The Financials of Consulting - Get a Down Payment

I found this story about consulting the other day that is happening right in our own backyard. A consulting company in Eagle has not been fully paid for services rendered to a recent campaign for an elected official. The consulting company is choosing to continue to do business with the elected official, but it is now on a "cash only" basis.

How we choose to operate our own consulting businesses is our own business. I'm in no position to say if this business arrangement is good or bad however, there are some lessons to be learned here.

1. Always have an agreement for payment when doing business with a client. Set the terms on how and when you will be paid.
2. Ask for a deposit prior to committing to the work. How much or what percentage is up to you.
3. If you are not getting paid, stop the work. Inform the client you cannot continue to render services to them unless their balance is paid.
4. If you are rendering services to a friend, family member or colleague, treat them the same as you would any other client. Don't give discounts. If they protest, tell them that by giving them a discount on your services they will forfeit their right to complain.
   

If you do your due diligence before working with a client and have an agreement for payment in place, you shouldn't have these problems. As always, make sure you get terms in writing. This way there are no questions and the expectations of both you and the client and clear.

Consultants: Blogging Is Not a One Way Street

In the last 24 hours I have had somewhat of a tense dialogue over e-mail with a well-known consultant and author who shall remain nameless. If you go back to posts I have made in this blog, I have mentioned him and have even linked to his blog on several occasions.

The dialogue has been tense, mostly for me, because the consultant is a very confident man. He's very successful at what he does and he's not ashamed to show it in his words and actions. Confident people are like brick walls - good luck swaying them to your point of view. They won't budge!

I took this consultant to task on a recent blog post he made about how professionals should look, speak and act like a success. I couldn't agree more. What rubbed me the wrong way was how he immediately dismissed a woman he mentioned in his post as being someone worthy of doing business with him because she mentioned how high gas prices were. He also mentioned that if someone complained to him about the quality of service at Southwest Airlines, his reply is that he wouldn't know because he never flies an airline that doesn't have a first-class cabin.

I replied to his blog post and basically said, don't judge a book by it's cover. The woman probably has a business where gasoline is an overhead expense and it is cutting in to her profit margin. She knows the value of a dollar and what it can do for her and her business.

Rather than getting a response to my comment in his blog post, the consultant e-mails me directly. He tells me I missed the point entirely, that if you are talking about high gas prices you probably aren't doing all that well and that you probably don't hang out with other successful people so why should he do business with me or others like me?

No, sir - I got your point the first time. I just disagree with how people can be easily dismissed by you just because they were trying to make conversation with you.

When I received the consultant's e-mail I replied thanking him for his feedback and honesty, but I wished he would have posted his response to me in the comments of his blog post. This way, others can join in the conversation and choose to either agree or disagree with either one of us and offer their own thoughts and opinions. To which he replied, he doesn't reply to comments on his blog, it's not a forum for debate and he is not going to debate me any longer. Oh, and I also missed his point entirely - again!

Two things are apparent here:

1. Blogging is not a one way street. If you are a consultant and intend to blog be prepared to take some heat and have a conversation with your readers. Listen to their opinions and defend yours if necessary. This particular consultant is a little late on the blogging scene. I've been blogging one year longer than he has and I already know that it is a forum for communication, not broadcasting.
2. The attitude of this consultant and others like him is what I fear tarnishes our profession. I know of some business professionals (and I'm sure you do too) that would not do business with this consultant based on how he sees other people.

The consultant I speak of may or may not know I am writing about him or responding to our recent "conversation". He can call me a coward for not mentioning his name, but frankly I don't want to give him any more publicity. He does fine on his own. If he does visit this blog and read this post, I invite him to comment on this blog and I will respond to his comments on this blog. It is, after all, a forum for a respectful conversation.

Kickstand Start-up Speed Dating

Another local organization, Kickstand, is hosting a Start-up Speed Dating event on May 6th.

