It’s probably safe to say that most of us would like to boost our incomes. How do you do that without burning  yourself out? How do you break the income barrier, especially when the economy is poor, unemployment is high, there are many consultants competing for the same business, and clients are trimming budgets?

Perhaps you’ve wondered why some consultants maintain high incomes in good times and challenging ones.

Take this simple quiz developed by Linda Popky, a million-dollar consultant and president of Leverage2Market Associates, to find out if you’re working hard or working smart.

1. Do you feel the only way to increase revenue is to bill more hours? __ Yes __No
2. Do you feel the need to justify to clients the time you are putting into their projects? __ Yes __No
3. Do you feel you are frequently treated like a vendor or hired hand rather than a partner to your client? __ Yes __No
4. Do your clients tell you they love your proposal but need to get final sign-off from higher authorities before proceeding? __ Yes __No
5. Do you find yourself competing for business on the basis of price? __ Yes __No
6. Do you work directly with decision makers who have the ability to write a check or issue a purchase order for your work? __ Yes __No
7. Can you clearly articulate why the client should hire you in terms of their key business objectives? __ Yes __No
8. Are you clear on why the client should hire you vs. find other ways to solve their problem? __ Yes __No
9. Can you specifically state the metrics the client will use to measure the success of the project? __ Yes __No
10. Can your client state the impact of the project on their organization, including customers, suppliers, employees, and other stakeholders? __ Yes __No

For questions 1-5, give yourself 10 points for every No answer, 0 points for Yes answers.

For questions 6-10, give yourself 10 points for every Yes answer, 0 points for No answers.

Total up your score.

Less than 50 points: You may be working hard, but you’re not necessarily working smart. Look for opportunities to take your business to the next level.

50-60 points: You’re on the right track, but wouldn’t you like to increase your revenues in line with the value you’re creating for clients?

70-80 points: You’re doing a great job, but there’s opportunity to build your business by thinking more strategically about the value you provide.

90-100 points: You understand the importance of selling on value and you’re always looking for best practices to help you do even better.

Whatever your score, join Linda for the upcoming WIC workshop, “Earn What You’re Worth: Value-Based Pricing” on Tuesday September 20. She’ll discuss ways you can use value-based pricing to get the fees you deserve for the value you provide to clients. Linda will focus on the methodologies of million-dollar consultant Alan Weiss, author of more than 40 books on consulting, including Value-Based Fees: How to Charge — and Get — What You’re Worth — A Guide for Serious Consultants.

Register by September 6 to get the early-bird rate.

By: Michelle Gouldsberry

Recently I upgraded my Office software to Office 2010 when I got a new laptop. Little did I know that Office 2010 isn’t totally backward compatible with previous versions of Office. It caused major headaches when creating a PowerPoint presentation that my client and I were both going to be editing: formats were lost, charts needed to be reworked, etc. It was a MAJOR headache and caused the client a lot of extra work…not my favorite thing!

Going forward I will definitely be integrating some things into my project launch activities to avoid such tech compatibility problems in the future. I’ll be sure to ask what version of Office my contacts at the client site are using, do some test runs early on to identify any issues, and take the necessary steps on my end to avoid cause client frustration. That should help avoid such a situation in the future.

This got me thinking about other types of compatibility that are important to assess with new clients. Below is a list of things I thought of to cover in launch meetings with my clients to ensure smooth sailing throughout our work together:

• Meetings: In person or on the phone?
• Project updates: How often? What format? How detailed?
• Billing: Payment terms? Who to contact with questions: A/P or my contact? Require PO # on invoices?
• Reports: How detailed? What format? Style requirements (fonts, colors, templates)?

By discussing these things upfront, you can not only avoid irritating glitches in the project, but also show a level of maturity and sophistication as a consultant which shows that you have a wealth of experience and are very customer-oriented and willing to adjust your approach to whatever works best for the client.

What items are missing from this list? What compatibility issues have you encountered with clients and how have you overcome them/avoided them moving forward?

By: Jen Berkley Jackson

If you’ve ever been confused about branding your small business, here’s a simple way to think about it:

Branding Is Your Business’s Fashion Statement.

Here’s how branding is like fashion:

When you’re picking out a fashionable outfit for a night out on the town, there are several angles to consider, like:

1. Your fashion style. Do you consider yourself a sporty dresser, vintage, a bohemian, urban, or a little bit rock and roll? A trendsetter or more classic style? Your central fashion theme figures into your wardrobe.

