I know quite a few of our members work through Business Links, but I think there's a real opportunity here for independent Business Advisors to create their own relationships with the small business community and avoid all the bureacracy that goes with the BL approach. There are a lot of people currently thinking about starting up a business and they almost all need advice of some kind - and while BL is a useful source of basic advice they are very stretched. So how do you find the startups that will pay for and thrive on your advice and input?
These are just a few suggestions, feel free to add your own!
- Get to know your local accountants and solicitors - almost everyone knows they'll need an accountant when they start up so these can be a good source of client contacts
- Set up a local networking group - just invite a few contacts to meet for coffee at a local pub/hotel and get them to bring a Guest. Doesn't need to be a formal group but you may be surprised at how a group with the right atmosphere snowballs.
- Run a workshop or seminar on starting a business - don't make it free but don't expect to make a profit! The more people you can get to come along the more chance you have of making contact with some new clients. Publicise through networking groups, local paper, blogs websites/email
2 comments:
I agree with Gill that the overall size and dynamism of the small business market should be attractive but the challenge is overcoming the high levels of self-reliance developed by owner managers and their reluctance to pay a commercially viable fee for advice that may not show an immediate benefit.
In nearly 20 years of working with small businesses, I've found the way in is to package advice so it looks like a product that promises short term, low cost things. Then, as Gill suggested, get together with credible partners who also want to talk to this market (Accountants, Chamber of Commerce, Trade Groups, Banks) and to organise customer events with your partners. Getting three or four small businesses to try the service for nothing then endorse it helps to encourage others who pay.
The three things I've needed in developing this market are understanding what each potential customers actually wants,then persistence and old fashioned sales skills.
I agree with both David and Gill (a good start)! Business advisers have the same issues with time and money as most of their clients - and my experience of this is exactly what lead us to set up http://www.theadvisersedge.com. By providing things that advisers need such as email marketing and programme packages tailored for working with small businesses, we can help advisers optimise their time. And because these can now be delivered online on a SaaS (software as a service) basis it's possible to do this at a low enough cost to make sense in the small business arena.
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