Why Consultants Should Never Have to Sell

by Jay Niblick | Jun 25, 2019 | Blog, Starting Your Consulting Business

As an independent business consultant or coach, you’re tasked with not only doing what you’re already best at (coaching and consulting) but as a business owner you’re the CEO, CFO, CMO, maid service, trash disposal expert and…

Head of the SALES department!

The vast majority of consultant-coaches don’t possess the internal strengths needed to become a good traditional Salesperson. This creates a weakness in your attempts to acquire new prospects, leads and clients.

The key here is to build your consulting practice based on your strengths. The only way to do this is to replace the traditional sales role with one that aligns with your natural talents, skills and true strengths.

We call this role the Business Diagnostician.

Business diagnostician is the term I use to remind me of my primary value in the sales process. It helps me remember that the most effective way to sell services to potential clients is to not try to sell to them at all.

While every other consultant out there is trying to sell to that prospect, imagine how different and unique you’ll be when you seek first to help them identify the actual cause of their problem—and for free.

I know that sounds like a sure fire way for your business to go belly-up fast. In reality, it differentiates and validates you as the definitive expert amongst the vast numbers of consultants who pretend to be a sales expert.

You may have heard the term “show up and throw up”? That’s an age old term sales people use when they try to convince a prospect by using long-winded conversations about how talented and skilled they are.

As a Business Diagnostician, you immediately put the spotlight on your prospect by diagnosing their problems FIRST.

We have a saying at Innermetrix – “The Person Who Identifies the Cause of the Problem Gets to Fix It”. The primary objective with any prospect shouldn’t be to “sell them”; rather, it should be to “solve them.”

By placing the spotlight on them and identifying the cause of the problem upfront, your prospect will put you at the top of her list as the expert, and the one most likely to win the contract.

You’ve now made your ability to acquire new business dependent on your expertise as a consultant, not a sales professional.

I know of no other single method of “selling” that holds more potential to increase the profitability of your practice than what I’ve just told you.

Once you change your legacy thinking from “I need to sell” to one of “I need to diagnose,” I guarantee you will be much more successful and much happier! It may seem like a subtle difference, but the impact of such a shift in thinking is immeasurable.

The moment you learn to seek out helping prospects (yes, prospects, not paying clients) and identify the cause of their problems instead of going out and selling them services, you will witness significant growth in your practice.

Making this your daily mantra will remind you of your true value proposition, keep you focused on the actions necessary to deliver that value, and steer you away from most distractions that will take you down the unsuccessful selling path.

It’s vital that you understand that there is a cause and effect relationship between identifying the problem and being the one to fix it. In this relationship, the goal you are after is being paid to solve the problem. The cause of that effect, however, is that you identify what is actually creating that problem in the first place—before they become your client.

There are many reasons why a salesperson can hope they get the sale. Here are some of the most common reasons why consultants hope a prospect will hire them:

• Best price
• Better marketing collateral
• They related better with the prospect
• Best credentials
• Best references
• They showed them the actual cause of their problem

While all the causes above can be good, it’s the last one that has the greatest effect on the prospect and will deliver you the most business. Being a Diagnostician and discovering their problem upfront is also the least likely to be replicated by your competition.

At Innermetrix, we call this methodology the Diagnostic Sales Process.

This process has been carefully learned and practiced by thousands of consultants over many years, and is the distillation of all the best practices I’ve seen used consistently by seven-figure consultants to greatly increase their business profits and growth.

What Should You Call Your Business?

by Jay Niblick | Mar 22, 2018 | Blog, Starting Your Consulting Business

It all starts with a name. Not to argue with Shakespeare, but the name you choose, unlike that of a rose, will indeed determine if it smells sweet or not. The name of your company is one of the most important things you can decide on, as it is a big part of that all-so-vital first impression.
Naming any business can be a difficult task, but it doesn’t have to be insanely complicated. Important shouldn’t translate to impossible in this exercise. There are companies out there that will build such fear and hype, then charge thousands or literally tens of thousands of dollars to help you select a name. But it shouldn’t cost you any money and it shouldn’t keep you up at night.

Follow these seven simple guidelines when selecting the name of your new company, and relax.