2. Your personal taste and comfort. Dressing in a style that you like and wearing clothes that you resonate with and that make you feel fabulous.

3. The people you’ll be hanging out with. You want to make sure you’re not under-dressed for the company you’re keeping.

4. Your outfit’s effect on that special someone. If you’re dressing to impress, then you’ll think about who you want to impress and what they like.

5. The climate. You want to pick the right outfit for the weather, so you’re not too hot or too cold.

6. The current “ins” and “outs”. You want to look appropriate for the season’s trends — like you’re keeping up with the times instead of stuck in the past.

7. Matching the pieces of your outfit to one another. You want to make sure your outfit goes together — from head to toe — and that your look is consistent.

You have to watch for all 7 of these angles in your brand as well, by making sure that your brand:

1. Has a strong style and central theme. Your brand has a central theme that’s a lot like a fashion style — your BrandStyle. Once you know this central theme and core message of your brand, you’ll be able to easily style all of your materials to that style to make a clearer statement that’s instantly recognizable.

2. Looks like you, is an accurate reflection of who you really are and makes you feel fabulous. As your vision and mission changes, the appropriateness of your brand may also change. And, you want to make sure that your brand is an accurate reflection of your personality as well.

3. Looks appropriate among your competition. You can certainly make sure that your brand looks better than the competition’s, but you don’t ever want to have the frumpiest brand in your field. Your brand is one of the ways that your customers will compare you against your competition, and you want to make sure that it helps you come out on top.

4. Attracts your ideal clients and inspires them to hire you to work with them on perfect projects. The way to do this is to design your materials with your message and your clients’ visual tastes in mind — so they will be able to instantly see how amazing you really are. This makes you unforgettable and irresistible.

5. Is appropriate for the climate. You don’t have to design your brand to go with the weather, but there are other climate considerations: the social climate and economical climate can influence a brand. Make sure your brand’s message and design keep up with changes in these areas.

6. Keeps current with the trends. This doesn’t mean that your brand should be trendy, but it should look modern and updated. This means revisiting your brand once a year with a designer to evaluate how it looks in regards to graphic trends and trends in your industry.

7. Maintains consistency of message and of design throughout all of your materials. This doesn’t mean that every piece has to look exactly the same — that can become repetitive and dull. But it does mean that your materials should all appear to go together and should build on one another to increase their effectiveness.

If you think about your brand as your business’s fashion statement, then it becomes fun again!

By: Erin Ferree

Recently, I had a big ‘personal event’ in my life (I got married!) and for the week before and the week after the wedding, it was difficult to stay as focused on my work and my clients as I normally am.

I had every intention of working on client projects right up until the day before the wedding and to return to work the following Tuesday since we weren’t taking our honeymoon right away—I wanted to minimize the impact of my marriage on my clients. However the clients I had active projects with knew about my upcoming wedding and insisted on making adjustments to their expectations, meeting schedules, etc. so I could actually take off a few extra days to focus on entertaining out of town family, wedding prep details, etc.

What I hadn’t realized is the ‘stock value’ I had earned with these clients through the quality work I have done for them, and delivering on everything I committed to. I was thrilled to realize that I had earned some leeway and didn’t have to put myself and my family out unnecessarily from my concern of neglecting my customers due to personal issues.

I think that we all forget that we are constantly building up our own personal ‘stock value’ with our customers, especially those that we have repeat projects with. We run and run to meet their needs and anticipate needs they may have…we apologize profusely when there are little bumps in the road, even the ones we have no control over…we try to protect them from all of the obstacles that come up in the course of a project…we tend to move our previously calendared meetings to accommodate their calendars. All of these things constitute great client management and customer service…however, it also creates stress.

It’s important to also stop sometimes to acknowledge that you have built up credibility and trust with your clients. Knowing that you have ‘stock value’ with your customers will ensure that you come from a strong, confident place when you DO have to deliver disappointing news re: missed deadlines or problems that occur in the work you do with your clients. Or when you need to adjust the project schedule to accommodate personal emergencies (sick kids, ailing parents, technology issues, etc.).

In the past, I’ve partnered with other consultants who were constantly worrying about disappointing their customers and sometimes it felt like we were running around with our heads cut off vs. calmly, professionally managing the project to meet our goals. I believe that customers can smell that ‘nervousness’ a mile away. There WILL be problems or unexpected developments that arise in the course of a project and I think that it’s more impressive to address those with confidence and assure your customer that you can help them navigate the recovery process vs. apologize profusely with your tail tucked between your legs. It’s part of building up your credibility and professionalism in the eyes of your customer.

