CONSULTANT : DON’T BE A KICKED TIRE

 CONSULTANT : DON’T BE A KICKED TIRE

Free consultations are commonplace these days. Not only does it allow the buyer to get to know you and your business, it allows you and your business to qualify the buyer.

As a business development and marketing consultant, and special event planner, I certainly recommend hosting a free consultation to be sure that the inquiry is a desirable one, and that you are a good fit for the job. Free consultations should be a meeting to discover why the client is looking for help, identify the areas in need that you can specifically improve, and show the prospect that you have the abilities to resolve their problems. Free consultations should not be a platform to give the client solutions to their problems - never ever give away your secrets (not a one!).

Prospects will ask pointed questions – and that’s OK. Instead of getting overly secretive, focus the discussion on your deep understanding of the prospects concerns, promote your process, and refer to some of your previous cases that were successful because of your value-add. Be comfortable knowing that you probably aren’t going to answer all of the client’s questions in detail. Starting off with the terms of the meeting will help manage a buyer’s expectations of what will be discussed.

Throughout my experience, I’ve met many consultants in business development, marketing, hospitality, special events and weddings, concierge services, creative industries, and then some, who are frustrated by their conversion from free consultations to paying business. They tend to turn inward, and become insecure in their abilities. This reaction is dangerous because it can cause one to underprice themselves or even quit their business altogether.

Instead of doubting yourself and your services, focus on developing your sales techniques.

A free consultation is informational, but make it also be your soft/hard sell. A consultant has to position themselves as an expert in their field to people seeking out help, so take carry that assertion through to your closing and do the “ask”. It is not pushy or awkward to find out when the client would like to get started. It’s a good thing if you tell them what your next step is upon taking on a new client. At the very least, make sure you are speaking with the decision maker, and if not, find out who that will be.

Remember, your main objective is to qualify the prospective customer and turn them into an active client ... and their main goal is to find the best person to hire. If you recognize that it is not a good fit, save both parties time by politely ending the consultation and then guide them to someone who is better suited to service their needs. They will appreciate your honesty and help; who knows, you may get a referral (or two) from them - it's happened to me.

About the Author: Kristin Kim (contact: Kristin@FleurIrisee.com) is the President and COO of Fleur Irisée: an exclusive consulting firm in Denver, CO and Boston, MA (headquarters). Fleur Irisée specializes in developing fully integrated turn-key solutions for your personal and professional needs. Our talents focus on strategic business development, special event management, wedding planning, and select concierge services. “Discrete + Experienced + Professional + Sophisticated” http://fleuririsee.com

Marketing Through Events

I'm featured as the Extraordinary Entrepreneur on One Million Entrepreneurs! Please visit the article and be sure to "Like" it. You can also read my Profile below:

MARKETING THROUGH EVENTS

Fleur Irisee is a consulting company that started off in business development for early-stage companies and has grown in a unique way – we now have an event management division. Though not always obvious, there is a strong synergy between marketing plans and event management, and through organizing social gatherings, corporate events and private parties, the demand grew and, in turn, grew the Company. - Kristin Kim

Go “all-in” when starting your business, but be sure not to take on more work than you can handle.

What do you love most about your business?
I love getting people what they want and seeing my added-value pay off. I have met so many energetic entrepreneurs, top-notch vendors and successful New Englanders who have great vision and just need help executing it. Seeing the final product is so rewarding and seeing the client happy is invigorating!

What advice can you share with aspiring entrepreneurs?
My advice is to go “all-in” when starting your business, but be sure not to take on more work than you can handle. I see a lot of self-starters over market themselves, over promise results, and under value their contracts. If you cannot handle the demand that your buzz generates, and deadlines are being missed, people will give you poor reviews and it is a quick start to a bad reputation. Also, if you do not price your work fairly (some simple competitive analysis can give you a good guideline) you may be sinking your own ship since you won’t be able to financially stay afloat as you gain traction.

Article Address: http://onemillionentrepreneurs.com/profiles/featured/1738/marketing-through-events.html

Haiku: Punchy

  HAIKU

( 5 - 7 - 5 )

Snap, snap. Pop, pop. Creeeak.
The branches in my brain stop.
Mystification.

Haiku

  HAIKU

( 5 - 7 - 5 )

Days seem so fragile
Funny, darkness widens eyes
Stop and look around

Minuet

MINUET

Life is like a minuet.
It should be danced upon the toes.
Occasional mistakes are made -
That's just the way it goes.

To complain is such a pain.
To swoon is as much a bore.
I like to teeter along the way
And laugh at my love of folklore.

Sure, it would be nice to be a princess.
I may never have another need,
But to be such royalty
Is just not in the cards for me.

I like my simple life.
I feel both pain and pleasure
And when I achieve anything
I think, the more accomplishments the merrier!

