Consultants often lose clients by waiting to start work. Instead, deliver something measurable in the first hour after signing. Quick wins build trust and set up a profitable long-term relationship.
Deliver value on hour number 1. I know a lot of people who are working in professional services, particularly around technology, and I have so often heard the story of the person who gets hired. The client says, hey, can you do this? You have 4 or 5 days and I'll get it done. And then the, the consultant says, oh, I've got 4 or 5 days. I'll start it on day number 4. And the client in the meantime is losing trust in the vendor that they'll actually get this job done. And then finally they get to day 3 and the client, and of course the vendor wasn't even thinking they're going to start it until a little later. And they, they fire the vendor because they don't believe the vendor is going to get the job done. Now, maybe the vendor was right, maybe the vendor was wrong, but either way, what we have is a lack of trust building. And the easiest, simplest way to build that trust is to do a bit of work at the very beginning, not just the first day, the first hour you sign the contract, an hour later, they're getting some results. They'll feel awesome. That will build trust and that will lead to a profitable engagement.