Start-up Speed Dating is an opportunity for entrepreneurs to pitch their business idea to potential investors. The application deadline is Monday, April 28. Visit their registration page and submit your executive summary for review before it is too late!

10 potential entrepreneurs will be selected to present their verbal "pitch" to a panel of judges. On May 8th, at the next Kickstand meeting, the winning presentation will be featured.

Warm Up the Cold Call

Here's a good follow-up to topic of cold calls:

Do you get the shivers when you cold call?

I think this is a great example to illustrate what I'm trying to say when it comes to cold calls. Just calling people out of the blue that you have never had contact with can be uncomfortable, but if there is some way you can "warm up" the waters before you dive in, I think it will be less of a shock to you and the other person will be more likely to hear you out or at least consider what you are offering.

Keep in mind that cold calling is not an effort to make a sale for your services right then and there. It's an opportunity to begin building a relationship that later opens the door to the sale.

To Cold Call or Not To Cold Call

I'm intrigued how an older post, one of the originals on this blog, can still generate comments.

A post about the first TVCNet meeting, where our speakers from GlobeCom Solutions (now Valitics) discussed marketing in a new media world, made mention of cold calling. The quote was:

Most consultants I know don't have a passion for selling and marketing. They'd rather cut off right leg than to cold call someone they want to business with.

A comment by a reader said that they too hate cold calling, but it works.

When it comes to consulting, marketing and personal selling is a large part of the job. To generate business, there is no one single way. Ask a number of consultants how they generate business and the answers will vary.

Personally, I'm not a big fan of cold calling. I think about the other person on the phone. As much as I hate being called and solicited to buy something, why would I think the other person would be more open to it? I prefer to build my business through networking, referrals and creating meaningful relationships.

What do you think?

What is your method for generating business? Do you cold call potential clients? Does it work? what tips do you have grow your client base? Everybody has their own way of generating business. It will be interesting to see how many different ways consultants build their business.

Book Review: Living Toad Free

To preface this book review, and in the interest of full disclosure, Dan Bobinski is a colleague and member of Treasure Valley Consultants' Network.

Over the weekend I was browsing through my office library when I stumbled upon Living Toad Free: Overcoming Resistance to Motivation by Dan Bobinski and Dennis Rader. A few years ago Dan gave me the book to review while I was involved with another organization in the Boise area. Certain circumstances at the time didn't allow me to write a proper book review. I guess you could say there was a "toad(s)" in the way (more on what toads are in just a moment). Now that I run my own organization, I have the ability to give Dan's book the review it rightly deserves.

What are "toads"?

Toads are obstacles that get in the way of what we truly want out of life. Toads come in many forms, shapes, colors and sizes. They show up just about anywhere. At home, at work or in places we least suspect. Some call them "personal demons", some call them "monkeys on our back." Whatever you call them, they have the ability to make us and the people around us miserable.

How do you get rid of "toads" in your life? This book can be your weapon.

Dan and Dennis cleverly collected a series of short stories based on actual events in the lives of the many students, clients and colleagues they have worked with over the years. Each story focuses on a theme and lesson at the end of each story identifies the toad and what the main character did to overcome that very toad. These powerful examples set the overall tone for the book that helps you identify the toads you face in your own life and how you can overcome them.

The lesson I learned from Dan and Dennis' book is that in order to overcome the toads in your life, wherever they may be, you have to identify them, face them head on and resolve to eliminate them. It's about being real and honest with yourself.

Since this is a blog about consulting and running a consulting business in the Boise area, you may be asking yourself what any of this has to do with our work. The consulting business is knee-deep in toads. It's such a personal business that it's hard to avoid them. Personally, I don't believe anyone can be completely toad free in life or in business. Life throws us a toad every now and then just to make sure we're still breathing! The trick is to know how to rid yourself of toads when they make an appearance. Only then will you be able to live your life and run your business the way they were meant to be.