| In the consulting industry, if there's one thing that | | | | your products, services and company, then you'll |
| causes people to ignore online marketing, it's the | | | | be the one to grab their attention and bring them |
| belief that you can't sell professional services over | | | | one step closer. |
| the web. This is both true and false, so read on if | | | | 2. Provide useful information that educates them |
| you want to look at this from an entirely | | | | and earns their trust. |
| different perspective and change your approach | | | | Most of the time consumers of professional |
| to sales pipeline building. | | | | services do a lot of online research to develop |
| Of course it's true that people won't get their | | | | their issue or thinking before they decide on their |
| credit cards out to buy high priced intangible | | | | provider. Would you like to help them do their |
| products that normally have long sales gestation | | | | research? You bet! People will lean in your direction |
| periods and require expert conversations before a | | | | if you help them out with valuable information |
| deal takes place. However don't let this fool you | | | | that moves their issue ahead. Consulting is a |
| into ignoring the stages of the sales and | | | | relationship business, so when they're ready to |
| marketing process where the web can make | | | | buy, you'll be right up there in their mind as |
| massive contributions, it can shrink sales cycles | | | | someone they trust to provide the expertise |
| and automate lead generation by taking people | | | | they need. So if you make it easy for them by |
| out of the process. What it can do for you is | | | | providing valuable and useful information in the |
| bring more prospects to the table, win their trust | | | | form of white papers, advisory articles, |
| and get them deeper into your sales funnel | | | | presentations, research reports, podcasts etc. |
| without expensive people ever having met them! | | | | then you'll be the one they trust and they won't |
| Once you've moved to this way of thinking, you'll | | | | be reserved in picking up the phone to you. |
| have prospects knocking on your door rather | | | | 3. Make your website the hub for all marketing |
| than you on theirs, your sales pipeline will be a lot | | | | campaigns. |
| healthier, your expensive people will be better | | | | Most consulting firms who have a marketing plan |
| utilized and your cost of client acquisition will be | | | | treat their website like a separate strand of |
| much lower than it is today. | | | | activity, along with direct mail, telemarketing, |
| If you are going to move to this mindset you | | | | event speaking, sponsorship, advertising etc. Most |
| need to work on three key things: | | | | marketers also struggle with measuring the |
| 1. Talk in the �needs' language of your target | | | | effectiveness of their marketing campaigns. If |
| audience. | | | | you make your website the central hub for all |
| 2. Provide useful information that educates them | | | | marketing activities, then you can measure the |
| and earns their trust. | | | | return on investment from all of your campaigns. |
| 3. Make your website the hub for all marketing | | | | Make sure you've got a good visitor tracking tool |
| campaigns. | | | | installed (e.g. Opentracker), build special landing |
| Here's how: | | | | pages for each campaign, automate the delivery |
| 1. Talk in the �needs' language of your target | | | | of your information products and capture contact |
| audience. | | | | information for use in on-going marketing |
| The buying language of consulting consumers is | | | | communications. If you do these things you'll be |
| often very different to the selling language used | | | | well on your way to �lights out lead generation'! |
| by consultants on their websites. This results in a | | | | So is it stupid to think you can sell professional |
| misalignment between the buyer and the seller. | | | | services and consulting over the web? |
| It's a common perception that consultants like to | | | | Well it's doable for advisory products at a sub |
| talk in complex terms about themselves and their | | | | $1000 price point, but generally speaking you |
| expertise, than they do about the business | | | | cannot close a complex deal online. But you can |
| outcomes they deliver! When your clients go | | | | use the web to get your first meeting with a |
| online to do their research, you want to be the | | | | prospect, and if you use this as your main |
| one that sings their song and presses their | | | | objective then you'll soon be pushing leads into |
| buttons. So if you do your homework and identify | | | | your sales pipeline with much less effort and cost. |
| with their needs, wants and issues, rather than | | | | |