Digital Marketing for Consultants
Top 8 Tactics to get you reaching clients online quickly
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The move to marketing online has been a necessity for most consultants. And truth be told, it’s a long time coming where many have been complacent and relying too heavily on face to face connections and delivery.
There’s no going back. It’s the way of the future and consultants need to innovate and adapt to thrive online. And it’s really not so bad – target customers globally and maintain close relationships with your customers, all from the comfort of your own home. Save on the travel time, inefficiencies of following up in person and even reach those that were difficult to reach before.
But how do you do that?
The first thing you need to consider about being active online is how your services can be sold.
How do you normally generate inquiry?
How do you convert your prospect into a client?
How can you do this over and over again profitably?
Your ability to scale your client acquisition process profitably is at the core of your digital marketing strategy.
It may not be easy if this is your first time venturing into the online world. Here are a few tactics you can use to get you up to speed quickly and reach your clients online.
Tactic #1: Keep your LinkedIn profile updated
As a consultant using an online marketing platform LinkedIn is a must. It’s considered a professional resume online. But more than that it’s a platform that is specifically designed for business. Everyone expects it.
So make sure your profile is regularly updated for your prospective client and for people who would want to initiate a connection.
Pro Tips:
- Outline – Provide a 20 second sound bite of what you can do
- Experience – Keep this relevant in terms of outcomes you have achieved and why you are the perfect candidate to assist with your ideal client’s requirements
Tactic #2: Create search optimised pillar content
When it comes to digital marketing for any consultant, this is sadly misunderstood.
Optimise your content to maximise its chance of hitting Google’s first page for a similar topic. Search engine optimised content – specifically pillar content that is key to your services, can help increase website traffic, and a good percentage of that can be converted into leads.
No traffic = no leads.
Start by crafting content that people are actively searching for. Be strategic about your content.
Pro tips:
- Make sure that your content answers or resolves a desperate pressing problem or concern
- Identify the main keywords or search phrases that your audience is using to find solutions to their problem.
Tactic #3: Join groups in your niche
Build your network of people who have an interest in your expertise. Join groups and contribute regularly to build good connections.
It’s a must on LinkedIn. But more and more now there are groups on Facebook you can also jump in and provide value.
You can connect to learn, collaborate or simply to grow your network.
Remember when you join any group – give value first, and make sure that your fellow members are happy to know more about your services before you promote.
Are we connected on LinkedIn yet? Click here to send me a Connection Request.
Tactic #4: Post valuable pieces of content each week
Now that you have an updated profile on LinkedIn, and you have built some connections in your target market through groups, it’s time to start getting your message out there.
Share valuable content several times a week. Make sure the information you are sharing is relatable to the challenges and problems of your target market.
Utilise 2-3 hashtags on your posts too. You can use a keyword or the summary topic of the post as your hashtag. Doing this to your posts allows it to reach a bigger targeted audience.
Tactic #5: Don’t forget to include a call to action
The content you put out is part of your brand – your messaging.
Content done strategically leads your audience back to your website.
And from there, your website’s primary goal is to turn visitors into leads, and the simplest way to make it happen is to add a call to action on your homepage.
Tactic #6: Add lead magnets to capture email addresses
A lead magnet is something of value that you provide to your website visitors in exchange for their email address.
As they say, leads are the lifeblood of any business.
A lead magnet should include content that solves a problem your target market is seeking a solution for. These magnets can be guides, toolkits, cheat sheets, reports, ebooks, case studies, etc.
Where to include lead magnets on your website?
- Your blog posts. They can be a form in the middle or end of your posts. They can even be pop-ups (which can be annoying if set too frequently).
- Your homepage. This works great if you have a solid topic and the right messaging.
- A dedicated Resources page like ours.
For one of our clients (Epic Transformations) who is on a mission to alleviate workplace burnout, their lead magnet is a quiz to assess the extent of burnout and is a necessary first step in identifying appropriate strategies to aid recovery.
Tactic #7: Connect with your audience
Build that warm connection with your leads.
Send out a regular newsletter or reach out specifically to your connections.
When you have new services to offer, you can simply include that in your newsletter or outreach.
Some of the strategies listed in this article will also help grow your subscriber base.
Pro tips for an effective newsletter.
- Consistency is key. Life is busy and if you’re not showing up in your audience’s inbox regularly, chances are you will be forgotten. And you’ve lost an opportunity to really solve a pressing issue for someone.
- Pick a theme. Your theme represents your brand – what your business stands for and how you help your customers. This trains your readers to recognise your brand and associate it with the desired outcome your business provides.
- Give value. If you’re sending out an email, make sure the content you are providing has value. There are also some anti-spam laws that you may want to read about to ensure that you’re in conformity.
Tactic #8: Ditch the complicated launch funnels
Don’t get me wrong. I love funnels. And we build them all the time for clients. We use them ourselves.
However multi-step over-the-top funnels that take weeks to get someone to eventually, perhaps, maybe…reach out to you is over-kill when you’re new online.
Seriously, when you need to validate your offer and get the money in the door…
You don’t need multiple videos.
You don’t need multiple-step funnel pages, upsells and down sells.
You don’t need xxx-number of emails to “warm up” your audience.
You DO need – a really solid offer. You need to do the work. Period.
It can be as simple as this – connecting with your ideal client and finding out how your solution can help them. That’s what it comes down to.
BONUS TIP – Beware the worst number in business – ONE
To paraphrase marketing great Dan Kennedy –
The worst number in business is 1
Reliance on one product, one key person, one marketing strategy, one platform.
Take for example Facebook. It’s risen in popularity as a marketing platform…but it really warrants some caution.
Have you noticed the number of overnight “experts” touting their secret strategy to get you to multi 6, 7 or even 8 figures online?
The number of $17, $19 or $27 products supposedly giving you ALL the secrets to their success?
And the number of coaches yelling out how they made $400k, $500k and on track for $1M+ and wait, you can do it too if you follow their methods, which are focused on Facebook – Facebook groups, Facebook lives, Facebook messaging…Facebook, Facebook, Facebook.
Yes, Facebook groups can work. Yes, webinars do work.
Throwing all your resources and efforts into ONE strategy, one platform….that’s just bad business.
But these coaches and consultants are raking it in!
Yes I hear you…
Here’s why – these coaches and consultants are targeting those still new online or those so desperately seeking an escape from their soul-destroying corporate job that they’ve temporarily suspended logical thinking. Sadly another fallout from the pandemic of 2020.
These corporate escapees have rushed in to another high ticket program, throwing their entire savings behind the dream of earning their living online.
There’s a train wreck happening right now. And we’re determined to change that.
What we’re helping clients do instead is to build an online presence focused on their own Intellectual Property or their Signature Solution.
When you’ve taken the time to build your own signature process you effectively become the expert in it.
That said, you must have genuine career capital meaning you’re excellent at what you do.
You must be willing to do the work. You’ll get a marketing support team but you’re leading and delegating, not abdicating responsibility.
You must be willing to level up personally to become the CEO of your business. It’s near impossible to get results for someone who’s convinced that their passion and purpose is to focus on delivery alone.
If you’d like to have a chat about how we do this, contact us here or send us a message to start the conversation.
