Businesses are always looking for ways to make more money. By providing these companies with options for increasing their revenues, you can begin to create a lucrative consulting business offering solutions to problems for other businesses. Here’s 3 ways to make money as a consultant:

1. Offer personalized service – One great way to do this is to have some knowledge of the challenges of a company. How do you get knowledge? You research the company. Start with the information available on their website. Find out the key managers in which you can speak with or email. If you have friends that work for large corporations, engage them in conversation. One thing is for certain, employees are always willing to complain. Look at this as first hand research. Gather as much information about the particular problem and propose a solution to present to the company. Be ready to present them with a killer personalized presentation upon your first call to gain an appointment.

2. Choose a specific industry of field – As a consultant, you want to make sure your portfolio makes sense. If your entire professional career has been in the airline industry, then to attempt to gain a client whose business is designer shoes would not be reasonable. For example, I have over ten years of experience in the warehouse/logistics industry. The majority of my clients are in this industry because I have a working knowledge of their challenges and can “speak their language”. Plus, they feel more comfortable with me presenting ideas to them and are more open to listening than not.

3. Advertise your business and offer incentives – How will clients know about your business if you do not advertise? This is a primary facet of being a consultant. You will need to let companies know that you exist and are open for business. Network with friends and associated provide word of mouth advertising. However, you will also need to do some ground work as well. Establish yourself legally as an official business (research different organizational structures) and get your business cards and website ready. Be sure to include your previous experience, former clients, and success stories on your website. Offer discounts for contract consulting and referrals of other clients.

You can easily make money being a consultant by utilizing the above 3 steps. However, there are more ways that are not covered here. The key is to go out of your way to offer the best services possible for the money you are paid.

It is only natural to want to spare huge bucks for advertisement either through media or banner ads. Online Marketing is best of all, as it gives an excellent chance to make your name familiar to a world class audience. However, it is a little difficult to make a successful online marketing campaign as it requires lots of effort and strategic methods of approach. As every business website has its own uniqueness, it is essential to handle them with absolute strategic online marketing plans. An Internet Marketing Consultant can be invaluable in this endeavor.

Team efforts should be appreciated when it comes to online marketing as different marketing plans will certainly drive good and outstanding results. If you are sound at online marketing and if you are capable to make an effective marketing campaign, then you can make your venture right away. However, if you are not sure about all of the strategic approaches, then you can leave all the roles and responsibilities to an Internet Marketing Consultant.

Internet marketing consultants are trained professionals who closely understand and observe the cutting edge techniques that bring success your way. Effective marketing plans demand and require perfect planning and better understanding. It involves enough research and prompt methods of handling. With efficient observation, any Internet Marketing Consultant will handle the best method of technologies to market your product.

Prior to choosing an Internet Marketing Consultant, you must be very cautious to ensure their quality and standards. An efficient Consultant must understand the scenario and objective of the business and must further handle all the techniques to make the business world familiar. Search Engine Optimization is the basic foundation for a successful Online Marketing Campaign. Ensure that the Internet Marketing Consultant you choose is smart and proficient in handling all the SEO strategies and techniques. Undoubtedly, efficient and trained Consultants will bring excellent traffic volume towards your business, thereby making you competitive among your business rivals.

Many times over the last two decades I have grumbled under my breath in the presence of clients:

“Move over! Let me do it for you!”

But I’ve stopped myself from overtly saying it, believing there is an occupational divide between those who advise and those who execute.

My clients might have been struggling to make appointments over the phone, flubbing every other line, testing the patience of listeners, while thinning a valuable database of prospects, and I could have grabbed the phone and glibly gabbed for a few seconds and have secured the meeting they were seeking.

“See, that’s how it’s done!” I could have bellowed. (Isn’t it the Zen folks that claim “direct pointing” is the best way to instruct?)

But then, in truth, I’d be handing them a fish instead of teaching them to fish. And they’d be very likely to ooh and ah and say, “Gee, I could never be as good as you are!” which is not exactly empowering to them.

Migrating from giving advice or running a training program to taking on the duties of a manager is known in some circles as “Blood and Guts Consulting” because it’s not nearly as tidy or painless as mere suggestion-making.

It is especially tempting to do in the following scenario.

