So, you’re a savvy consultant. Maybe you work solo and oversee a handful of clients. Perhaps you’ve built a multi-person brain trust advising prestigious fortune 500 companies. Whatever your consulting background is, you're probably well-aware that using a sales CRM software to keep track of your client communications is a must. There's just one problem, you don’t know which one is exactly right for you and your consulting business.
You’ve tried sales software in the past that didn’t quite meet your expectations or required you to do more work, instead of less. Researching to find the best sales software for consultants can be headache-inducing, but we’ve cut through the bull crap to deliver seven hot tips to help you select and leverage your technology to be a professional sales all-star.
Do: With today's fast-paced nature, we all probably spend more time on our phones than on our computers. Think about it, there's a higher probability of your phone's data plan getting access to critical client communication and project progress on the fly versus you haphazardly finding a free WiFi connection to get your laptop online. When contracts and deals are on the line, you need a sales software that you can take along no matter where you go.
Bottom line: if you don’t want critical client communication and project scope to fall through the cracks, make sure you can access your sales software directly from your phone.
Do: The average professional leaks over $100k in billable time per year as shown by our "Time is Money" study. Meetings and emails suck the time out of a consultant’s billable work day, yet we often forget to track time for these routine tasks. Whether you’re billing for time spent in email or meetings, granular and automatic time tracking helps consultants get insight into how they spend their time as well as overall project, client, and service profitability. The good news is - we got you covered! All of Accelo’s products come with automatic time tracking.
Don't: The model of installing software is dead. Cumbersome software simply does not offer the appeal of truly cloud-based solutions. The benefits of cloud-based software are ongoing, and too long to list here. However, choosing a cloud-based professional services software allows you to access your data from any device, avoid any tedious installation process, and deliver value to your clients more efficiently.
Do: Let’s be honest, keeping track of client communication and email is a lot of work. Meeting your clients' expectations is arguably harder. Because consultants work on multiple projects for a myriad of clients, getting mixed up on a client name, deadline, or missing a key email, well, is almost inevitable.
Consultants need a sales software that they can use to pick up the slack and keep all mission-critical client details in one easy-to-use app. Wish there was a sales software that lets you focus on clients and projects without letting any detail (no matter how small) fall through the cracks? Thankfully, now, there is. Accelo Sales Solution automatically syncs with your inbox, smartphone and calendar to instantly give you complete client and project insight on any device.
Don't: It seems like everyone is selling client and project management software these days. You might even find completely free products that promise to deliver. Don’t be fooled, there’s a reason the free products are free. They simply don’t offer the same value as the higher priced market leaders. It might seem appealing to cut corners in order to spare yourself some short-term expenses, but it may ultimately hurt your business.
Do: Your time is money, but before you can turn your billable hours and expenses into a cool payday, you have to do one thing - invoice. Invoicing is traditionally a long, tedious process gathering all expenses from the dark corners of wallets, emails, and oh no, PayPal accounts. Not to mention, there's also the need to count up all those hours spent working hard for your clients.
Consultants need a sales software that can cut the administrative burden of invoices and deliver invoices to clients automatically. Accelo Sales Solution is engineered by former agency owners, consultants and professional services businesses, specifically to tackle the burden of regular invoicing. Accelo lets consultants cut 80% of the time they used to spend on invoicing, so that they can focus on more important things.
Do: Client projects tend to deviate a bit from the plan, to say the least. While client expectations are usually high (and occasionally unrealistic), project milestones and project scope need to be mapped out early on if possible.
Getting the contract and project approved is just the beginning. After you close the deal, the real work starts. Keeping the project in scope and keeping expenses under control is what can make or break a consultant’s return on their time. Accelo lets you keep client projects within the scope and even watch your projects progress in real time. Interactive Gantt charts, automatic time tracking, and easy team collaboration keeps projects on track with ease. See how Accelo projects can let you work smarter here.