The single biggest mistake you make when writing proposals and how to overcome it

On the surface proposals seem pretty straight forward to write. All you have to do is send a few emails. Gather a few tasks that the prospect wants done, put a dollar value on those tasks and let the prospect know what that dollar value is.

This fantasy...

How Studying Your Competition Could Lead to More Sales

In today’s crowded market, it’s easy to see your competitors as, well, competition. When we think of it in terms like this, an opposing view surfaces almost instantly—the notion that only one person or company can be victorious, while someone else...

Best Practices for Improving Communication With a Prospect

Meeting a new prospect for your business is often compared to going on a first date. After all, you’re both trying to learn more about each other and neither one of you is really sure where the relationship will go. You may have your next customer...

5 Things you need to discuss before writing a proposal

The single biggest mistake consultants make in writing proposals is rushing to get them to prospects. We rush because we all have a some deep seated fear that if we don’t get the prospect a proposal fast they’re going to find someone else and of course...

How to Turn a Potential Prospect into a High Quality Lead

It feels like a dream when you get invited to a networking event and realize that everyone in the room could use the type of product or service you’re offering. You’re giddy at the prospect of closing each deal because your help is so obviously needed...

Tips for Collaborating Effectively (and Remotely) with Your Team

Part of working on a project with a team means constantly checking in with everyone for status updates. Even though you’re on track to complete your leg of the project, you get dragged into long team meetings or discussions that may not pertain to...

4 Things good sales proposals do

The only goal of a proposal is to persuade your prospect to do business with you. If it fails in that task then by definition it was a bad proposal. But unless you know what a good proposal looks like, all you can do is assume that your proposal must...

3 Tips for Landing Those Seemingly Elusive Bigger Clients

If you’re still waiting to catch big fish clients, you’ve probably been settling for small time guppies in the meantime. Sure, these small clients are necessary in the early stages of your business—they’re paying customers after all, and they’re at...

How to Strengthen Your Relationships with Clients by Delivering Them Results

Although it can be tempting to say “yes” to every client request, it’s not always a smart move. After all, your agency needs to stay in business and you can’t afford to give away the house in the name of customer service.

Now, don’t get me wrong;...

What Services are Best Offered on a Recurring Basis?

For agencies and freelancers, offering retainer services is the way to go. Unlike one-off projects, you’ll have a consistent workload, and more importantly, consistent revenue. It’s this steady stream of income that makes running a design business...