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| Preface | |
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| Why a new edition is needed now | |
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| The general economic atmosphere and its influence | |
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| New areas to be considered | |
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| The IRS versus the onsite contractor | |
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| The plight of today's retirees | |
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| The explosion of pertinent technology | |
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| The need for enhanced marketing | |
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| New information in this edition | |
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| Author note | |
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| Introduction | |
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| Increasing need for consultants | |
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| Do consultants have an identity crisis? | |
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| How consultants specialize | |
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| How definition relates to consulting (marketing) success | |
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| The more important view: That of the client | |
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| What Does (Should) a Consultant Do? | |
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| Computers and data processing | |
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| The aerospace industries | |
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| The consultant organization | |
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| The consultant company | |
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| Hybrids | |
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| The consultant as a self-employed independent | |
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| Suitable fields and services | |
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| Seizing Opportunity | |
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| Your consulting specialty versus your marketing needs | |
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| What does it take to be a consultant? | |
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| The skill of a consultant | |
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| The avenues of specialization | |
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| Consulting assignments evolve | |
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| Consulting as a Second Career | |
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| What is a "second career"? | |
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| Almost any skill/knowledge/experience can be the basis | |
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| Marketing--getting clients | |
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| What kinds of clients to pursue | |
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| Marketing your services | |
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| Plowing new fields | |
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| Consultants as temporaries | |
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| Finding assignments | |
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| Companies for seniors | |
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| Why Do So Many Consultants Fail? How to Succeed | |
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| The roots of failure | |
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| The common mistakes of neophyte consultants | |
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| The basic tradeoffs | |
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| How specialized should you be? | |
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| Specialize and diversify | |
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| Marketing | |
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| The ten laws of survival | |
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| The consultant's image | |
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| A Few Keys to Success | |
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| The art of listening | |
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| Deciding what business you are in | |
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| The key to the definition | |
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| The two basic sales situations | |
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| The independent consultant: Specialist or generalist? | |
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| Do's and don'ts, especially for the first year | |
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| Founding the Consulting Practice | |
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| If you had it to do over | |
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| General considerations such as licensing | |
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| The matter of a business name | |
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| What type of business organization should you use? | |
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| Do you need a lawyer? | |
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| Do you need an accountant? | |
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| Do you need a business plan? | |
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| Some general observations about business plans | |
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| Generalized outline | |
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| Finances, Taxes, and Related Problems | |
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| Using what your accountant tells you | |
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| The information you need | |
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| Some common mistakes | |
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| Some basic rules | |
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| Basic cost centers and cost definitions | |
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| Insurance | |
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| Taxes: Avoidance is legal | |
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| Marketing and Sales: Finding Leads and Closing Them | |
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| Success in marketing is always a tonic | |
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| What is marketing? | |
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| Discovering what clients wish to buy | |
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| "I know it when I see it" | |
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| Creating needs--FUDs | |
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| Face-to-face closing | |
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| Qualifying prospects | |
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| Releases, Brochures, and Other Materials | |
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| Marketing and messages | |
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| Releases and newsworthiness | |
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| Brochures as marketing tools | |
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| Other sales materials | |
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| A word on e-mails | |
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| The New Marketing | |
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| Recession or "adjustment" | |
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| The good news | |
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| What's wrong with the "old" marketing? | |
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| Is mass marketing dead? | |
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| Why consulting is not sold via mass marketing | |
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| The marketing database | |
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| Networking for clients | |
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| Miscellaneous marketing considerations | |
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| Brokers, job shops, subcontracts, and the IRS | |
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| Technical services firms | |
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| Marketing to the Public Sector: Federal, State, and Local Government | |
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| A brief glimpse of government markets | |
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| What governments buy | |
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| How governments buy | |
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| The procurement system | |
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| Market research | |
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| Subcontracting and other special marketing approaches | |
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| Forms | |
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| Proposal Writing: A Vital Art | |
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| The evolution of modern proposal practice | |
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| What proposals call for | |
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| Why proposals are requested | |
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| The elements of the RFP | |
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| The response | |
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| Kinds of information an RFP asks for | |
