Ask Us Anything

10/05/20 • 60 min

What kind of pricing model would you recommend to a consulting agency that has traditionally relied on a retainer model?

How do you think international business and economics can and should impact pricing? I’ve seen agencies price certain fixed cost products lower in certain countries to make them more accessible.

How should small businesses consider reorienting their offerings within the current economic situation? Is now the time to be moving toward industries that are profitable or focusing on industries with high value problems to solve?

Do you have any specific tactics or strategies to get customers on the phone and ask them questions that will help you get insight into the problems they’re experiencing so you can better position and market yourself?

What are your thoughts on vertical vs. horizontal positioning and what sort of marketing would you do with either one of them?

Quotables

“For a recurring model, I like to go with an advisory retainer where you’re not doing execution, but making yourself available at the drop of a hat to answer questions.”—JS

“You want to make sure that you’re not giving away so much that you can’t stay with the mission.”—RM

“Help people you like get what they want. I’m not a fan of chasing opportunity. I like opportunity to come to me.”—JS

“Who do you want to help succeed, who do you want to transform...and what’s that particular transformation that you make in a way no one else does. There’s your power.”—RM

Links

Email Rochelle

Email Jonathan

The Introduction Game

Celeste Headlee TEDx 10 Ways To Have A Better Conversation

Got a question for us?

Do you have a question that you'd like us to answer on the show? We'd love to hear from you! Email a voice recording to Jonathan at [email protected] and we'll add it to the queue.

LINKS

What kind of pricing model would you recommend to a consulting agency that has traditionally relied on a retainer model?

How do you think international business and economics can and should impact pricing? I’ve seen agencies price certain fixed cost products lower in certain countries to make them more accessible.

What are your thoughts on vertical vs. horizontal positioning and what sort of marketing would you do with either one of them?

Quotables

“For a recurring model, I like to go with an advisory retainer where you’re not doing execution, but making yourself available at the drop of a hat to answer questions.”—JS

“You want to make sure that you’re not giving away so much that you can’t stay with the mission.”—RM

“Help people you like get what they want. I’m not a fan of chasing opportunity. I like opportunity to come to me.”—JS

“Who do you want to help succeed, who do you want to transform...and what’s that particular transformation that you make in a way no one else does. There’s your power.”—RM

Links

Email Rochelle

Email Jonathan

The Introduction Game

Celeste Headlee TEDx 10 Ways To Have A Better Conversation

Got a question for us?

Do you have a question that you'd like us to answer on the show? We'd love to hear from you! Email a voice recording to Jonathan at [email protected] and we'll add it to the queue.

LINKS

Previous Episode

Writing Proposals

When it makes sense to write a proposal and when to take a pass.

The role of the sales interview in writing your proposal.

How to capture the essence of the outcomes you’ll deliver in non-jargon (and avoid weasel words).

Enticing your clients to actually read your proposal and learning to anchor high with the value you’re delivering.

Adopting the posture of an expert and carrying it through in your proposal.

Quotables

“If you do a good job in the sales interview the proposal writes itself.”—JS

“Every human being wants to be heard. So when you read a proposal and you go “Oh my God, they get it”...it’s huge.”—RM

“Imagine that your contact is going to take your proposal and show it to their spouse or their CFO or their Board...it needs to be thoroughly 100% clear to a 10 year old.”—JS

“Clients will tell you a low (budget) number and a newbie tries to hit that number. That’s the mistake.”—RM

“Budget doesn’t matter...it’s is a made-up number that they (the client) based on a self diagnosis.”—JS

“Consulting: you’re not an employee, they (the client) are not directing you. You are leading them to the promised land.”—RM

LINKS

Next Episode

Is It Time To Start Pitching Media?

The signs you’re ready to start pitching to media.

Identifying the right media for you today—bloggers and podcasters, niche media and name brand digital and print outlets.

How to think of and treat journalists to capture their attention and get your message heard.

The role of media attention in building your authority and your business (hint: it is often NOT a straight line).

Deciding which success criteria matter most and how to use them to guide your decisions and attention.

Quotables

“One sign that you know you’ve got something is where you have a hook to a really hot story. There are times—and 2020 is one of them—where there are only two or three really hot stories.”—RM

“You need to be measuring something—even if it’s intangible...know WHY you’re doing it (pitching media) or you’ll feel like you’re shouting into the void.”—JS

“When it comes to authority...we want our name associated with our ideas, and that means media.”—RM

“The “trick” is to look at media as a potential long-term relationship and you just start helping—you develop a posture of service.”—JS

“Sometimes you have a favorite publication and you realize they don’t cover your topic at all or they do it in a way you think is insufficient. Pitch them!” —RM

“If my strategy is to get a monthly column in a big publication then I’ll pick different outlets to reach out to than if my success metric was to increase the number of my email subscribers.”—JS

LINKS