Consulting Business Online?

Looks like everyone is doing consulting business online. That's OK. But what happens when you start searching for something? All you can see everywhere is "We are a great team of xxxxxx professionals", "I'm certificated expert of xxxxx", "We are the best...". No good work samples, not enough textual proof of the provider knowledge (articles), no easy contact information neither an easy way to get in touch and book your consulting.

If you are trying to sell consulting online, such approach is basically dead. You need something much better to attract the users and turn them into paying customers. Here are few must-dos when starting a consulting business online:

1. Demonstrate your expertise, don't talk about it. Saying "I'm a great expert on XYZ" is pointless. No one cares what you say, people want to see you are a great expert. You can demonstrate your expertise by providing free content - articles, images, software or whatever can show you are the expert. One of the best strategies is to start a blog on the topic you work in.

2. Allow people to contact you in convenient way. List emails, phones, instant messengers, use event calendar software to show your availability, allow users to book online, accept different payment methods.

3. Offer different levels of services and products. At the lowest level you can build an e-book and sell it for $19.90 for example. The book should be good but basic - leaving people to do the things themselves. On the upper level you can build a membership site with limited members (say up to 100 people), offer them articles, conferences, members only forum etc. And at the top level, for highest prices only do the one-to-one consulting. This way you are not only going to make more money but will also raise the perception of the value of your service.

Have you tried any of these strategies in your consulting business? If not, maybe it's the time to start using them - from today.