Your customers WANT to see you as a trusted partner vs. a ‘hired hand’ and the way that you handle the obstacles that may come up in your work with them can help reinforce that perception.

I encourage you to shift your thinking about the way you approach your work with your customers and let yourself acknowledge the ‘stock value’ you have gained with some of them…as a result, you may be able to alleviate some stress in your day-to-day client work…and that’s a good thing!

By: Jen Berkley Jackson

Research from The Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute, as outlined in “Women Business Owners to Lead the Nation in Job Creation ” by Rieva Lesonsky, shows that by 2018, women entrepreneurs will be responsible for creating between 5 million and 5.5 million new jobs nationwide,” more than half the new jobs expected.

According to the article, Guardian’s research shows that when women become their own bosses, they’re more likely than male managers or entrepreneurs to:

• Diligently engage in strategic and tactical facets of their business
• Proactively focus on customers
• Incorporate community and environment into their business plans
• Be receptive to input and guidance from internal and external advisers
• Create opportunities for others

When I read the list above, my first reaction was, “Duh, we’ve known that at WIC for years!” In fact, these very characteristics are what set WIC apart from so many other networking organizations. It’s these very characteristics that underscore WIC’s collaborative organizational structure and drive our members and affiliates to readily share their advice, experience, and insights with others in the WIC Community who solicit help with a particular business problem. (NOTE: Ms. Lesonsky was also not surprised by these findings.)

I particularly liked the quote from John Krubski, futurist and research advisor to The Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute:

“This women-led management approach will have a profound impact on the employees and customers connected to these businesses. Women small-business owners will ultimately create more opportunities for employees to grow in their jobs and inspire others to start their own small business–all while providing customers with superior service.”

So to all of my fellow WIC colleagues and associates, I say, “You go girls!”

Read the full “Women Business Owners to Lead the Nation in Job Creation” article 

By: Avery Horzewski

Welcome back to work, everyone…hoping that everyone took some good family time off over the holidays since it sure seemed like our clients did!

The great thing about taking a little break is that it gives perspective–and I come back optimistic and eager about the new year…I saw trends over the holiday that are quite promising…I was asked to submit 3 different proposals, which doesn’t normally happen…I have 3 projects booked for this month, which doesn’t normally happen.  With those kinds of things happening, it’s easy to forget about all that doom and gloom ‘R’ word talk…

But I’m not going to get TOO comfy even with such good signs–this is a year to go back to basics and to really get clear on my target customers and how I can help them…especially in times like these.

Some thoughts that I’m having and have already begun to implement:

- Update my website (it’s been awhile…and it’s looking dated, especially re: resources I have links to as well as my products/services sheet which doesn’t represent my most favorite new service I’m providing!).  Check out the topic of the S. Bay WIC Luncheon on March 9: 10 Tricks for Updating Your Website.

- Keep my eye out for news/trends that would be helpful for my customers to know about–and tell them (I did this over the weekend and got a big thank you from my customer for keeping them in mind–talk about immediate gratification!).  Check out www.marketresearch.com for inexpensive research reports or www.findarticles.com to find current news items for an industry, your client’s competitors, etc.

- Do some prospecting–I have been reliant upon the steady stream of referrals that I’ve gotten over the past 10 years to feed my business, but in times like these, doing some intentional, deliberate prospecting makes a lot of sense–it will expand my pool of prospects beyond my personal network which increases the odds of finding someone who needs my services incrementally.

- Partner up with others–I’m a broken record on this one (see my first blog entry!), but working closely with some of my trusted colleagues to brainstorm, share successes, keep one another focused on what we all need to be doing, looking for opportunities to refer one another, and looking for ways to help one another overcome barriers are all the benefits of partnering with other consultants.  There is never a BAD time for collaboration, but a tough economy is a GREAT time for collaboration.

Let’s hear from you about what you are planning to do differently this year–either to overcome the impact of the shaky economy or to get you to your next goals for your business…we have so much to learn from one another!

Jen

By: Jen Berkley Jackson

I just finished reading an article on Raintoday.com (yes, their weekly newsletter just came out, featuring five of the year’s best articles on better serving your clients) that focused on “the power of taking your clients interests to heart.”

I found this article interesting on a number of levels, but I’ll limit my discussion to two:

Motives Matter a.k.a. Doing What’s Right

First, the whole concept is a no-brainer to me. It’s how I operate. When I was employee, I made decisions based on what was best for the company, not necessarily what was best for me. Sometimes this didn’t result in the best situations for me, but in hindsight I’d make the same decision again — because it was the right thing to do. It’s what I owed my employers, and it’s what I owe my clients.

