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How I Find Consulting Clients

gkogan.co

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Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#21

Post by nlh »

gk1 wrote: post #7

Hi, today I added an update to this two-year-old post and in the spirit of "shipping fast" I published it without spending too much time on editing. Let me know if you find typos, have questions that the post doesn't answer, or if something in the post doesn't hold water.

Random question while I/we have your attention: I noticed you changed your homepage pretty dramatically to a "less designed" version (but more direct). It looks great. Is that showing you better results or are you still in the midst of experimenting?

PS - hi! :)

Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#22

Post by dizzystar »

As someone who does consulting, I find it interesting to read how others do it. There is a lot of advice, but I like how this article is upfront: find what works for you.

The initial leap is understanding how money and expectations balance each other out. This comes with tripping up hard at first, but it gets easier as time goes on.

For me, it comes down to giving that first hour to the client to really drill into the issue and having them see that you aren't trying to screw them over. Unfortunately, many clients have been taken hard by prior programmers, and your goal should be making the buck stop with you. They rebut you, but that's just them figuring out your honesty, and you don't convince them by saying "yes" to everything.

Even on your best, you can't satisfy everyone, but those that you do satisfy are, more often than not, willing to refer you or give more work down the line.

Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#23

Post by gk1 »

nlh wrote: post #21
gk1 wrote: post #7

Hi, today I added an update to this two-year-old post and in the spirit of "shipping fast" I published it without spending too much time on editing. Let me know if you find typos, have questions that the post doesn't answer, or if something in the post doesn't hold water.

Random question while I/we have your attention: I noticed you changed your homepage pretty dramatically to a "less designed" version (but more direct). It looks great. Is that showing you better results or are you still in the midst of experimenting? PS - hi! :)

Hey Noah :)

Glad you think so. I haven't tested it because conversion volume is so low (going for quality > quantity). I opted for the simple site so that:

a) I don't spend time/money on designing or nitpicking, which can turn into a real time-suck for me.

b) It loads super fast. I'm using Netlify for static hosting.

c) Reader's attention is focused on the copy.

Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#24

Post by nlh »

gk1 wrote: post #23
nlh wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Random question while I/we have your attention: I noticed you changed your homepage pretty dramatically to a "less designed" version (but more direct). It looks great. Is that showing you better results or are you still in the midst of experimenting? PS - hi! :)

Hey Noah :) Glad you think so. I haven't tested it because conversion volume is so low (going for quality > quantity). I opted for the simple site so that: a) I don't spend time/money on designing or nitpicking, which can turn into a real time-suck for me. b) It loads super fast. I'm using Netlify for static hosting. c) Reader's attention is focused on the copy.

awesome, and makes sense. maybe the subject of a future blog post :) thanks and stay well!

Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#25

Post by ataturk »

jandrese wrote: post #10
philbarr wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except that networking events definitely DID work because he says that the first gig he got was through someone he met at a networking event. And the rest was basically, "be lucky".

That gig was a lifeline, but didn't make him successful. It wasn't until he started getting visibility with the actual founders that he started to feel like he could do this as a job. Most of the don'ts are events where founders are too busy to attend or are swamped and it's almost impossible to stand out. Really his takeaway is to make a name for yourself and the offers will roll in. Figure out a way to increase you…

I have to throw in my $.02 here. The author needs to do a better job of explaining what city he lives in and what the unique sitaution is there. In the US outside of the west coast and maybe some eastern cities, you aren't going to meet "founders" and the whole ballgame is different for indy consultants.

I have had success with just going through recruiters who will work with your S-Corp and help find you gigs for an up-front fee. There's plenty of work, in fact, a recruiter whom I know got laid off not because of the lack of work but because of too few candidates to fill the roles. I do think the $$$ that employers are willing to pay also factors in. Not every place wants to hire consultants, either. Many have had bad luck with expensive jerks who promise the world but leave a huge mess in their wake.

The blog post advice is iffy--he did get lucky in the sense that his post tracked here on HN. I have a blog with no traffic! My former employer (a consulting firm) has had mixed success with their blog and that's with $200 paid to consultants who write articles for it. We had a very decent corpus of articles there, but the signal to noise ratio on the Internet is not in your favor there.

Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#26

Post by skmurphy »

samfisher83 wrote: post #2

Here is the gist of what I got from the article. Things that worked: -Blogging -Referrals through blogging -Posting comments on HNs Things that didn't work -Networking Events -Participate in marketing or consulting communities -Partner with agencies or other consultants -Hound people -Cold outreach -Advertising -Handing out business cards

I help firms sell to business (B2B lead generation and sales) which at least rhymes with the author's consulting practice. My experience has been:

Things that worked:

+offering low cost but useful workshops/seminars

+public speaking

+referrals from existing clients

+blogging / referrals through blogging

+networking events

+participating in communities of peer consultants

+partnering with other consultants

+handing out business cards (at the end of a serious networking conversation)

+comments on HN and other entrepreneur oriented forums

Things that didn't work

-hound people (defined as contacting more than three times without a response)

-cold outreach

-advertising / sponsorship

So...your mileage may vary.

Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#28

Post by antonkm »

Networking works if you do it right. Made $300k my first year from 0 using only physical networks and around $5k spending money. I'm a web developer in Sweden.

For me to join a network the network has to match these criteria:

* It markets itself as exclusive

* It costs money (say $2k/y for small businesses and scaling prices depending on number of employees)

* Participants are owners or at C-level

The networks are often dinners where the participants get to know each other in friendly settings. I aim for networks with high middle age where I stick out as the younger (am mid-thirties) professional which connects tech with business needs (my niche).

While at a network, do not talk about yourself. Ask about others businesses and interests. These sells take between 6-12 months and are based on trust.

You also need to come prepared.

* Dress as expected.

* Have a web page with referrals so when leads get a bit nosy and Google you you're #1 in search and the page provides the lead with info about great work you've done. I have about 100 visits / mo to my page (my weird name helps for the #1 pos). 90% are primed leads.

* Know your oneliners. Prepare examples of things you can provide. Make them sound natural. Say it without selling in an informal way.

It's about being systematic and selecting only the networks where your dream leads go to. Hoping to get into invite only networks further on.

Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#29

Post by wordpressdev »

I have started to give consulting a serious go since 2nd quarter of this year as income from my own products are drying up. So far, I have tried following venues to attract potential clients:

- UpWork (sending at least 20 proposals per month) - Social Media (LinkedIn, Reddit, Facebook & Twitter) - Blog

So far getting major work from UpWork with one client from Reddit and FB each. Blog gets views but no conversions yet.

Re: How I Find Consulting Clients

#30

Post by baraundrar »

antonkm wrote: post #28

Networking works if you do it right. Made $300k my first year from 0 using only physical networks and around $5k spending money. I'm a web developer in Sweden. For me to join a network the network has to match these criteria: * It markets itself as exclusive * It costs money (say $2k/y for small businesses and scaling prices depending on number of employees) * Participants are owners or at C-level The networks are of…

Hej,

- $300k SEK or USD?

- What is the name of the dinner network you joined?

- What services do you provide? Do you subcontract or do the work yourself? Hourly rate, day rate or value based project fees?

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