1. Brandstorm it. The first thing you should do is get some blank paper (a lot, perhaps). Like brainstorming, start jotting down names that you like. Do not judge them, just write them down. Let them flow. I would recommend coming up with at least 30 to 40 in this stage. Next you will start paring down that list.
2. Make sure it’s available. Start removing names from your list by seeing if they are available. You can do this in two ways.
   • Domain search. You’re going to want to have a name for your company that you can brand on your website. Go to www .godaddy.com, enter a name idea, and click search, and it will tell you if that domain name is available. If you chose Johnson Consulting but www.johnsonconsulting.com isn’t available, try some other domains like www.jconsult.com or www.johnson consultingllc.com. Just make sure that any variant you try is available as a “.com” (not .org, .net, .TV, etc.). Also be sure not to make it so convoluted that only you know how to spell it (e.g., Greg.Johnson.consulting.LLC.com). If you can’t find a simple variant available, nix that business name off your list.
   • Web search. Type in the name you are considering and see if any websites come up in your search results. You would definitely not want to select a name that some other company is already using, regardless of their domain name.
3. Keep it simple. The name should be simple, so avoid naming your company after something only industry insiders would know or appreciate (unless they will be your only clientele). Resist the urge to name your business after the Greek god of productivity or war. Avoid names that combine two descriptive words (e.g., Qualicoach or Growthcom) as they are difficult for anyone to spell, and they just sound awkward.
4. Make it representative. I named my company Innermetrix to represent the fact that we provided metrics that measured inner strengths and talents. Granted, had I known what I know now, perhaps I would have chosen a name slightly easier to spell, but I’ve worked hard to establish the brand of Innermetrix and wouldn’t change it for anything now. The best names stand for what you believe in, and have real meaning for what you do or whom you help.
5. Make it catchy. Avoid using clich
   es or hyperbole in naming your business. Peak, Apex, Pinnacle, and Summit are descriptive, imply great success and height, but they’re also insanely worn out and over-used. On the other hand, don’t go so far in the other direction that you end up with “Johnson Consulting.” Part of effective branding involves separating yourself from the crowd and standing out. If the name is boring or sounds like every other company, it will only make it that much harder to achieve differentiation. Yahoo! or Google selected great names as far as standing apart and being catchy, while not making them complicated.
6. Make it corporate. Many consultants opt to name their consult-ing firm after themselves. While probably the norm for legal PLLCs, calling your business “John Smith Consulting” implies you are the business—and only you. Follow the old adage of “playing big until you are” and shoot for a name that represents a legal entity, not a human being. I know—Macy’s, Johnson & Johnson, Kellogg’s, and many other very successful companies were named after their founders, but you aren’t entering the business field a hundred years ago. Most of the large consulting firms used founder’s names as well, but they all started as legal or accounting firms too.
7. Don’t restrict geography. Sometimes new consultants tie their brand to a specific city or region (e.g., New York Management Inc. or Southeastern Consulting), but unless you plan to do business only in the same geographic area, I advise against regional naming. As an independent business consultant you will quickly find that you have no geographic borders, which is one of the great aspects of this industry.

** I’ve provided a complete checklist in Appendix D of my book where you can keep track of work done, such as deciding on the name of your business, and many other activities to come. You can purchase it here.

Why Choose Consulting as a Career?

by Jay Niblick | Mar 22, 2018 | Blog, Starting Your Consulting Business

The career of management consultant is one of the most envied roles a person can be lucky enough to play. That title, however, is somewhat of a catchall, thrown about by people who provide a wide range of services (accountants, lawyers, strategic planning, HR, operations, etc.). For the most part professionals employed in this field provide outsourced services to organizations in need of whatever specialty that consultant provides.
For our purposes we need to differentiate between three main types of consulting firms: large diversified organizations, medium-sized management consultancies, and boutique firms.

The large diversified firms are represented by the likes of McKinsey & Company, Booz Allen, PWC, and KPMG. Mid-sized consultancies, while smaller than the large international firms, can still employ hundreds of people, and provide broad services similar to those of the large diversified firms. Then there are the boutique firms, typically having only one independent consultant and offering a more specialized suite of services or specialties. It is this last category of consultancy — the independents — that this post will focus on.

Typically an independent management consultant is someone who:

• Works for themselves, or possibly as part of a very small group
• Works from home, or has a small office
• Provides services/solutions to small to medium-sized businesses

What is it that makes this career so coveted?
The following four broad categories summarize the main reasons.

