New Consultant Needing Marketing Materials

[Thomas_Lafferty]

Afternoon all -
I'm throwing my hat in the ring as an Excel developer and consultant and am wondering if anyone can give me advice on putting together printed marketing materials. I'll put together a website at some point, but for now I'd like to visit businesses in person and drop off materials.

What sorts of problems do small to midsize businesses typically run into with Excel? What about user training? How might I market that?

Ideas?

Thanks in advance!
Tom

 

[Smitty]

Welcome to the Board!

Check out ElementK's ILT (Instructor Led Training) series. It's pretty good, although it's targeted toward being able to pass a Microsoft certification vs. business in general.

As for the challenges business' face with Excel, you name it. I'd probably start by targeting a business with which you're intimately familiar and go from there.

Good luck!

 

[SydneyGeek]

Adding to what Smitty said -

If you have worked in a particular business sector and have contacts there, build something and take it to those contacts. Even just arrange to meet with them, one on one, over coffee or lunch, and get ideas on what bits of their working day cause them hassles. Then build a couple of working models for the simpler stuff, take them in, and see if you get their interest. Go from there to try and quote for some bigger stuff.

In consulting you are mostly selling yourself. If they don't like you, you won't get to talk about the product.

Denis