Andrea Coutu

No cold calling and still a successful business owner? After my post on cold calling clients, a few people wrote in to ask if they could succeed with absolutely no cold calling. And, yes, you can absolutely succeed without ever cold calling. I’ve been a consultant for more than 10 years. In that time, I’ve […]

While I’m on holidays, I thought I’d remind you that the new year is a great time to consider career growth. Have you considered the power of mentors? Make 2010 the year you take great strides in your career. Here are five reasons why you need a mentor.

Becoming a social media consultant seems like a good way to take advantage of a gap in the job market. Josh Hallett writes that headhunters have a hard time finding people for social media jobs because so many work as independent consultants. Social media include blogs, wikis, message boards, podcasts, video logs and other online

Discount business Christmas cards are a great way to send holiday greetings to clients. My post on discount business Christmas cards provides tips for choosing cards. You might also want to look at personalized business Christmas cards. However, if you don’t have the budget to buy even discounted holiday cards, consider creating an online version

Cheap Christmas cards can be a big help when you’re on a limited budget. But you don’t want people to think you send out cheap Christmas cards, so take some care and choose wisely. My post on discount Christmas cards provides some tips for choosing great holiday cards. And, remember, if you’re sending out cards,

Consultants are knowledge workers. They make a living by selling their expert opinions and advice and charging appropriate consulting fees. Harold Jarche has an interesting post about knowledge workers and jobs. He suggests schools are out of sync with the needs of a knowledge-based economy. The education system’s focus on process and logic is out

Cold calling can be one of the most intimidating ways to find new clients. For some, the prospect of picking up the phone and calling a stranger can seem overwhelming. But Ari Galper encourages people to surrender to the outcome of the cold call (website now dead, 2012). Stop pushing your agenda or script and

Happy US Thanksgiving! Have you got a turkey for a client? Fire your client! This archived post talks about letting go of clients who cause you headaches — and ways to manage client behavior. Happy Holidays! Relevant Posts: Have you ever fired a client or customer? Finding new clients Consulting Fees: A Guide for Independent

How do you feel confident enough to charge $75, $100, $150 or $300 an hour? Use strategy in setting your fees. As I mentioned in my post on setting consulting fees, you need to adopt a model for calculating your consulting rate. If you’ve done this carefully and you’ve considered your background, target market and

Consulting rates stump many people trying to survive and thrive as consultants. On one hand, you want your consulting rate to be low enough to attract and retain clients. On the other hand, you want that consulting rate to be high enough to ensure that you can keep your bills paid, your business running and