Overview of Membership Benefits

Members receive:

  • free webpage and hosting you can use as your consulting site (or to add to your existing site)
  • occasional online newsletters from us (zines) with tips and ideas
  • occasional zines you can send to clients
  • documentation for your practice, like contracts and forms
  • test telemarketing for you in some circumstances
  • brochure outline
  • simple logo design
  • group health insurance - coming
  • annual convention - coming
  • seminars on building your consulting practice - coming
  • discussion/blog area to ask and answer questions, post brief ideas, and get acquainted
  • recommended readings
  • books available (for purchase, resale, and as premiums)
  • marketing material (e.g. mailing lists of prospects, at cost , by industry code, zip code, etc.)
  • other items as you suggest/request them

To get the most out of your membership, we hope you will contribute occasional items like the above – forms, white papers, questions, etc. – that can be posted on our site. We'd also like to exchange links with you to bring more visibility to all our sites.

Purchase a yearly subscription for $150 to join the Professional Consultants Association (PCA) and obtain access to the full website for a full year. Please feel free to contact us with any preliminary comments or suggestions. Memberships are not currently available before the official launch of the PCA, currently scheduled for September 30, 2010.

 

Details of Membership Benefits

  • Webpage and hosting you can use as your consulting site (or to add to your existing site).
    Yes, this is a huge benefit. We provide you with a URL like YourName.ConsultingCentralUSA.com. We provide hosting. We provide a premade webpage that you can easily add to and edit. (You'll want to add your bio, articles, client lists, etc.) It will contain resources for your clients, like the books listed on this site, articles, and newsletters. Many firms charge hundreds of dollars a month for a service like this.
  • Cross Referrals: As a network of consultants, we can be valuable to you in two directions. People in the Association who need help with a client in your area can post their needs and hire you as a subcontractor or associate. And you can post requests for help from others. For instance, if you want to bid on a job that is too big for you, or where you lack a particular expertise, you may be able to find help from other members. You'll be able to use your contacts here to look – and be – bigger for bigger jobs. Because successful consultants are careful about who they work with, we are not suggesting that simply responding to a post for “help wanted” will get you work. It will be your participation in discussion groups, and answering posts for information, that will allow people to get to know you and judge your competence. This is a benefit of you contributing articles and information for others.
  • Marketing Support
    • Mailing lists of prospects, at cost , by industry code, zip code, etc. anywhere in the country. For instance, we can rent postal addresses or email by occupation, address, industry, and so on. On average, names cost 10-15 cents for postal addresses and more for emails (because they deliver them for you.
    • Draft outline of a three-panel brochure (coming). A fill-in-the blanks, simple brochure with some sample copy you can use or modify. This can cost hundred from a designer.
    • Postcards (coming). For some purposes, postcards can be very cost effective.
    • Business cards. (A simple design suggestion to get you started.)
    • Draft sales letters to prospect for clients. (Two of these letters cost thousands from profesional copy writers.)
    • Draft phone scripts.
    • Logo design. (Can cost you $500 or more from a designer.)
  • Occasional online newsletters from us (zines) with tips and ideas.
  • Occasional zines you can send to clients.
    This will include content you can edit or select from. This is a key tool to keep in touch with prospects, clients, and referral sources. And it is something to offer people free when you meet them that encourages them to give you their contact information. Depending on your area of expertise, you might write a general note at the beginning and select one or more brief articles from us to fill out a short newsletter.
  • Documents for your practice, like contracts and forms.
    •  We have a three-page contract that has been written by two lawyers at a cost of over $1000.
    • We have a sample “mini survey” to collect testimonials and get in touch with clients and past clients.
    • Where do your clients come from worksheet
    • We have two sample needs analyses. (We could use better examples of needs analyses and will credit you.)
  • Consultants' Success Test
  • Sample telemarketing script. Some test telemarketing can be arranged to set appointments for you.
  • We will develop other forms as requested or people submit them.