Computer Consulting Business Planning: Your Expertise Can Be a Business

Transforming your information technology expertise into a successful and ongoing business can be a great way to make use of these skills and to take control of your financial destiny. It is such a common path that the membership group the Independent Computer Consultants Association (ICCA) exists to support the work of these small business owners and freelancers.

Choose Your Market

A first key step is to decide whether you will serve a business or consumer market. The choice influences who your competition will be (i.e. global IT consulting firms vs Best Buy’s Geek Squad), where and how you should be marketing, and in what areas you need to hone your expertise. You won’t find many computer consultants who try to work with both markets, simply because there are such different needs in each customer group that costs will rise and profit decrease as you try to serve both.

Use the Best, Cost-Saving IT You Can

An important method which should be both a money-saver and feather in your cap for marketing, is for you and your business to take advantage of the latest and best options in IT to make your work more efficient. For example, visits to clients sites will be necessary at times (to develop relationships, to see the hardware situation yourself, etc.) but often you should be making use of remote login systems to offer technical support and auditing of client computers. Logmein and Gotomypc are low-cost or free examples, and remote login should cut down on the extreme waste of travel expenses and time.

Another resource is the use of virtual offices and virtual receptionists. Rather than renting out a business office, you can make use of your own office, internet-ready cafes, or any location with a connection and cell phone signal. Virtual office services give you a business address, the potential to rent office or meeting space on an as-needed basis, and even locations in multiple cities to allow a traveling lifestyle. Virtual receptionists can give customers and potential customers calling in a better experience than speaking to voicemail, and at a much lower cost than a full-time, dedicated receptionist.