Target the Right Prospects if You Want to Succeed as an Independent Consultant

When you’re deciding who to contact in your marketing and sales efforts, it’s important to select the right person within the target organization. Otherwise, your efforts might generate little interest and response.

 

Just because you’ve chosen ABC Corp. as a possible client doesn’t mean you should send every manager or executive a copy of your emails and  direct mail letters.

The needs and priorities of employees inside the same company are completely different.

 

You need to target prospects in departments or managerial levels that have an urgent need for your solutions.

 

For example, your consulting services might be valuable for a department head.

 

On the other hand, your solutions might have no value  to a high-level executive within the same company. He /she is simply too distant from the daily activities that take place at the operational level.

 

Think Small

You will probably be more successful contacting  lower-level managers. They have the authority to assign projects with smaller budgets to consultants like you.

 

You will have a hard time convincing a high-level executive to assign big-budget projects to you, since they don’t know enough about you or the problem you’re trying to solve.

 

Basically, you need to target prospects who meet the right criteria if you want to increase your chances of winning projects from the businesses you’ve targeted.

 

The criteria recommended by successful consultants are:

• Ability to directly contact the decision maker
• Decision maker has an urgent need for your services
• There is a sufficient budget for the project you’re competing for

 

Following these steps will help you to avoid wasting time pitching ideas to the wrong people.

 

As a freelance / independent consultant, you are better off focusing on smaller projects at the lower levels of large companies, rather than trying to compete against large consulting firms for larger, more visible projects.

 

You will be able to make a nice living while at the same time avoiding the stress and uncertainty of bidding on larger projects.

 

Learn More Marketing Best Practices for Consultants

If you would like to learn the secrets of  independent consultants who consistently make over $100,000 a year, then you need to read this book:

How to Succeed as an Independent  Marketing Consultant – by Robert W. Bly

or

If you would like  more in-depth knowledge on promoting your services, please read the following book:

Selling Your Services MP3 –  Robert W. Bly

 

 

 

About the Author

Mark Bellini is a freelance copywriter and marketing consultant who focuses on creating marketing funnels (sequences) for small service-based businesses and internet marketers.

To learn why marketing funnels are the most recommended marketing strategy for small businesses, please visit www.writingconversions.com/downloads/