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What do you need to know before choosing a marketing consultant?
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5 Answers
I totally agree, Michael. We know from 13 years of experience matching marketing consultants with demanding high-tech clients, that both sides may not fully disclose their circumstances. Consultants desperate for a gig will often exaggerate or misrepresent their relevant experience. And clients, eager to get help, will often throw an outside expert into an impossible project with no resources or guidance.
So before choosing any marketing consultant, clients need to clearly outline their objectives with desired results and timeline, identify a single client manager and multiple subject matter resources, and verify budget...all BEFORE interviewing candidates.
Marketing consultants should be able to provide numerous examples of similar successful projects, as well as contact info for previous managers and clients where the work was done. Sample PDFs may look good but shed no light on the process by which the article or brochure was achieved. It's critical you find some who can speak to the consultant's subject matter expertise, flexibility, tenacity and ability to consistently exceed client expectations.
What is the marketing consultant going to do for you? That will create more relevant answers for you.
You need to figure out what aspect of marketing you want to focus in. For example, a Brand marketer is different from a search engine marketer or a social media marketer...
They should be or have been a self-feeder at some point in their lives.
In a sense, this is a summary of the worthy responses from Messrs. Rosenberg, Mangalam and Provost, with perhaps a bit more tightly "focused" spin. If I could ask every candidate marketing consultant one question, it would probably be this: How much credible, verifiable evidence can you show me of positive results you've delivered to companies similar to mine that hired you to solve challenges similar to mine? And remember, for every answer you get, "trust, but verify!"
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