I love to dance.
For motion is a beautiful sight
Where light, air and body blend
To conjure up Life.

     - Kristin Kim Haynes

Echo

ECHO

The pitter patter in my brain
Is making a pattern; am I insane?
Around I go on a path quite deranged
I thought it was different, but it's actually the same.

I'm tangled in old habits,
Blind to my own ways
Myself I batter the more I tatter
In the breeze of pointing blame.

I thought I came.
I knew I came.
I should have came.
Time keeps track of the pain.

All the emotion that's stuck in my throat
Seems to come out when I'm alone
And no matter how much I choke
I can't seem to let go.

Caught in the throws of desperate control
I won't realize I know what I know.

     - Kristin Kim Haynes

And So

AND SO

I miss the way I lit up your face,
And the love apparent through your gaze.
There are times we went through that I couldn’t replace
And due to my weaknesses can’t dismiss as “just a phase”.

As giving as I am,
I am stubborn too.
So we are where we are
In lieu of how much I love you.

I wince at our state;
Of having to resort to desperate ways.

Our time together has been plentiful.
Our fights - tearfully unbearable.
Through it all, you remained dependable,
And more often than not, I stayed resentful.

I knew a time would come when you had enough of me,
Enough of this, enough of "we";
A final end of impossibilities.
We need to leave it be ...

     - Kristin Kim Haynes

Haiku: Beer

  HAIKU

( 5 – 7 – 5 )

Two rushing beer men
One large traffic jam in Boston
Who's a thirsty man?

YOU

YOU

I look around
How am I on the ground?
You pulled the rug out from under me.

As I spun down,
The veil was lifted
Your lies became illuminated with sound.

There was no trust.
There was no love.
Just empty words disguising lust.

I look around
How am I on the ground?
You pulled the rug out from under me.

Reality incessantly hits my chest.
I lay breathless,
Vulnerable and soaking wet.

I loved your body - your face.
The calm you instilled in me
Was like an immaculate grace.

Now, my dreams unraveled, my face disgraced.
How could your undying love
Freeze our palace.

I never knew what loss was until you put me in my place.
I never knew what hate was
Until “in the name of love” became debase.

I look around
How am I on the ground?
You pulled the rug right out from under me.

I love you so,
And you let me go.
Strange that this foreign place feels safe.

     - Kristin Kim Haynes

Giving

GIVING

What am I doing;
Pursuing a ruined opportunity?
Although there are powerful feelings you inspire in me
I'm acutely aware of what cannot be.

What I would give to be where we were when things went wrong;
So long did we hold on.
And so hot were the tears that fell from my eyes that I realized
I didn't know what it was to cry.
To feel my heart ache at the warmth of your embrace after my shallow tirades
And to swallow my guilt that coated my throat
My stomach tightened, and still my pride would not write a simple apology note.

These are all the things I wish I could change
Because my dreams are so sweet now, my fantasies so complete now
My core stabilized somehow, but now, I must let you go.
I must be the first one to fold.

All the sorrow I caused and anger I brought,
And heartache I consciously sought,
Is why I must suffer alone.

No more of your forgiveness will be accepted.
One final time you will be rejected,
And I will fade into a distant memory.

      - Kristin Kim Haynes

Better You Bleed

BETTER YOU BLEED

Better you bleed than me
Hard to imagine how far the ice runs deep
Leaving me cold and alone
Makes me tougher than you know
So I live in search of serenity
And can’t help sparking chaotic energy
Don’t know why I make my bed this way
Guess I want to stay awake

     - Kristin Kim Haynes

Shh, Winter's Brewing

SHH, WINTER'S BREWING

Gentle girl, I hold my breath just thinking about you
And wondering how many people love me.
Passing idle time with nonsense, reading, primping
Filling my environment with objects of distractions.
I should concentrate on my life and friends.

Gentle soul, who feels she can never be understood,
Has vanished without a trace.
All the anger and pain were taken, but left behind the unanswerable
And even prayers at sunrise will not share in its light.

And just what kind of unfairness are you imposing?
Selfishly consuming my breath in the presence of your absence
Time sliding by and reflecting the ever-early darkness around
Just waiting for all the leaves to finally fall from their tree.

Gentle child, eyes so deep, but filled with nothing.
What makes a hole hollow ...
Frozen in memory are details of your face,
And scars of dread tattoo our hearts
Knowing your person is now just a shell, homeless and cold.

Gentle life, a fragile wonder of the universe,
So hard to hold, yet unable to be ignored.
Breath can be just as painful as death.
Love. Love is what makes smiles on our face and tears stream down.
Love makes the cold something to look forward to, but without you ...
Life must go on in loving memory of you.

     - Kristin Kim Haynes