How do you create a steady flow of interested prospects for your consulting services? It’s not just about having an attractive offer - it’s about being in front of the right people before they’re ready to buy.
The first step is understanding what your ideal clients want. This seems obvious, but many consultancies make the mistake of focusing on what they think clients need, rather than asking clients directly what outcomes they really want to achieve. Remember the mantra: "People don't buy what they need; they buy what they want."
But knowing what they want is only part of the puzzle. You also need to know when they’ll be ready to invest. And a useful marketing heuristic to understand this is the 95:5 rule: up to 95% of people or firms are not in the market for many goods and services at any one time.
A good example of this is understanding Category Entry Points (CEPs), or the specific moments and triggers that move a prospect from passive interest to active demand. Here’s what that might look like for different types of consultancies:
Can you see how context and timing is everything?
The 95:5 rule is crucial for your go-to-market plan. It gives us a strange realization: Most of your marketing efforts will reach people who are not going to hire your consultancy anytime soon.
This also reveals how marketing works: it primarily functions by building relationships and strengthening your brand’s presence in your clients’ minds. Your goal is to build strong "memory links" with potential clients so that when the time is right, your name is the first they think of.
One argument against this approach is that technology now allows us to target only those ready to buy, using tools to track “intent signals” like:
The major problem with targeting the 5% already in the market is that, by the time you get the signal and try to engage, you’re too late.
People primarily rely on memory when making buying decisions. And when they do search, they strongly prefer brands they are familiar with. Familiarity is built over time through consistent messaging.
If you try to contact organizations only when they’re searching for solutions, your consultancy will be unknown to them. We know for a fact that lesser-known brands have lower consideration rates. If you’re not on their "mental shortlist" before they enter the market, you’ll be fighting an uphill battle against consultancies they already know, like, and trust.
Also, engaging with prospects while the're not in the market is how they prefer to hire consulting services. Most clients realize they're not able to understand problems and identify solutions by themselves. 71% of them wish that consultancies contacted them earlier in the problem journey.
So yes, reaching out to organizations already in buying mode can quickly generate clients. These prospects are motivated to make a change, and the process can move quickly.
But if that’s all you do, you’ll never build the widespread mental availability needed to become the go-to choice in your market. You’ll be competing with other consultancies for a small number of ready-to-buy clients, while more familiar brands have the upper hand.
To ensure you're top-of-mind when clients enter the market, there's no secret: You need consistent, valuable interactions with your audience. Provide content that educates, helps them understand hidden challenges or opportunities, and builds trust over time. Check in and touch base with key relationships at least every quarter. This creates the "memory links" that will activate when the right timing comes.
If you can do that across enough buyers, you will see a continuous influx of people interested in your service offers. More organizations will likely move into the market. And when they do, you will be the one they will think about first.
Prepare the ground for when clients are ready to act, and you won't need to push your services when they aren’t needed.
“Successful investors don’t try to ‘time the market.’ Successful marketers don’t try to ‘time the customer.’”
Peter Weinberg, Head of Development at the B2B Institute
According to research, up to 95% of your potential clients are not in the market for your consulting services at any one time. Your marketing strategy must focus on being memorable, so when they are ready, your consultancy is top of mind.
Source: John Dawes’ 95:5 Rule
Is your marketing strategy helping your prospective clients build "memory links" with your consultancy? If not, how can you create these links to be top-of-mind when the time comes for them to buy?