Let’s say you have trained everyone to work differently, more productively in handling customer service opportunities, but instead of flipping the switch, indicating it is time for CSR’s to change, to abandon the old ways, managers are timid about enforcing the new protocols.

What then?

One of the key differences between a consultant or a coach and a manager is the latter has the power, as well as the responsibility to say “You MUST do this because it is PART OF YOUR JOB NOW.”

A consultant or coach can’t get away with this because he cannot hire or fire or compensate or otherwise make life easier or harder for his reports, because he has no reports.

Moreover, it is likely that the consultant reports to more than one person, himself, and that he is partly dependent on maintaining the good will of those he has trained and advised because they’ll be filling out evaluation forms, happily giving positive references to future prospective clients of his, or being mysteriously unavailable to respond to their inquiries.

It would seem to be an intractable problem, but there is a solution.

The consultant can sign-on as something more, as an Interim Manager, or as a Project Manager, seek and be given some of the powers I have mentioned above.

Senior management can say: “Gary is here to help us to improve in this area and he’ll have all appropriate authority to set the direction and implement new methods, to hire, fire, evaluate, and even to compensate. We expect and require full cooperation and we’re determined to make this project work. We’re behind it 100%”

Unfortunately, senior managers don’t introduce consultants or training and development programs in this manner. They’re more likely to say: “We’ve hired a consultant to look at how we do things and to make recommendations. Along the way, he’ll be running some classes, and we hope you’ll help to make his time with us productive.”

As you can tell, there’s absolutely no commitment in that approach. It enables senior managers to assume a wait and see posture, while undercutting the consultant’s credibility and clout.

Too often, this inadvertently seals the fate of the consultant’s project, consigning it to less than optimal impacts.

Should you take on more responsibility and make that passage from the somewhat tranquil waters of consulting, training, and coaching to the whitewater thrills and spills of management responsibilities?

It’s worth trying, but prepare yourself for a very different experience, process, and set of satisfactions.

MEN

This article explains how men can use an image consultant. It focuses on grooming, wardrobe, and footwear.

GROOMING

Men who use image consultants consistently display better grooming, and take more time to fix their hair properly with haircuts, styling, and pomade. Grooming advisors can help men with all these aspects of appearance.

An image consultant is usually with you for a few hours, and he may also communicate with you by telephone or email. You might also send a photo or two to your stylist for feedback. The personal stylist can then follow your progress as you change your hairstyle and haircut. This is one of the most effective ways to partner with a consultant to get better grooming.

To be sure, a grooming advisor can help you with an appropriate hairstyle as well as with selecting a trained barber. This is the first step on the road to having a better image as a successful businessman or artist since hair is a critical factor in the way others see you.

WARDROBE

Male professionals can use a stylist in a variety of ways to improve their wardrobe. Male attorneys, for instance, can use the services of a trained personal stylist for themselves as well as for their clients. Such stylists can advise an attorney on how clients should dress for maximum effect in civil and criminal court proceedings and depositions. Research indicates, for example, that a certain fit in suits can cause juries to give more credibility to clients in civil cases.

Other male professionals, such as bankers and musicians, can use the services of a personal stylist to help them refine their outfits for work and play. Consultants are trained to help you select suits as well as sport coats and pants. They can also help you select the best outfits for dates and business presentations.

SHOES AND BOOTS

A style consultant can help men by steering them toward more effective footwear, no matter what their profession. Selecting proper footwear can help you define yourself and can also contribute toward creating a favorable response in others.

Men can also use a personal advisor to suggest new footwear styles that they might not have otherwise considered. Many men, for example, wear slippery dress shoes with leather soles. They might be unaware of the advantages of rubber soles, advantages which pertain to the way rubber performs on both dry and wet surfaces.

The bottom line is that an image consultant can help men by giving them objective feedback and advice, something they typically will not receive from friends and family. Professional advice about grooming, wardrobe, footwear, and other matters can assist men who are on their way up and who want to make a good impression in business and social situations.

Copyright (c) 2011 William Cane

If you’ve been thinking of having a home based business, you would be forgiven if you’re overwhelmed by the choices you have. For instance, you could choose the direct sales industry where you pick a product and market it to a highly targeted niche. Or, you could go a step further and get into a network marketing opportunity, where you have the chance to earn money on sale of the product and recruit people into the business, thereby setting up a residual income. Or you could decide to partner with Google and derive an income from their AdSense program.

