How To Start A Consulting Business

A consultant is someone who is an expert of a field who works as an advisor for a company or for an individual. Simply put, a consultant’s job is to provide consultation services, nothing else. Passion and quality what makes good consultant make stand out.

But, the consultation business is not an easy job to do. Even though starting any business isn’t an easy task. Starting a business where you help others as a consultant to run their business is a double challenge.

How To Start A Consulting Business

Here is everything you need to know how to start a consulting business;

1. Examine Your Strengths & Skills

Consultants help businesses in solving problems that they cannot solve themselves. Businesses pay heavy amounts for consultation services provided by individuals.

The question here arises, why would a company pay a heavy amount to someone who doesn’t even know anything about their company? Many consultants have the expertise to re-establish businesses that were once declining.

To start a consulting business, it is very important to have a skill set, knowledge, and expertise of a specific field. From which you can deliver superior value to your clients.

There are a number of consultation services that you can provide. You can provide consultation services in the field of business, accounting, finance, human resource, marketing, public relations, IT, and many others.

Identify your strengths, skills, knowledge, and expertise from which you can help others. You can also identify your weaknesses so that you can minimize them. You can choose your own consulting business model that fits right with your personality.

Take note that, according to your area of expertise, you may require a certification or license to provide consultation services.

2. Identify The Market Needs

After identifying your niche, it’s time to identify the market demands in terms of questions, problems, needs, and solutions in your area of expertise. There must be a demand for your skill, knowledge, and expertise; otherwise, you will be in trouble.

To identify market needs and wants, you can ask and search. By starting online searches for that niche through reading blogs, what people and businesses are searching for? Someone prominent talking about it, or having debates on different forums.

To start a consulting business, know the area of gaps and where you can play and solve different problems businesses face. You have to identify a niche for which someone must be willing to pay.

In this section, you will also be identifying your potential clients. For example, you are going to provide consultation services to large corporations, or small or medium-sized businesses. Spend time preparing your business plan as well as your marketing plan.

Read more: How To Write A Business Plan

Read more: How To Write A Marketing Plan

3. Build Your Customer Base

A consulting business depends upon consulting business model to build a customer base. For a solo consultant, it will be solely on him to attract a customer base. At the same time keep focus that business runs at a consistent pace.

Selling a service is not the same as selling a product.

The best results come out through marketing. There are a number of ways through which you can attract and retain your clients.

There are some conventional ways, like brochures, cold calling, advertising, newsletter, and asking for referrals.

Otherwise, you can create your identity on social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn. Create your own website so that clients can easily find you and interact with you.

You can also build your own website without having experience or knowledge of coding. You can do SEO by yourself if you have knowledge about it. Otherwise, you can hire someone for the optimization services of your website.

4. Polish Your Elevator Pitch

Convincing a client to work with your consulting business is where your task begins. Your elevator pitch is very important. An Elevator pitch is a short brief way of introducing your business, and building a new connection with someone.

Your elevator pitch should contain;

• three sentences at max
• short, simple, and genuine
• Explanation of the problem
• Solution to that problem that you are offering
• How you are intending to make a difference, and
• How you are different from your competitors

Your elevator pitch should have a value proposition. That value proposition should be so attractive to your clients that they want to learn more. Once they are willing to learn more, you can proceed and explain your consulting business.

5. Write Clients Proposals

The last step in attracting and bringing clients is writing a client proposal. This step is before the client gets enlisted. This step is very effective when you are closing the sale. Writing proposals is a very integral part of consulting business. The client proposal should be clear, and convincing.

The proposal explains what you are offering and how you are going to solve the client’s problem. The proposal will contain the whole information about the project, your services, the deadline date, all the deliverables, and how you will measure results.

6. Price Your Consultation Services

Before setting prices, decide whether you are going to take on long-term clients or short-term clients. Still conducting one session will take a long time and effort, as compared to long term.

With your proposal, you will have to add the pricing in it. In the solo consultant model, there is higher risk and you should charge higher prices, as compared to any other consultant model. 

You can check for other consultants’ rates in your area of expertise and set prices according to it. Don’t forget to add your expenses in your fee.

Your pricing should be on the basis of the efforts you are putting in, the time you are investing, and the amount of preparation. You can also decide on how you want to price your consulting service, like one-time payment, hourly, project rates, or monthly.

7. Deliver The Results

When you start your own consulting business and it is on the track. Now it is the time to systemize your work and deliver results so that you get maximum clients. Make sure you don’t miss any little details, meet deadlines, and receive payments on time.

When delivering results, make sure you give your best. Stay on top of industry trends. Make sure your clients are satisfied with your work and that you are helping them to achieve success. If you are helping your clients, then your consulting business will achieve success.

The Bottom Line

Here we conclude how to start a consulting business. It doesn’t matter whether your consulting business is big or small, brick and mortar based or online, expensive or economical.

Consulting business requires resources, experience, skills, knowledge, confidence, and expertise so that you can help other businesses to grow. Make sure to meet client expectations and revive their business again.

How To Start A Consulting Business FAQ

1. Where do I start as a consultant?

You can start as a consultant while following these steps;

• Examine Your Strengths & Skills
• Identify The Market Needs
• Build Your Customer Base
• Polish Your Elevator Pitch
• Write Clients Proposals
• Price Your Consultation Services
• Deliver The Results

2. How do I start a small consulting business?

You can start your own small consulting business by following these steps;

• Examine Your Strengths & Skills
• Identify The Market Needs
• Build Your Customer Base
• Polish Your Elevator Pitch
• Write Clients Proposals
• Price Your Consultation Services
• Deliver The Results

3. How can a consulting business get clients using Fiverr?

Fiverr allows everyone to sign up and start selling their services. Many organizations and individuals are looking for freelance writing, designing, marketing, or any other services. 

4. Is it possible to start a consulting business on the side?

You can start your own consulting business on the side if you are comfortable working with a small number of clients. But make sure your clients know about your time constraints, as it will help in building trust.

5. Is starting a consulting business a good idea?

Starting a consulting business brings many benefits such as flexibility of times, jobs you do, and rates you set for your consultancy.

6. What type of consultant makes the most money?

Here are the top 10 best consulting business ideas;

• Website Consultancy
• Marketing Consultancy
• E-commerce Consultancy
• Business Consultancy
• Public Relations Consultancy
• Career / Personal Development Consultancy
• IT Consultancy
• Financial Consultancy
• Legal Consultancy
• Environmental Consultancy