When most professional services firms wake up to the potential of online marketing — what’s the first thing they do? After throwing up a simple website — they quickly move to ‘getting the word out’ by creating a LinkedIn page, Facebook page, or a Twitter account. They unknowingly assume social media will generate, nurture, and […]
MARKETING INSIGHTS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICE PROVIDERS
Seth Godin on the Difference Between a Freelancer and an Entrepreneur
Seth Godin says that making the distinction between freelancer and entrepreneur is critical to the success of your business. Freelance professionals get paid when they work. Clients hire them and expect to work directly with them. They have a hard time scaling because they’re the ones doing the work (sound familiar?). Entrepreneurs build businesses bigger […]
How to Be Your Most Fascinating Self
I remember listening to Sally Hogshead talk about the 7 triggers of fascination at The Art of Marketing in Toronto way back in 2010. 5 years later, she’s still talking about fascination, but now with a new book and a whole set of fancy tools to go with it. Sally’s research over the last two […]
How Word of Mouth Marketing Works
In an interview on the Duct Tape Marketing podcast, Ted Wright — CEO of word of mouth marketing firm Fizz — discusses the 3 elements of a talkable brand story.
How to Get More Done in Less Time
Haven’t set your goals yet for 2015? Good, you don’t have to. Brian Moran, author of The 12 Week Year, argues that “annual planning” is a great way to waste a lot of time. Twelve months is too long of a time horizon to produce a meaningful plan. Not only is there far too much […]
The Only 3 Ways to Grow Your Business
Wouldn’t you rather read something along the lines of “101 Ways to Grow Your Business”? I would too. But the truth is, while there are hundreds of tactics and strategies you can try, they’re only going help grow your business if they can successfully do one of three things: Increase the number of customers. Increase […]
7 Ways to Position Your Professional Services Blog for Success
Let’s say you decide to give this blogging thing a try. You’re convinced there’s a strong business case for it and you’re willing to invest the time to make it work. You buckle down, spend some quality time with the keyboard, and publish your best stuff for the world to see. Then you sit back, […]
3 Surefire Ways Blogging Will Generate New Business for Your Firm
You’re skeptical, I get it. At first glance, blogging looks like a gigantic waste of time. It requires serious dedication to consistently write useful blog content. And it’s not terribly clear why you should even bother. How can hammering away at the keyboard, in front of a screen, for hours on end somehow generate business […]
5 Steps to Winning More Deals By Helping Buyers Overcome Their Fears
You know that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach right after you sign a big deal? It’s a bitter-sweet moment. You’ve finally closed the deal — but the thought of having to actually do the work and deliver on your promises is frightening. What if you don’t deliver? What if something goes […]
Content marketing isn’t for everyone, but it should be for you.
I’ll be honest, content marketing is a tough sell. Not only is it a ton of work, but professional services firms generally don’t have the in-house resources to do it right and usually end up failing miserably. It also takes a really long time before you start to see tangible results. Most firms are looking […]