> Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. How you design your business will have a big impact on your profitability, enjoyment, and frankly, your level of stress. In this episode I combine my entire approach to building a scalable consulting business model. Topics include: Managed advisory services Fractional CMO Coaching & mentorship Downgrade engagements Group coaching (small group and one to many) Membership Products Strategy/audits Custom engage...
Apr 13, 2021•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. There are pros and cons to specialization. In this episode, I break down some of the main benefits of niche specialization, which include: Easier sales process via differentiation Lower time involvement required Less downward price pressure Better leverage and systemization Ability to package and resell expertise as products Easier to find and reach your target market More efficient marketing And many more.. Whe...
Apr 09, 2021•8 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. This episode comes from a blog post I wrote in December and I'm sharing my highlights here because it's worth revisiting. Below is the original post shared below (I don't talk about all of it in this episode, though): When I work with clients, there are an infinite number of data points and layers we could look at to shape our work. But at the end of the day, only a few high-level KPIs matter most as it relates ...
Apr 07, 2021•10 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. One of the ways I've been able to grow an audience within the coworking niche is by partnering and sharing value with other companies and consultants who have the same target audience but do different things. I've been able to do webinars, podcasts, panel discussions, conference talks, paid seminars, workshops, and even advise others in the industry who serve the same audience. Examples of those I've partnered w...
Apr 05, 2021•9 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Do you have a clear idea on who your ideal target market is? Or, do you help your clients get clear on who theirs is? There's a lot of info on this subject and only some of it is really useful in a strategic marketing engagement. In this episode, I talk about ways to create an ideal target market profile for your business and your clients'. I also talk about using ideal client profiles vs. "customer personas" an...
Apr 02, 2021•17 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. --- I have been building and designing websites for nearly two decades. Wild, right? Doesn't feel that long. I started out in the early 2000's as a hobby as a teenager. Eventually, I did it as a freelancer, turned the work into an agency, branched out into other areas of marketing along the way, and some time later became a marketing advisor. If I had to go back to my roots and sell web design services, I'd cons...
Mar 29, 2021•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Here's a great follow-up question in the thread, Selling transformation vs. selling your time , by Ant Pugh: Just going back to your comment about a phased approach to transitioning from tactical work to selling advice. In this excellent blog post you talk about the conflict of interest between the same person doing the tactical and strategy work. Do you believe that it's just unfortunately what needs to happen ...
Mar 26, 2021•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Most of my clients these days are turning into long-term clients, ranging from 1 to 4+ years working together so far. Which is great! But with that, I get a slight background concern that they could all "ripen" (like a fruit) at the same time and fall off the tree leaving my business cut in half. I also know that a business needs turnover in order to remain fresh, just like anything else in life. One of the thin...
Mar 24, 2021•8 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Here's a great question from Michelle that came in earlier in the week: Hi - I'm curious where or what resources do you go to for ongoing education or certifications for marketing? There are lots of ways to keep learning as you go along in your business. The big ones, of course are: Books Independent courses Certifications Traditional Education Coaching As a marketing consultant, there are at least two areas you...
Mar 19, 2021•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. When it comes to value, there are two ways to look at things: The value of the expertise you have/bring to the table The lifetime business value of the outcomes you create In this episode, I break both of these down in an effort to help you understand the value at the table and also to keep it in mind when pricing your services. The value of your work is not just the outcomes you deliver today, but the trajector...
Mar 10, 2021•8 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Have you ever considered writing a daily blog? In this episode, I break down some of the main reasons why I do it (and have done for 120 days in a row so far on kevin.me) and why you might consider doing so, too. Some of the main reasons include: Clarifying your ideas to make them better Creating a body of work that becomes interconnected on your blog Building credibility by sharing your expertise Increasing sur...
Mar 08, 2021•11 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. What do you do when your client needs results ASAP? Or when you have a prospect who has no momentum with their marketing program but expects big things in year one? In this episode, I talk about setting expectations around the speed marketing should work at. I talk about what clients to say no to and when to educate them on the big picture. I also touch on how your job is to build a marketing system for your cli...
Mar 05, 2021•7 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. If you're in a marketing strategy/advisory role, you'll inevitably be called to ask to help hire someone in-house, whether it be a marketing manager, content person, or something else. Here's my general approach for helping clients find the right candidate. Provide a sample job description Ideally, you have a template you can use. Otherwise, you can find a few similar job descriptions in the wild and send it to ...
Mar 03, 2021•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Last episode , I talked about how I changed the price and scope up and down for a few different clients recently. One thing I didn't get into is when to drop your price and when not to drop your price. There's a few situation when I might drop the price: When the scope changes significnatly When the value changes significantly (at which time I try to change scope, too) When you have a great client who has given ...
Feb 26, 2021•6 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. There comes a time when you need to change prices with your current clients. For me, it happens a lot when I work with them for a long time. The value changes over time. And that's the key part here: value . In most cases, I find new ways to create value instead of reducing my rates. I ask questions about goals and needs. But in many cases still, the value decreases once I get all the hard parts of the systems a...
Feb 24, 2021•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Are you fully booked? When it happens, what do you do? Do you refer work away or put clients on a waiting list? Mark had a great question last week: Any advice on managing prospects when you're at full capacity? What's a good strategy to keep a customer in your pipeline. Ideally, they're willing to wait until you can take them on. The answer is bigger than simply having a waiting list or not. In this episode, I ...
