Smart strategies to market B2B professional services and consulting
Imagine dining at your favorite restaurant. Relaxing atmosphere, professional chef, great ingredients—only this time, there are no menus, no daily specials and no list prices. It’s up to you and the waiter to put a name to your craving and dream up the best cuisine.
Sound appealing? Or daunting?
Specifics sell. Your menu of capabilities and the way you promote it is critical to attaining the targeted business that you want.
Many organizations promote and sell their services offerings in exactly this way, using a “sky’s the limit, we can do anything” approach that leaves it up to the buyer to decipher their needs, understand the potential solutions and create a package offering that fits their budget.
The problem with this approach is that it places the buyer in the role of expert—not your organization. It adds time and confusion to the sales process, and more often than not, leaves market opportunities unmet.
Specifics sell
There’s a reason McDonald’s lets you order by number and a reason your favorite restaurant specializes in a certain type of cuisine. Specifics sell. Your menu of capabilities and the way you promote it is critical to attaining the targeted business that you want.
Eight techniques to generate results
1. Package your services
Group your capabilities into bundles that appeal to different audience segments and give each package a name.
2. Own your approach
Create a proprietary process by documenting and naming the steps you use in a services engagement.
3. De-mystify a complex topic
Choose a topic related to your solution and create a whitepaper, article, video or webinar to educate customers and prospects.
4. Be current
Demonstrate your expertise, credibility and thought leadership with communications that are relevant to current trends, best practices or issues.
5. Make it visual
Develop diagrams and workflows to make your method tangible and show why it is preferred.
6. Demonstrate results
Use customer case studies and ROI analyses to show the issues before your team begins work, and the benefits to be measured after an engagement.
7. Diagnose issues
Make it easy for customers to know when to turn to you for help. Use audits, checklists and surveys to lead decision-makers to the “a-ha” moment.
8. Embody the brand
When there’s no tangible product, make sure to train consultants and service staff on behavior and key messages that will deliver on your brand promise.