Search SMBresource

Setting yourself up as an independent consultant

Selling your expertise on the open market as an independent consultant is an excellent way to start off on your own. You can earn a very good living doing something you are already skilled at and further broaden your horizons. But be wary, there are some serious drawbacks you need to consider.

Long term independent consulting engagements.
When you land one of these deals you often initially feel like you've won the lottery. It's steady work, and steady money and usually at a better wage than you were making working for someone else. But the shine can quickly tarnish when you become stuck in an engagement that is no different than working as an employee. You find that you've lost your independence.

When confronted with this situation the best approach is to start hunting your next assignment early in the engagement. Use your time to develop a list of potential clients and then send a simple introduction letter.

How much do you charge?
To find the going rate you may need to do a little digging. Check the website of other independent consultants and see if you can get a rough average. If the information is hard to come by you can use or setting fees for consultants formula found here.

How do you become an independent consultant. What do your customers expect?
Customers engage consultants for two primary reasons; they need short term help to move a project along, they need an expert to guide them through a process. If it's just short term expertise you will more than likely be part of a team and expected to act in that role. If the engagement is at the front end of the project, and expected to be longer term,you're being paid for your expertise. When this is the case you should be ready to offer advice not only of a technical nature, but with the processes being created.

How do you market and sell yourself?
The traditional method is to use direct mail, follow up with a phone call, and close the deal at a face to face meeting. It sounds like three easy steps, but it's not. You will make much better use of your time if you very specifically target the potential customers that either most need your services, or best match your skill set. A shot gun approach to marketing rarely works very well, can cost you a fortune in money as well as time, and is disheartening because the return on investment can be quite low. The more targeted your mailing and the content of your letter, the more likely you are to get calls directly without having to follow up with a cold call.

When you get to the face to face meeting.
With the targeted approach (especially with a customer that matches you skill set) you are going to be much more confident. These confidence will shine through and and the customer will immediately get the sense that you are in fact a competant expert and not just another fly by night consultant .

Summary:
Becoming an independent consultant is not only financially rewarding, it can set a foundation for creating a bigger business, broaden your skill set and when you get the right client, it's a lot of fun. The bad news is if you're not careful you will end up just having a higher paying job with no benefits. Work to get two or three day a week engagements so you have time to built your client base. Always keep in mind that when you make the decision to become an independent consultant, you are also making a decision to become a sales person.

Back to consultants

Step by step buide to starting a business.