Naturally, whichever method you choose, you have to be organized and know what you need to do on a daily basis to get the results you seek. This is where a consulting service can pay very large dividends.

So what should you look for when choosing a consulting service for your business? First of all, take stock of whether or not your business is primarily online or offline as that will make a difference. If your business is primarily offline, then you should look for a consultant firm that specializes in you particular area of expertise.

But what if you do most or all of your business online? What then? After all there are many things that you need to keep on top of when running a business online. The first recommendation I can make is once you have found a firm you think you would like to work with, try to get in touch with previous clients as they will be the best barometer of how your working relationship will go.

If that meets your criteria, then the next step is to set up a meeting either online or in person, if you are both local. Key things to keep in mind are

1. Does the consultant make the effort to be online on time? Just because a meeting is virtual doesn’t mean you can be late.

2. Does the consultant comport him or herself in a professional manner? i.e. do they have on business attire (even if the meeting is via webcam this will make a difference) or do they show up in casual clothing?

3. Do you feel as though they actually listen to and understand your business needs or are they intent on doing a “hard sell” and hyping their expertise?

4. Do they plan out specific goals and deadlines or are they trying to do it all at once?

Finally, once the meeting is over and you are reviewing your notes, take stock of how you feel. Did the consultant make you feel confident that this was the right decision for your business? Did they make you feel as though you will be in good hands? Remember, price is not the main thing to look for here. You want a partnership that will add value to your business bottom line as well as your reputation over time.

Ultimately, the right choice here will mean big things for your business now and in the future. A consultant service is an investment and should be treated as such. And it is one of the best you can make.

Not long ago, I got a call from a prospective patient. It was a woman who was suffering from hearing loss, who had never had acupuncture before. She initially sent an email from the contact form on our clinic site. I responded that the best way to proceed would be to set up a time for a free half hour consultation.

Shortly after the email exchange, she called our clinic, and I spoke with her. She was willing to come in for a consultation, but the more we talked, the less optimistic I became that I or acupuncture could help her particular problem, and I told her so. She was grateful for my honesty and shared that she had talked to another acupuncturist who wanted to charge her $100 for a consultation.

I kept my opinions to myself, but will share it freely here. An initial consultation can be your best friend, but not if you charge for it. Here’s why: If you can get a prospective patient into your clinic for whatever reason, you are far more likely to convert them into a patient than if you just speak on the phone. If you offer a free initial consultation, prospective patients have absolutely nothing to lose. They’re just coming in to talk about the possibility that acupuncture may be the answer to their problem. No needles have been inserted (a frequent source of hesitation), and no money has been charged.

Once you have a prospective patient in your office, it’s up to you to sell your fabulous self, this incredible healing art, and the probability that you can heal their pain. Needless to say, if you don’t think you can help, be honest. I have turned a handful of people away because I didn’t think I could help, and every single one voiced their appreciation of my truthfulness.

There are a few steps to a successful initial consultation:

• First of all, listen. In fact spend the first five or ten minutes listening. Do this because you are showing your soon-to-be patient that they will be heard. Do this also because you need to hear as much as their story as you can in a short period of time.
• Can acupuncture help them? This is the primary question they need to have adequately answered. If you don’t do this, you’ve blown it.
• Answer all their questions. How many treatments? Will it hurt? What’s involved? What about herbs? What’s your training?
• Give them a mini diagnosis, if possible, but keep it short. This may be as simple as describing a channel obstruction if they’re experiencing pain. It lets them know that you were listening and you pretty much know what you’re doing.
• Schedule them. Or not. At this point, 95% of the people will have made up their mind to book their first appointment with you. There may be a few that you don’t feel you can or want to treat, and there will be one or two who after getting information on acupuncture decide not to proceed.

If someone decides not to go ahead with treatment, you haven’t lost anything other than a little time. The idea behind meeting for a consultation is for both of you to decide if a therapeutic relationship is the way to proceed.

My point is this: an initial consultation is an incredible marketing tool if you use it as such. Much more often than not, if you can meet someone for a consultation, they will become your patient.