Your most important customer doesn’t care about the features and benefits of your service. It doesn’t matter how articulate you are about describing those features or how much you advertise them. They don’t care. How can I be so sure when I don’t even know what service you provide? Because I’m referring to executive decision makers; those people who make the ultimate call about whether to choose your service or not.
As we’ve been focused on scaling our company over the last two years, there have been a few moments that have keenly challenged and clarified my approach to leadership. Despite the professional services setting, in these challenging moments, I keep thinking back to my professional roots as a high school basketball and football coach. Market Eminence isn’t about being the loudest in the room; it’s about commanding more respect, earning higher trust, and building a permanent presence in your industry.
If your consulting firm, marketing agency, or IT services firm is struggling to generate leads and close deals, the problem isn’t your expertise. It’s your positioning.
Too many professional services firms start with their services rather than the problem they solve, target a broad audience, and lack a compelling value proposition. This weakens their ability to sell effectively and compete against larger firms.
In the heart of every entrepreneur lies the dream of freedom—the freedom to create, to lead, and ultimately, to transition on one’s own terms. This is the story of a software development firm’s founder, a visionary who, after years of dedication, found himself at a crossroads. His journey of exploration through Collective 54 unveiled not just options for his transition, but a deeper understanding of what each path entailed. Here, we delve into the eight avenues he considered, illuminating the complexity and potential of each.
AI won’t transform your firm. Your people will, but only if you give them the tools and expectation to use it every day. The biggest mistake firms make? Treating AI like another piece of soft-ware and keeping it locked away with a handful of ‘experts’ instead of embedding it into how everyone works. If that’s your strategy, you’re setting yourself up for failure.
Launching a rocket to the Moon and scaling a professional services firm to the top of its industry share similarities – both endeavors require immense effort, strategic planning, and overcoming significant challenges like gravity, drag, and heat generation. Traveling to the Moon parallels the stages of scaling a firm to the top:
In today’s noisy, competitive marketplace, building Market Eminence is essential for CEOs, founders, and senior leaders who want to stand out, earn respect, and lead with authority.
Market Eminence isn’t about being the loudest in the room; it’s about commanding more respect, earning higher trust, and building a permanent presence in your industry.
In the world of small service firms, forging strong, reliable relationships with clients is the cornerstone of business success. The bedrock of these relationships often lies in well-crafted client agreements. Such documents not only formalize engagements but also set clear expectations for both parties. However, while the allure of a comprehensive agreement might suggest a panacea for all client-related challenges, it’s essential to approach these documents with a balanced perspective. Agreements serve as a guide and a safeguard, but they cannot anticipate every possible outcome or conflict. They are tools to manage expectations and responsibilities, not a substitute for building trust and open communication with your clients.
In the competitive landscape of professional services founders are continually seeking strategies to enhance efficiency and drive growth. A critical aspect of this endeavor involves understanding and optimizing key sales metrics. This article is a bit different this time as I want to offer 10 metrics to think about and provide industry benchmarks, and actionable strategies.
Why Tracking Time Matters More Than You Think. I recently spoke with a buyer of professional service firms. I asked him: “What’s one thing you think sellers must have perfected for you to purchase them at a premium price?” He didn’t hesitate.
Ouch.
Frustrated and anxious, she asked me: what does it take?
Only four things, I told her. Do this and I guarantee it won’t happen next time.
