10 resolutions to help grow your consulting business in 2011 - II

(This article was published in two parts)
PART - II
(Remaining 5 Ways)


6: Offer specials for referrals
Word of mouth is the best source of advertising. Why? Because new clients are being referred to you by satisfied customers, so those new clients will have positive expectations for your work. For customers you trust to give positive references, offer discounts for every referral they make that results in a new client. This will perpetuate itself, as those clients learn that sending you referrals benefits them as well.

7: Get (and stay) better organized
Most of us could stand a little improvement in this area. Let this be the year you successfully become an organizational machine! The more organized you are, the more efficient your work will be. The more efficient your work is, the more work you can do. Finally — the more work you can do, the more money you will make. If you aren’t motivated by that, just think how happy your clients will be when they see how organized you are.

8: Reevaluate the tools you use
The firm I work for recently reevaluated the anti-virus solution we deploy and made a fairly big change away from the tool we had used for years. This decision was based not only on issues we had experienced with the software in the past, but also with advancements by other companies. You should never just assume the products you use are the best for the job. Always be on the lookout for newer, better tools.

9: Get a new certification
Although it seems that certifications are so very 90s, they’re still valuable business-enhancing tools. But instead of adding onto your MCSE, consider a Cisco or network security certification to broaden your horizons and your marketability. The Cisco certification may be a bigger challenge than you’re used to, but it will certainly be worth it in the long run. You could also consider a RHCE (Red Hat Certified Engineer) or Ubuntu Professional Certification.

10: Hand out your business cards more often
If people don’t know about your business, they won’t call you. One of the easiest ways to get your name (and number) out there is to distribute business cards. You can do this in many ways. Hand them out at network meetings, pin them to the corkboards at coffee shops… anything you can do to get those cards into the hands of the public. Always have a stack of cards with you (in your purse or wallet) in case you overhear someone talking about computer or network problems. Then, hand them a card with a smile.

Source :

• Website: http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=2108
• Date: January 4th, 2011
• Author: Jack Wallen

Contributed By :
Mohammed Sufiyan,
Software Engineer, Octaware Technologies,