Marketing & lead generation

New consultants often put together websites to generate leads and provide an online presence for their business. But there’s a critical mistake that many new consultants make. They don’t put their names on their websites. The reasoning behind this makes sense at first. When you’re new and striving to look credible, it seems better to […]

If you’re shopping around for a website address for your business, you’ll want to read Chitika’s 5 tips for choosing a domain name. Just as it’s a challenge to think of a name for your business, it’s an even bigger challenge to think of a web address. Odd spellings, departures from .com  strange word combinations

Welcome to this week’s Friday 5! Here’s a list of the top 5 ways to spark new marketing ideas, via Matt J. McDonald. Check out this question: Is it better to be the first or be the best? We hear a lot about "first mover advantage". That’s the idea that the first business to enter

Last week, I cautioned readers about SEO scams. Some readers wanted to know if they should bother with search engine optimization. After all, who looks for a consultant on a the web? Well, a lot of people. As I’ve mentioned before, my website helps me find new clients for my consulting business. I get lead

This week’s Friday 5 comes from SCORE’s list of the top 5 tips for using colleges and universities to promote your business. SCORE concentrates on the many programs available from colleges and universities. But some other options: hire a student to help with lead generation, administrative tasks or direct marketing gain free business advice from

If you’ve got a website or you’re thinking about building one, watch out for SEO scam artists. Search engine optimization — a process of building your website to do well for certain search engine searches — is a business fraught with scams and half-truths. There are plenty of people willing to take your money and

Scott writes in with this question:I am new to the consultant business. I have no idea if anyone has had any success with consultant /headhunter sites or consultant job search sites.I’m looking for assignments up to 12 months. I am in the business/tax/management areas. Does anyone have any suggestions where to start? I would consider

Any established client will tell you that it’s important to have more than one client. But how do you go from one client to many? Douglas Welch of Friends in Tech explains how one client’s referrals and contacts can help you build a full business: Be aware of the possibilities when dealing with your clients

Over at Online Freebies, there’s a post about finding freelance work via Rentacoder. In spite of the name, Rentacoder offers work for more than just coders (programmers). It’s possible to bid on work for all aspects of software development — even business and communication projects. I’ve never used Rentacoder, eLance or similar services. I’ve generally

As a consultant, it’s easy to fall into the trap of focusing only on finding new clients. But, sometimes, the easiest clients to find are those you already have. Do you float from project to project? What do you do to keep your name in front of past clients? Roberto Alamos notes the value of