Start a Consulting Business Fast: 3 Top Tips and Help to Launch for Success
The consulting industry is constantly growing, and there is plenty of room in the market to find your niche and build a profitable consulting business. Management consulting alone pulls in about $2 billion each year. That’s just for one category in the consulting industry! An independent consulting business is a great way to become your own boss and build financial freedom.
If you want to learn how to start a consulting business, read our guide for tips and resources. If the consulting biz is right for you, we can form your LLC, Corporation, or DBA fast. Since 2001, MyCompanyWorks has helped tens of thousands of entrepreneurs start and manage their businesses.
Consulting is Big Business
Consulting is a huge industry. It’s one of the most profitable industries worldwide. There are many different types of consultancy firms, but they all have one thing in common: they all provide ways to resolve issues, build, and grow their clients’ businesses. Consulting firms offer a variety of services, in everything from administration to technology consulting. Every industry uses consultants to help them make the best decisions with their money and efforts. These types of services can be found in every country and on every continent.
What is consulting?
Consulting is a professional service that provides expert advice and guidance to organizations. Consultants are often called in to help with a specific problem, but they can also be retained for ongoing work. Professional consultants are usually experts in their field and have a deep understanding of the issues faced by their clients.
What can a consultant do?
The Harvard Business Review has an extensive article on the functions of a professional consultant. You’re more than just an advisor. An effective consultant will offer information, assess a client’s strengths and weaknesses, and help the client solve problems and build for growth. You can become an expert consultant in any industry that fits your skill set. Some information says a college degree is required, but that isn’t necessarily the case if you can prove your advanced knowledge and abilities.
Consulting business benefits
Starting your own business can lead to independence and financial freedom. Since many consulting agencies work over the Internet, you can work anytime, day or night, and you’re not tied to a certain country or time zone.
Here are just a few benefits of starting a consulting company.
- Low overhead costs – work from a home office when you’re not with clients.
- Set your hours – flex your schedule around personal matters to achieve work/life balance.
- Work with clients you choose – focus on businesses that are shopping for your specific service.
- Build a business you can sell down the road – a solid customer base with proven retention can be an attractive selling feature for a consulting business.
How much do Consultants make?
Obviously, the range will vary, but some of the highest-paid consultants offer their services in Marketing, Human Resources (HR), Software and Technology, Investments, Sales, Business Management, and Environmental Services. Average salaries range between $56-$120k per year, depending on your niche. Overall, independent consulting firms can be very profitable if you’re smart about setting pricing and hours.
3 Things to Consider Before Starting a Consulting Business
Starting a business can be an exciting adventure, but before diving in, these three considerations will help you decide if a consulting agency is the right fit for your passion and interests.
- Decide whether your passion and skillset are something you can offer to clients as a service.
- Determine the type of customer you want to serve: small businesses, startups, large organizations, etc.
- Decide if you want to manage the administration of your business or hire professionals to do it for you.
Helpful Startup Resources
Profitable Business Ideas | Start a Consulting Firm in Your State | Delaware: THE Incorporation State
How to Start a Consulting Business
All US businesses must be registered in the state where they operate. We can register your business with state authorities if you decide consulting is right for you.
Do your homework
If you’re offering online consulting services, you really don’t have to worry as much about market saturation (too many available similar services in the same market). If you have an attractive website and market your services, there really is no limit to your customer base. On the other hand, offering local services may be a challenge if existing businesses are offering the same services in your area. So it’s important to either offer a service that isn’t being offered locally or build a strong web presence to attract clients from anywhere. Answer these questions to get started.
- Which consulting services are lacking in your area (local businesses)?
- How can you use your skillset to meet those needs?
- Crunch the numbers – how much will you need to make in order to be profitable?
Develop a business plan
Every successful business begins with a solid business plan. The plan is like a roadmap, so you can decide if this type of business would be profitable for you. You’ll also use a business plan to chart your progress and prepare for financing and future growth. Every business plan should include your mission statement, a description of services provided, information about your target market, objectives, and a financial plan for one year to start. You’ll likely work into three-year plans beyond the first year. Check out our article on developing a business plan for more information and free templates to make writing your plan easy.
Take action!
Now that you have done the research and decided to open shop, it’s time to form an LLC, Corporation, or DBA for your consulting business. You can use our State Startup Guide to register a business on your own or order a startup package from MyCompanyWorks to save time and money. Our Basic, Entrepreneur, and Complete packages are affordable and customizable for any business.
Managing Your Company
What does a day in the consulting business look like? You’ll likely work with existing clients and should spend time marketing to new customers. Administrative tasks like bookkeeping, record-keeping, and business compliance all need to be managed in any business. If you’re a better consultant than a business operator, our Vendor Network offers qualified professionals in over 40 categories to manage the “business end” of your company for you. Many of our Recommended partners offer exclusive pricing and discounts to our customers.
Find Qualified Professionals in Our Exclusive Vendor Network
Growing Your Business
You may have heard location, location, location is what matters when you’re starting a new business. While that is true for companies that want to reach local consumers, an online business needs more than location. A new consulting company must advertise, advertise, advertise. You probably have a stellar business model at this point, but there are other players in the field, and you must promote yourself any way you can to attract new business.
If you’re tech-savvy and can write, you can start a blog to post relevant information. You can start a simple WordPress blog for free, or build one with one of our custom domain, email, and web packages. There are lots of online advertising opportunities, like Pay-Per-Click (PPC) ads, but you can save some money by starting social media channels and posting to your blog regularly. Make sure to share your blog posts on social channels to draw qualified leads from the Internet. Ask family and friends to share on their social channels. You never know where you’ll get your next lead.
Just because you’re a consultant does not mean you can’t use one yourself. We have worked with agencies like Face44 over the years and their design and marketing services are well worth the money. Remember, hiring a consultant means hiring an expert, so you don’t have to be one in the area where you need help. Working with other consulting companies can help you make the best of your time, so you can work on your business.
Market your business with a custom Domain Name, Email, and Website
Why MyCompanyWorks?
We offer comprehensive, affordable business formation and everything needed to start and manage a company. Unlike other filing services, we don’t have any hidden fees. Our service is backed with a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee, and MyCompanyWorks can start your business startup order in as little as one business day. We offer complete business packages for consultants, and you can add a user-friendly and affordable Website package to your formation order. Our exclusive Startup Wizard will walk you through the business startup to make the process as simple and painless as possible. We also have lots of helpful articles and resources to run a successful company on our blog.
Need Help With a Consulting Business Startup?
Looking for something else? Our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page and Help section answer a lot of popular questions, and you can contact our support team if you don’t find what you’re looking for. Call or chat with us during business hours to start a consultancy firm today.
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