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| What is a proposal? | |
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| Proposal scenarios | |
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| Who must you sell? | |
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| Public- versus private-sector proposals | |
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| The evaluation system | |
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| The protest process | |
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| Sole-source procurement | |
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| Proposal formats and rationales | |
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| Format and general rationale | |
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| The necessary impact | |
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| Strategy and its evolution | |
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| Functional flowcharts | |
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| A few odds and ends | |
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| The Initial Meeting with the New Client or Prospect | |
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| Have a clear understanding from the beginning | |
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| Be a dignified professional--always | |
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| Sell without the hype | |
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| Selling is consulting | |
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| Pricing problems | |
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| Where to conduct initial meetings | |
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| Things to settle at the first meeting | |
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| Follow up | |
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| Negotiations, Fees, and Contracts | |
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| Fees, costs, and profits | |
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| Standard rates | |
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| Calculating overhead | |
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| What should your overhead rate be? | |
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| Private-sector parallels | |
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| Government contract negotiation | |
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| Private-sector contract forms | |
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| What is a contract? | |
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| Potential hazards | |
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| Alternatives to formal documents | |
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| The informal contract or letter of agreement | |
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| Annual retainers | |
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| Negotiating tips, tactics, and gambits | |
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| Consulting Processes and Procedures | |
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| The art of listening | |
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| The art of listening part 2 | |
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| Value of solution | |
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| Listening as a hired consultant | |
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| A basic approach to all analysis: Function | |
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| Final Reports, Presentations, and Other Products | |
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| Written reports: Products of the consulting project | |
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| Verbal reports and presentations | |
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| Other products | |
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| Finding a measuring stick | |
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| Fees and Collections | |
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| Cash flow is a problem for everyone | |
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| Warning flags | |
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| Credit card convenience--and inconvenience | |
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| Collections | |
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| Collecting from government clients | |
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| Skills You Need: Making Presentations | |
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| Consulting: Business or profession? | |
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| Public speaking | |
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| The notion of born speakers | |
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| Planning the presentation | |
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| A few presentation principles | |
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| Skills You Need: Writing | |
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| Writing skills for the consultant | |
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| Research and data gathering | |
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| The draft | |
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| Additional Profit Centers: Writing for Publication and Self-Publishing | |
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| Consulting means different things to different consultants | |
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| What are profit centers? | |
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| Why other profit centers? | |
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| The common denominator | |
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| Writing for profit | |
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| Publishing your own book | |
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| Marketing books | |
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| Other marketing means | |
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| Other publishing ventures | |
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| Additional Profit Centers: Seminars and Public Speaking | |
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| Speaking for profit | |
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| The public speaking industry | |
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| The seminar business | |
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| Marketing the seminar | |
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| Consulting and New Technologies | |
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| The new meaning of independent | |
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| Desktop computers | |
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| The most popular functions | |
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| Desktop publishing | |
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| Database and spreadsheet functions | |
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| Communications software | |
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| Graphics developments | |
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| Printers | |
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| Modems | |
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| Facsimile machines | |
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| Tape drives, copying to CDs, and backing up | |
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| The computer as a general aide | |
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| Business Ethics in Consulting | |
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| A standard of conduct | |
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| Conflicts of interest | |
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| Fees and related ethical considerations | |
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| Ethics and fees | |
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| A recommended code | |
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| The Reference File | |
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| Books on retirement and second careers | |
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| Books on writing and publishing | |
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| Books on public speaking | |
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| Other books of interest | |
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| Periodicals of direct interest | |
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| Wholesalers and distributors | |
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| People and organizations in public speaking | |
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| Convention managers and planners | |
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| Speakers associations | |
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| Mailing list brokers | |
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| A few tips on writing direct mail copy | |
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| Associations of consultants | |
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| Miscellaneous resources | |
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| Internet resources | |
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| A few seminar tips | |
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| Proposal do's and don'ts | |
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| Outline for the preparation of a business plan | |
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| Index | |