4 ms·

Kudos on excellent comments and advice (here as well as in your other reply below). I'm curious about your thoughts on productized consulting, if any.

• gwbrooks 6y ago
  At the low (and, to a lesser degree, middle) tiers? It's more than just a good idea -- it's a survival strategy. Why? Because you can't knock out custom, 20-page-proposal solutions for all the small fry or you'll spend all your time on that. Packaged/productized solutions allow you to sell a repeatable product off the shelf at higher margins (ideally) or at a lower/competitive price point (more likely in a crowded space). Once you hit scale? Well, it depends on your strategy and what you're selling but there's no shame in your game if you leave the productized world behind or dial back on it. Bigger clients in professional services usually have more margin (because admin/overhead doesn't evolve as quickly as billable hours with them) and lots of upsell opportunity, so you may decide to focus on that. If you do dive into productized offerings, don't just create packages -- create packages that lend themselves to natural upsell breakpoints. What that could look like in raw consulting: * Design an assessment package that essentially defines the problem and tells them how to think about solving it rather than solving it. * Then design a package that lays out the plan but not the implementation. * Then package implementation in time- or milestone-bound chunks that create breakpoints for strategic account review, which is just a 50-cent word for sitting down with the client to look things over and adjust scope upwards.
  • ablekh 6y ago
    Very interesting. I much appreciate your prompt and detailed comment. You clearly know the art and craft of consulting quite well.
    • gwbrooks 6y ago
      In my next life I'll be good at something more enjoyable. ;)
      • ablekh 6y ago
        I hear you. :-)