If you’re looking to make some fast cash, or you’re interested in building a long-term sustainable business, consulting is one of the most lucrative opportunities available online.
As a consultant or coach, you’ll be responsible for guiding your students or clients through a learning curve until they’ve accomplished a specific goal.
The dictionary defines consultant as: “a person who provides expert advice professionally.”
The truth is, not every consultant is an expert and thankfully, you know more than the person you are teaching!
Sure, your existing skillset will help shape your consulting business. After all, the fastest way to make money is by offering to teach someone a skill that you already possess.
Another great benefit to consulting is that you can build an income without a major following, or without having access to a massive audience.
This is one of those rare businesses where you don’t need a lot of clients to make a full-time income. Just a handful of regular clients will do the trick!
And if you’re not yet convinced as to the many reasons why starting a consulting or coaching business is one of the easiest ways to build an online business, there’s yet another major benefit to getting involved in this industry.
You’ll be able to create a solid foundation for a future business that you will be able to scale as needed!
The clients who pay you for help, guidance and advice will likely be interested in other services that you offer in the future.
Plus, since you’ll be working on-one-one with clients, you’ll get to know your niche or industry on a much deeper level. This will make it easier for you to create hot digital and physical products that are proven to sell.
You can’t build a successful business without a clear understanding of what your market wants. Consulting will give you the insight you need to help them achieve their goals.
And with consultants earning 6-figures a year, it’s one of the most profitable businesses to get involved in!
Are you ready to start building a successful business in consulting?
Let’s begin!
Laying the Groundwork
You’ll begin by identifying your specialties. Again, this doesn’t mean you must be a trained expert on the topic. You just have to know more than your clients do.
Survey your skillset. What do you feel you have most experience with? What marketable skills would people be willing to pay to learn? What is your target audience struggling with?
If you’re already involved in online business, chances are you have a good idea as to what market you’re going to venture into.
If that sounds like you, start by identifying a key problem in your industry and then create a consulting business around solving that problem.
If you are brand new to online business, or you haven’t yet chosen your niche market, evaluating the knowledge and skills you already have is the best way to start.
Everyone has information that would be valuable to someone else.
Whether you’re able to teach someone how to master a popular software product, or you know of a way to overcome an obstacle of any kind, that knowledge can be turned into a profitable consulting business.
Kellie Dixon generates over $100,000 a year teaching women how to lose weight by following the LCHF diet. She goes beyond just handing over recipes, because as a consultant she becomes their personal coach, someone who motivates her clients every step of the way while cheering them on throughout their journey.
Kate Riley makes over $10,000 a month teaching new authors how to publish their books on Amazon. She scaled her consulting business to include access to virtual assistants and cover designers, and her clients are more than willing to pay for those resources.
Regardless what you’re interested in, chances are there’s a wide- open market of clients who need your help. The key is to identify your skills and then validate the market to ensure there’s enough of a demand to begin building a clientele.
Knowing what skills you are going to market is key to a successful consulting business.
Begin by asking yourself the following questions:
Are there people already offering your service?
Competition is a clear indicator of a healthy and viable market. If you discover that other consultants are successfully training clients, then you know it’s a market worth considering. You just need to find a unique angle that will set you apart.
Are there people actively searching for your topic?
If you see the same questions being asked in your market, chances are, people will pay for help solving their problems.
Look for posts on Facebook, Reddit, and twitter from people in your niche. Pay close attention to recurring questions, or requests for help with specific topics. This is a great place to generate ideas for your consulting business.
If you want to dig deep into your niche, you’ll also want to join popular Facebook groups. This will put you in close contact with your target audience and help you get a feel for what they’re most interested in. It’s also a great way to advertise your services later on.
From online businesses looking for help expanding their outreach, HR departments needing help with filling positions, to start-up businesses wanting to build brand awareness, consultants are being hired to help maximize exposure and overall visibility, discover new sales channels and connect with their customer base.
But companies and start-up businesses aren’t your only potential audience.
You could easily create a consulting business geared towards the everyday person who wants to learn how to make money online, start a new blog, create an Etsy shop or tackle web design. The possibilities are endless.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when considering your angle:
• What are people actively paying for help with?
• What is lacking in existing consulting services?
• What do people in your market struggle the most with?
• What problems could you help someone overcome that will improve their lives or their business
• What kind of services can you offer that businesses or people absolutely need, but wouldn’t hire someone full-time for?
By answering those questions, you’ll be able to find your niche and tailor your services to appeal to the majority of your market.
Once you’ve identified a need, it’s time to start planning your consulting business so you can attract the right clients. I’ll show you how to do that in the next chapter.
