Do New Consultants Really Need Marketing? Here’s My Honest Answer.

Originally posted 1-7-23 on Typeshare

You start a consulting business and suddenly you’ve got people trying to sell you branding services, websites, SEO, appointment bookings, PR and a bunch of other “must have” marketing things to make you successful.

But what do you really need?

In 2022 I talked with 141 solo & small firm consultants and here’s the advice I’m giving now.

Spend as little as you can on marketing at first

This is counterintuitive to what we’ve been taught or told about starting a new business but the reality is this:

• The service you think you’re going to provide and the target market you think you’ll serve is going to change and you’re likely wasting your money.

• You don’t need all the bells and whistles yet anyway.

Here’s what you need instead

I have clients build thriving businesses in the first 2 years without even a website.

What did they have?

• Decent LinkedIn profile

• Some posts

• A lot of conversations

Read that last point again. It’s what really counts.