Feb 22, 2021•10 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Do you find yourself selling the way you work instead of what the client gets at the end of it? As marketers, we have a tendency to describe and sell our approach to solving client challenges, not necessarily the systems they'll use to run things later on. And as important as that I, most people care less about how you approach your work and more about how their marketing program will be different after you're g...
Feb 16, 2021•7 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Here's a great topic for today's podcast episode from Mark Evans in the Submit a Question channel: I just signed a new client and have an interesting problem. It only has one customer, which has been been a customer for 13 years. Any thoughts on how to get insight into the software's value, etc. with such a small sample size? In this episode, I cover ideas for figuring out the value proposition of the business b...
Feb 12, 2021•11 min•Transcript available on Metacast I was speaking with a coaching client today about creating a list of offerings that make it easy for all opportunities to fall into one predefined offer. It's basically a reverse-product ladder. Instead of people ascending the ladder, they can jump in the middle and even descend over time. In this episode, I break down the "coinsorter" list I recommend for marketing consultants, including: Fractional CMO Advisory Coaching Group Programs Fixed-Scope Engagements (audits, strategy, roadmaps, worksh...
Feb 10, 2021•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Welcome to the 100th episode of the Mindshare Mentorship podcast. In very meta fashion, I want to share an idea originally coined by Josh Spector , a friend who helps creators create, promote, and profit from their creations. He wrote an article back in 2018 called Only Do It If You're Willing To Do It 100 Times . In this episode, I break down his idea and encourage you to take his advice when venturing into a n...
Feb 08, 2021•9 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. This episode is in response to the story shared by Michel Fortin in the #general channel about how to handle difficult client situations, scope, and spotting red flags before they happen. If you're in business long enough, you'll eventually run into people who aren't happy about something. Sometimes it's about you, often it has very little to do with you in the first place. But regardless of the situation, it's ...
Feb 05, 2021•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Here's a good question from Mark about taking a one month vacation when you have a full roster of monthly retainer clients: For most of us, it's been all work, all the time since last March. My wife suggested that I take a month off (July) in the summer. It would be great to unplug. Any thoughts on how to do that when you have a roster of clients that you work with on a regular basis? The high level summary incl...
Feb 03, 2021•7 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the Mindshare community. Productized consulting is a great way to design your business in a way that is profitable and aligned with the effort you want to put into each engagement. It's also easier for your prospects to buy, which means it's easier for you to sell. What's not to love? In this episode, I break down the ways you can price your productized services in alignment with the value you create for your clients. We focus on four p...
Feb 01, 2021•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Click here to join the conversation on this episode in the community I had a great question come in via DM last night, so I'll keep it anonymous but I wanted to go deeper via audio to explain the nuances. Here's the question: I have Strategy (Audit + Roadmap) as a front offer, and then advisory later. Based on your experience, are you trying to close everyone for recurring advisory service right away? Just wondering how are you closing the deal for 6 months right away. In this episode, I ta...
Jan 27, 2021•11 min•Transcript available on Metacast One of the things I like to promote in my consulting services is creating consistent and predictable results for my clients. In order to do that, you need to create effective systems and processes based on good strategy. At the end of the day, people don't want to hire consultants on their team forever. Some will work with you for years—and those are great clients! But the majority want to hire you, get your knowledge, and run with a better marketing program after you're gone. In this episide, I...
Jan 26, 2021•8 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Join this episode's conversation here. According to the Pareto Principal: The Pareto principle states that for many outcomes roughly 80% of consequences come from 20% of the causes (the “vital few”). I recently noticed this pattern in my business. My coworking membership program was taking up more energy than it was producing in results. I decided to pivot on that to win back my time and energy. I also noticed that a marketing plan PDF template generated around 30% of subscribers, which is ...
Jan 22, 2021•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Join the conversation on this topic. This episode is related to the Daily Idea I posted today about designing your business. We're still in January of 2021, which means you might be still in business planning mode. A good time for this topic. This episode is all about the topic of designing your business in a way that adds the most value without taking up all of your personal time. All it takes is a little business design and belief you can do more than you think. Give it a listen. —kevin...
Jan 21, 2021•8 min•Transcript available on Metacast > Join the conversation on this episode here. I was helping someone in the group win a proposal recently using the proposal template in the Templates section. I asked why it worked better than their old way of selling their services and got some interesting feedback. Here are a few lessons that stood out from the experience. People don't buy deliverables, they buy outcomes. People will only buy outcomes they want for the reasons they have. They only buy those outcomes when you re-articulate t...
Jan 18, 2021•11 min•Transcript available on Metacast >> Join the conversation for this episode in the Mindshare community We live on Zoom calls and webinars now—mostly from our home office. That's the reality of most marketing professionals today. And it looks like 2021 won't be much different. And with that, I want to share an idea with you to keep it front of mind: people will judge you based on your "Zoom" appearance. That includes your lighting, background, sound quality, video resolution, internet speed, and a whole lot more. Ultimately...
Jan 16, 2021•8 min•Transcript available on Metacast When creating a productized services offering, you have two choices: Sell just one signature offering Create a service ladder with ascending options I prefer the latter because I serve a range of clients who need different things. But whatever you choose, this topic will be for you. When creating a high-end productized service, there are a few things to keep in mind, including: Why the scope and price of your services should be based on the value you provide Why it should be pretty obvious to yo...
Jan 14, 2021•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
