Five-step plan for positioning a new consulting service.

• Position: PCPS Update

Expanding the type of services a firm offers can breed confusion and raise numerous questions about marketing, implementation, client needs, and a variety of other issues. Edi Osborne, CEO of Mentor Plus, was invited to the PCPS Executive Committee meeting in mid-September to discuss the topic "Deploying New Consulting Services: Challenges and Best Practices." Following is a summary of the key points covered during her presentation to the committee.

Osborne recommends developing a five-step plan to address the issues, goals, and opportunities associated with deploying a new consulting service. Beginning with the end in mind often helps to identify critical steps, challenges, and measurements for success during each step of the process.

Step one of the planning process is internal preparation. To sell a service to others, it must first be sold internally. Partners of the firm must support the idea in order to bring the concept to life. Almost as important is conducting a thorough assessment of the skills and competencies of your team, as well as current and potential clients' needs. Once support is established and a need for the service is identified, there are tactical considerations, such as developing a team, setting up performance measures, allocating necessary resources and developing consulting deliverables. Internal communication should be part of the promotional plan as well--employees should have a clear understanding of changes taking place at the firm and be aware of opportunities to expand business.

After the foundation is laid, planning can then begin for internal and external service promotion. Market research is key to understanding your audiences, competitors, and status in the industry or service area. For instance, a firm can build credibility in a new line of business by identifying outside positioning opportunities, such as speaking engagements, placing timely articles in relevant publications, and developing collateral materials. Pricing strategies should be evaluated to help determine service packages, client billing, and guarantees.

The third part of the planning process is selling the engagement...