Freedom/Flexibility. As an independent consultant you are com-pletely in control of your own destiny. Many people get into this career specifically because they are tired of working for someone else, or because they were laid off and looking to take control over their career. As an independent consultant you decide when you work, whom you work with, and what you provide. For myself, the benefit of being able to attend one of my son’s school plays, or simply to have a date with my wife in the middle of the week, is an incredible benefit. I worked for a Fortune 100 company for many years and the freedom I enjoy now far exceeds that rat race!
Earnings potential. Working for someone else typically means you work hard to make someone else rich. Sure, you can enjoy a significant salary, but the bulk of the earnings flows not to the workers but rather to the owners. As an independent management consultant you are the owner, and all the profits flow to you. Among independent management consultants we see the complete gamut of earnings. In our own network we have consultants who earn as little as $45,000 a year (by choice, mind you), and as many as 10 who earn over $1,000,000 a year. Of course, the higher levels of income don’t happen overnight, so if you’re expecting to get rich quick . . . well, you get the picture.
Control. One of the greatest aspects of this career is that you control what you provide and whom you provide it to. If you choose not to work with the idiotic owner of XYZ Corp, you don’t have to. As the owner you get to cherry pick only those clients whom you want to work with, think you can do the most for, or enjoy working with the most. In a later chapter I’ll show you how firing undesirable clients is actually a key growth tool.
Fit. Several years back I commissioned a research study that examined 197,000 workers across 23 countries over a seven-year period. The findings empirically proved that the most successful people (in any career or at any level) were those who were the most authentic to their natural talents, passions, and skills. Suffice it to say that most roles professionals find themselves taking, in corporations, aren’t customized to fit personal natural talents. As an independent management consultant you alone will craft a role that is a significantly better fit for you.

Look Up! Be Present to Have Success in Life

by Dr. Ivan Misner | Jan 21, 2015 | Blog, Starting Your Consulting Business

Recently, I was walking along a very crowded city street in a large European city. People were walking in both directions with great purpose and direction – families, business professionals, tourists, and individuals alike. One pedestrian, however, stood out from the rest. She was walking a bit slower, with an uneven, irregular pace, and she had her head down.

She wasn’t looking to the left or to the right. She wasn’t looking around. She wasn’t even looking at the sidewalk, or her feet. She was looking at her mobile phone. She was actually texting while walking on the crowded sidewalk and she was on a direct trajectory to collide with me.

“Look up. Look up. Look up,” I was softly repeating under my breath as she approached headlong towards me. She was about to run smack into me, and the sidewalk was so full that it was impossible to step out of her way without colliding with another person. I was on the verge of making my mantra, “Look up,” audible.

At the very last moment before crashing into me, she looked up with a completely startled reaction. It was like she was in one world one moment and then back in the real world the next.

Oh, wait, that was exactly what was happening.

She was mentally not present, even though she was physically walking on that sidewalk with all of us. She was so distracted by her mobile phone, that she was just going through the motions of walking somewhere.

Sometimes I am asked by young business professionals to share my advice for reaching a certain level of success. I think my primary message surprises them somehow. Here’s what I tell them:

Learn how to “be here now.” When you are working, work. Don’t spend time stressing over the things you are or are not doing in your personal time. When you are not working, don’t work! Don’t let the distractions of your professional pursuits keep you from being fully present in your personal life.

As a new year is beginning, it is very easy to allow ourselves to be so wrapped up and so caught up in something, that we cannot set it aside to change gears and focus on what is right in front of us. That is what the young lady pedestrian was doing before she pulled herself out of her virtual world to rejoin the events going on around her!

I’ve written over 20 books. When I first started writing books, I was a father with very young children. And I knew I wanted to be very present in the evenings when we were having family time together, so I set my writing times for after they were tucked in for the night. Instead of watching television or reading, for a few months, I wrote between 11 PM and 2 or 3 AM several nights a week. When my first book was published, my then 8-year-old daughter exclaimed, “When did you write a book? I didn’t know you were writing a book!”

I also travel an enormous amount. I am on the road an average of every other week each year. This made it even more important to me as my kids grew up to really be present when I was not traveling and to make time to connect with the family while I was on the road. Once I asked my son while he was in high school if he felt I was an absentee dad. His answer validated my sense of having been able to “be here now” as he was growing up. He said, “What? Are you kidding, Dad? You were always around.” I’m glad that was his sense of things.

It’s the same concept in the reverse, as well. When you are working hard on a project or accomplishing something demanding in your business, it is necessary to keep yourself focused on the task at hand. There are many things which can be a distraction. I have seen people become completely inept at the job at hand, because they cannot be fully present due to some other pull on them from another area of their life.

My mother had an approach to this dynamic that works well for me when I want to “be here now” and there are some distractions encroaching on my ability to do so. She used to say, “Put that in a jar and set it up on a shelf. When you are done, it will still be there, and you can take it down and get it out then.” Moms give the best advice, don’t they?

So my mantra of “Look up. Look up. Look up,” can also be a way to keep yourself in the present and really begin to “be here now.” I think you’ll find that you navigate the paths of life, work, networks and family more profoundly and with greater success in all areas.

Called the “father of modern networking” by CNN, Dr. Ivan Misner is a New York Times bestselling author. He is the Founder and Chairman of BNI (www.bni.com), the world’s largest business networking organization. His newest book, Networking Like a Pro can be viewed at www.IvanMisner.com. Dr. Misner is also the Sr. Partner for the Referral Institute, an international referral training company (www.referralinstitute.com).