Chapter 4: Applying a Client-Centered Value Strategy (5/5)

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Applying a Client-Centered Value Strategy ◾ 93

I didn’t really know how to go about turning it into a business. That’s what

brought me to Odyssey.

I had hit that early stage consultancy dilemma. You want to chase sure

earners, and you’re tempted to get every small job going, but really what

you need is to develop relationships and embed yourself more deeply in the

client organization.

As another Odyssey consultant pointed out to me, when you go in as

Trusted Advisor, you don’t have to chase ﬁfty or sixty customers, because

you’re going to provide more value to and generate more revenue from the

small number you have a relationship with. And that relationship will gener-

ate additional business. What’s more, it plays to my strengths, and it’s a lot

more fun working with clients on that level, as opposed to just selling prod-

ucts and chasing those small jobs.

The healthcare sector tends to be dominated by not-for-proﬁt organiza-

tions, and that fosters an attitude that there’s never sufﬁcient resources to

pay you for your services. I had to get really clear on the fact that I’m not

just selling stuff, I’m providing value. It was very easy for me to sell myself

short, to start deep-discounting because I was new. My Odyssey mentor was

like, “Snap out of it Jean Ann. You’re a powerful consultant. Here’s what you

should charge, and not a penny less.” I did what she suggested and the cli-

ent didn’t even blink.

I found too that if you do a good job at the right level, the client takes

you with them. It’s amazing how quickly people jump from company to

company, from job to job. That’s your advantage as a consultant because if

you work with a client and suddenly they’re somewhere else, it opens up a

new line of business for you.

I’ve been very active in staging EBs as a means of bringing in new clients,

but my big “aha” was this: Unless I’m in front of the right group of people who’ll

bring me in at the right level for the right purposes, I’m just an entertainer.

In the same vein, I pushed some of my networking groups aside. They’re

great fun. I’ve met great people and had great lunches—I live in Dallas and

people love to go out to lunch—but what I’ve found is that none of this activity

results in business. So I’ve had to become a little more mercenary and think, is

this just a transaction or is this a relationship that’s going to lead to something?

The other side of that coin is you have to be patient. Relationships take

longer than transactions. I may start talking to someone and months later we

ﬁnally have a conversation that may result in business. People have to get to

know me; how can I become a Trusted Advisor if they don’t appreciate who

I am and what I’m doing.

94 ◾ Odyssey—The Business of Consulting

I’m also building passive streams of income, through writing books,

writing articles, and developing e-courses. In addition to the income,

these activities get my name out there and help to establish me as

anexpert.

While some of the networking groups haven’t delivered, I do have one

networking group which has been instrumental in giving me the conﬁdence

to go for bigger jobs, because it’s made up of experts whom I can bring into

client interventions as partners. That’s one of the great things about Odyssey.

It gives me a pool of other consultants that I can go to when I want to bid

for projects that I couldn’t do on my own.

Chapter Summary

Many consultants have difﬁculty with the words “sell” or “selling.” However,

selling is part of the business of consulting. Selling at Levels 3 and 4 requires

a process approach based on client needs and a mind-set shift on the part

of the consultant.

The Value Creation model of consultative selling inverts the traditional

consulting approach by emphasizing the primacy of relationship building.

Once peer-level respect and trust are established, the critical mind-set facili-

tates collaboration on objectives, metrics, and value. Proposition and close

then follow as a natural conclusion. In the Value Creation model, the client

is not sold a commodity; they make an investment in their business.

Because this process is founded on doing what is best for the client,

“bag diving” or simply providing the client with the most obvious solution is

not always the best or most credible course of action. The Odyssey Arrow

facilitates an effective consultative selling process that delivers value for the

consultant and the client.

Although the needs of the client are at the very heart of the consulting

practice, it is also vital to remember that you want to run a proﬁtable con-

sulting business. The eight ways to increase your consulting revenues dem-

onstrate practical methods of remaining client centered while growing your

consulting practice.

The survey data taken at a TTI Success Insights conference in Phoenix,

Arizona, reveal a great deal about consultant lifestyle and revenues.

Odyssey embraces six perspectives of consulting, each of which helps to

illustrate the consultant’s functional role as a powerful third party within the

client organization.

Applying a Client-Centered Value Strategy ◾ 95

Calls to Action

1. Using the concepts from this chapter, review the strategic changes you

could make in your business to capture longer-term client assignments.

______________________________________________________________

2. What can you do in the next ninety days with new or current clients

to increase your fees? What percentage increase in net proﬁt will you

achieve?

______________________________________________________________

3. Outline what you have to change with regard to who you are and what

you do to signiﬁcantly increase your charge-out fees?

______________________________________________________________

96 ◾ Odyssey—The Business of Consulting

4. What do you need to do more of to reduce the cost of client acquisi-

tion? What do you need to do less? Be speciﬁc.

______________________________________________________________

5. Focusing on proﬁt margin, review each of your clients in turn. Which

kind of project affords you the best chance of proﬁt improvement?

______________________________________________________________

Bibliography

Butler, J. (2010). Business Model Innovation: Proven Strategies That Actually Work.

Sevierville, TN: Insight Publishing.

Drucker, P. (2001). The Essential Drucker. New York: HarperCollins.

Greiner, L., & Metzger, R. (1983). Consulting to Management. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:

Prentice Hall.

Hanan, M. (2004). Consultative Selling: The Hanan Formula for High-Margin Sales

at High Levels (7th ed.). New York: AMA Publications.

Lippitt, G., & Lippitt, R. (1986). The Consulting Process in Action. San Francisco:

Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.

Steele, F. (1975). Consulting for Organizational Change. Boston: University of

Massachusetts Press.

Weiss, A. (2011). The Consulting Bible: Everything You Need to Know to Create and

Expand a Seven-Figure Consulting Practice. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

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Table of Contents for Chapter 4: Applying a Client-Centered Value Strategy (5/5)

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Table of Contents for
Chapter 4: Applying a Client-Centered Value Strategy (5/5)