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How To Stand Out As A Small Consultancy And Crush Goliaths https://ift.tt/2s6IYV8
I run into a lot of high-level consultants who have had the guts to leave their stodgy large corporations to start their own shops. They usually do so because they are fed up with the old fashioned processes and bureaucracy and believe they can do it better while experiencing more freedom and making more money. But I have started to notice some clear patterns and challenges they all run into, regardless of industry.
Despite their knowledge and expertise, these consultants all try to look and sound exactly like their larger counterparts, and end up looking like a less credible option instead. They know they are uniquely positioned, with their expertise and nimble capabilities as a boutique shop, but fear that their size is a disadvantage when going after their target market. So when it comes to their branding they play it safe. Even though they know they have to do or say something different to rise above the noise and get attention, they are afraid of losing credibility by being too different. They are left feeling cornered and torn on how to communicate their benefits and advantages. Yet I find it ironic that many of these high-end consultants, and other service providers in oversaturated, generic markets are attracted to our brand precisely because we are “too different.” There is no shortage of people offering branding and graphic design out there and they, too, are ironically afraid of losing credibility by being too different. That’s why they all look and sound the same. This is good news for consultants! You’ve got a huge opportunity to actually stand out. Big consultancies are slow moving ships that have antiquated brand messaging that can’t speak as honestly and freely as you can, coupled with old fashioned processes that cannot easily implement new technology. Compound those challenges with the fact that other consultants are most likely struggling with the same fear of scaring off clients by being too different, which results in that same generic, “me too” branding, and you have a chance to win big against direct, smaller competitors, and even the giant Goliath’s. Be Proud You’re A David I recently worked with an impressive consultant, whom I’ll call Mark. Mark worked in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) for many years at one of the big consultancies. Ten years ago, with a ton of experience and the right amount of chutzpah, he went out on his own to become a freelance consultant. Since then, Mark’s worked with some big clients and even landed a few huge ones, despite the fact he operates as a one-man consultancy. Large corporations bring Mark in to handle their M&A because he has a really great reputation. All of his clients come from referrals. He’s less expensive than the big consultancies, he’s a high-level expert, and he’s able to scale his team of freelancers up or down as he needs. Despite all these advantages, Mark still has a ceiling on his income. There are only so many days in the year for Mark to work and even though he's bringing in freelancers from time to time, he’s spending lots of time putting the team together. Even if he works with the same people often, there's waste. Mark is what I’d call a sharp shooter; small consultancy, super high efficacy. He’s not trying to be like a large consultancy either. But he doesn’t want to remain a one-person shop where the whole of his business is dependent on his personal reputation. And Mark’s not alone. I speak to more and more independent, high-level consultants like Mark who want a brand in the middle; a boutique, high-level consultancy with a small group of experts. The big challenge for all of them, though, is how to build a brand that stands out, has the credibility to get big companies to hire them, and demonstrate they’re more than a one-man band capable of handling large clients with huge projects. And while it’s a big challenge to them, it’s pretty clear to me. Rather than try to come off as another Goliath, own the benefits of being a David. This means highlighting why the size of their company is a value add, not a liability. For example, small shops are predominately a team of high-level experts, not a large pyramid where a significant portion of client payments pad the pockets of the owners at the top. If you’re a sharp-shooter who’s in this position, you need to own the fact that you’re better, but not cheaper. “Cheap expert” is an oxymoron! In fact, sometimes you want to be more expensive to show clients they are paying for a very high-level of value. Wouldn't they rather have a team of six executive-level owners, versus a team of 20 where 15 of them are junior staff who have never done a project like this (which is what many large consultancies offer)? Demonstrate how technology makes you more flexible and nimble than the big agencies. Nowadays, an individual can have teams and partnerships with other small boutique agencies all over the world, seamlessly working with them in real time. This has changed the game, opening up opportunities for nimble boutique agencies to compete with the large corporate consultancies that previously dominated. To Be David You Have To Stop Acting Like Goliath Mark has the same problem a lot of freelance consultants have: he has a strong reputation without the long-term brand credibility of a big consultancy. He wants to be able to scale his business and he’s struggling with how to convey the necessary impressive reputation while maintaining the value of his smaller shop flexibility. If you’re in Mark’s shoes, my advice here is pretty straight-forward. First, position yourself as one premium hire rather than 15 juniors. This is usually a value proposition you can and should be operating in because it’s the easiest for large companies to understand. Quality versus quantity. The second, though, might be a little harder. You need to own your area of expertise. Less is more, here. Like I tell all my clients—high-end merger and acquisition consultants included—you need to be willing to specialize. You cannot play this game if you don’t. (If you need help on figuring out where and how to specialize take this Crash Course in branding.) You have to be willing to own a message that is clear and succinct. Demonstrate restraint in your copy and your messaging so you're not trying to explain everything up front—which is the mistake everybody makes. Then, of course, you need a brand design that's not going to look like a smaller version of your super corporate competitors, but also isn't going to look so edgy and cool that you miss the mark. Having the guts to own a brand that's a little outside of what big corporate companies look like will give you the edge you’re looking for. But you have to O-W-N it! There’s no going halfway with something like this. Consultants fear this position, so they have websites and brands that end up being “for everyone” and forgettable as a result. Consultants who truly want to stand out know they have to do better. They also know some corporate companies will not get it. When your positioning demonstrates you are on the brink of a new way of doing business, you must realize it’s okay if some stuffier companies don’t hire you. You want to attract the clients who do get it. Because if you simply trying to be a smaller, cheaper version of Bain or McKinsey—which is what most consultants are doing—you’ve already lost. Why am I so confident in this position? Big Is No Longer Seen As Best The advantage I’m describing for consultants is that the Davids of the world can pivot where the Goliaths can't. That's your value-add, and that's how you need to position your brand. There’s no inherent value in big anymore and in some cases it can even be suspect. Despite your specific industry or specific offering, if you are a high-level consultant who works with corporate companies, you're likely wondering how to scale to the next level. It’s pretty simple when you lean into your differences as advantages. Small. Boutique. High-level. Responsive and hands on. Tech savvy and forward thinking… these are qualities the Goliaths are trying desperately to convey in their rebrands and new marketing starting decades ago with marketing campaigns like Charles Schwab's “talk to Chuck”. But however effective such advertising might be at hooking in new clients, it can’t deliver these types of values compared to a real David. The overhead alone makes it impossible. You couldn’t have done this 10 years ago. The market, the technology, and the mindsets didn’t allow for brands who were small, nimble, and edgy to operate on the scale they can today. The mistake many consultant make is that they still try to emulate the big guys. It just doesn't work, not anymore. At the end of the day, what you really want is the credibility a big consultancy has earned, not their size. Don’t confuse the two. The right strategy is to to own the value-add the big guys can't. And build your credibility around that. Who really wants to be Goliath anyway? Business via Forbes - Entrepreneurs https://ift.tt/dTEDZf May 23, 2018 at 11:39AM
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