The author (Charles Green) of the article wrote that this isn’t a matter of ethics, but rather a simple fact of trust. However, I’d argue it is a matter of ethics, or at least a matter of doing what’s right. This is so hardwired into my system that I get very annoyed when people don’t do what’s “right.” And isn’t doing what’s right a matter of ethics? For me, it goes back to the golden rule, “Do unto others….” I simply treat my clients the way I would like to be treated. I treat their business as if it were my own. It’s what’s right.

Now that said, does that mean I never make mistakes? That I never get irritated? Heck no. Anyone who knows me would tell you that. But my governing principal is doing what’s right by my clients — and that includes telling them when it doesn’t make sense to have me do something for them. And since 99 percent of my business is word of mouth, it also is a good business practice — I’d argue the best best practice you can follow. This echoes Charles Green statement that “being trusted is a very low-risk, high-return strategy.” But doing it just to boost your profits is false.

Relationships and Fake Trust a.k.a We Cannot NOT Communicate

In Charles Green’s article, he writes that “When client focus becomes a tool for seller profit improvement, clients notice and become cynical. Lately, the language of client focus is adopting the language of relationships, fostering yet another layer of cynicism…. If we can’t trust the meaning of the words a company says, then we can’t trust the company saying them.”

I don’t disagree. To me, this is a no brainer. But obviously it isn’t so simple, because many companies do seem to take a seller-profit-improvement approach to client focus. The reason I found this component interesting is probably due to my communication background, studying how humans communicate and why some rhetoric works and some doesn’t.

We cannot NOT communicate is why fake trust or seller-profit-improvement approaches don’t work. It’s a phrase I fell in love with in my first interpersonal communication class; it’s also my company tagline. It says a lot, really. We’re always communicating, even when we’re not saying anything. What we don’t say can often be more telling then what we do say — that’s why fake trust doesn’t work.

Words alone definitely don’t carry the message. All the nonverbal “stuff” says a lot more. There are a lot of studies (sorry, none quoted here, all my books are packed away) that show that if words say one thing and tone or body language say another, the audience will believe the latter over what’s said. So it stands to say that just speaking client-focused language isn’t enough. Most people are astute enough to see past what you’re saying to how you’re acting. If they don’t match, they don’t trust you. And if they don’t trust you, they won’t buy what you’re selling.

Anyway, it’s a good article to read, great food for thought. I’d love to hear what all of you think.

Read, “Motives Matter: The Power of Taking Your Client’s Interests to Heart“

By: Avery Horzewski

…it’s a philosophy I’ve always followed. And it’s one that I know has made a difference in the quantity and quality of work that I receive. Well, as it turns out a small survey (Ensuring Sustainable Value from Consultants) conducted by UK-based Management Consultancies Association (MCA) supports my party-of-one “research.”

Act as if You’re an Employee
RainToday.com (you’ll begin to see a regular thread in my posts, as I often read articles by them that I think others would find interesting), had a short article in their October 8 Rainmaker Report: “Good Consultants with Bad Reputations? How to Leave Clients Satisfied with Your Quality of Work” by Fiona Czerniawaska.

One of the two key reminders I took from this article is the concept of blurring the consultant/employee line:

• Among consulting projects that have gone well, it was hard to find a single one that didn’t involve a joint client-consultant team
• Integration wasn’t just a question of people working together or being based in the same physical location
• 66 percent of satisfied clients thought teamwork was so effective that it was hard to tell whether someone was an employee or a consultant; 72 percent of dissatisfied clients disagreed

Look Beyond Just the Decision Makers
The other key reminder was the importance of the lateral relationships between consultants and members of a client’s staff who were involved in the project. These relationships were key in determining the success of an undertaking.

Often we, as consultants, talk about how critical it is to have access to decision makers — and it is. However, I argue that how we collaborate and partner with the other team members is equally important, a point that MCA’s research underscores:

• The eighty-one percent of satisfied people were those who believed their work with consultants represented a genuine partnership ; in contrast, just two percent of those dissatisfied felt that way
• The consultant who builds into his or her proposal an understanding of the need to engage people at all levels, and a plan for doing so, has a better chance of overcoming client skepticism and is more likely to deliver greater value in practice

Share Your Thoughts
I’d love to hear what your experiences are in this area. So, let the conversation begin.

By: Avery Horzewski