) for an extended amount of time.
4) Who is your ideal client?
Now that you have established your skill set and credibility, you need to decide who is your ideal client. For example, you probably have skills that could serve any client; however, the depth of your knowledge might not fit the expertise needed for that client’s needs. You might be an accounting or financial guru, but if your client needs marketing help then they are not your customer. Make sure you when you start marketing your services that you are going after an audience whose needs align with your skill set.
5) Create your initial brand
What will the name of consulting company be? What is your logo? What kind of brand do you want to present to your clients? Professionalism should be one of your top concerns.
Having a brand to present to initial clients is essential. Make sure you have a bio written about yourself so that when people come to checkout your services they can learn more about who you are and how you run your business. I recommend creating a one pager with a letterhead with your branding, bio, services, experience, and potential testimonials. You can use this 1-pager to present or email to potential clients as a follow up to speaking with them.
6) Promote your services to get your first client
Now you have a brand and all of this amazing information to share with the world about your services, but where do you showcase it all? Initially, I recommend making a Facebook page to promote your services. Make sure you put as much information as possible so that when people land on your page that they have content to consume. Ultimately I think your goal should be to have your own website so that you can control all aspects of your online branding and content.
Get Your First Client Today!
Need help creating a website to promote your services? I can help! Contact me so that we can get started on your website today.