How to Use Branding to Drive Consulting Sales

"Why Buy the Cow When You Can Get the Milk for Free?" is a horrible mindset... when it comes to building your business Too many worry that sharing too much insight upfront will eliminate clients’ need to hire them. But, in reality, holding back does more harm than good. Here’s why giving value freely brings clients to you. Building Trust, Not Dependence Clients pay for more than knowledge; they want unique insights and tailored guidance. Sharing valuable information builds trust, not dependence. By freely offering actionable insights, you establish yourself as a knowledgeable and generous expert—qualities clients remember. Action Step: Share part of your process, like a checklist or framework that solves a specific problem. This builds initial trust and allows you to filter in for your ideal client. 1) Information Isn’t Implementation Clients don’t just want information—they want your expertise in applying it to their unique challenges. They seek transformation. Offering valuable information lets clients experience your approach while highlighting their missing personalized support. -> Action Step: Host a webinar on a common issue, then share case studies that showcase your hands-on impact. 2) Free Value Creates Bridges to Paid Services When clients experience your expertise they are more likely to seek your deeper guidance. Giving valuable insights for free builds familiarity with your methods, making the transition to paid services natural. -> Action Step: End each piece of content with a call to action—invite clients to connect or share a success story. 3) “Free” Expands Your Reach and Credibility Freely sharing expertise increases your visibility. As your content circulates, it introduces you to new clients. This isn’t lost revenue—it’s marketing. -> Action Step: Encourage sharing in your posts to boost reach and credibility. 4) The More You Give, the Stronger Your Brand “Why buy the cow” suggests that giving devalues your work. The opposite is true in consulting: the more you share, the more clients see you as a go-to expert. People remember the problem-solvers. -> Action Step: Consistently publish content that answers questions and offers solutions. In Consulting, Giving is Selling By freely offering value, you aren’t “giving away the milk”—you’re showing potential clients why you’re the right partner. Clients aren’t buying your information; they’re investing in your ability to deliver tailored solutions and guide them through challenges. Generosity is your best brand-building tool.

Brand inconsistency isn’t just a marketing issue. It’s a revenue issue. It slows down decisions and leaves the door wide open for your competitor to swoop in. Brand inconsistency doesn’t just confuse your customer. It kills your growth. 🔻  71% of companies say inconsistent branding causes customer confusion 🔻 That confusion leads to a 56% drop in brand recognition 🔻 And ultimately results in a 20% hit to overall business revenue When your brand shows up differently depending on who’s talking, buyers hesitate. Hesitation kills momentum. So your sales team is fighting uphill on every deal. Whether it’s your sales team, customer service, product engineers, or your dealers—if everyone’s telling a different story, you don’t have a brand. You have a logo. The multiple touchpoints customers can have with your company will work against you if everyone’s telling a different story. If you want a brand that actually builds trust and drives sales, Start here … 1. Audit Touchpoints from the Customer’s POV Scroll your website. Read through your brochures. Open your quotes. Watch your sales team pitch … Then ask yourself: Would a new customer immediately get what we do, how we help, and why they should trust us? If the answer isn’t a hard yes, it’s a hard no, and you’ve got work to do. 2. Turn Customer Conversations Into Brand Strategy Your frontline teams hear the truth every day—objections, frustrations, wins. Use those insights. They’re your best source for what your customer actually cares about. Build your brand around those patterns. 3. Build your brand on what you solve, not what you sell. Define the problems you solve, the results customers get in terms they actually use. Keep it short, clear, and repeatable. This is not the place for corporate jargon. If your customer wouldn’t say it, don’t write it. 4. Make Consistent Branding Everyone’s job Your brand is how your customer feels about your company, and that responsibility lies on everyone;s shoulders. Be relentless about consistency and train everyone to deliver the same message. If your internal teams aren’t aligned, neither is your external experience Confused customers don’t convert. Inconsistent brands don’t scale. And you can’t fake authenticity. If your team doesn’t understand the brand, neither will your customers. As we say around here … If you confuse them, you lose them.

When agencies and consultancies think about growth 📈, they often jump straight to lead generation. 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 🔬 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴! According to a study 🤓 by marketing effectiveness experts Les Binet and Peter Field with LinkedIn's B2B Institute, 𝗻𝗲𝗴𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲—especially in highly competitive fields like agencies and consulting, where many firms offer similar services. The authors explain that 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 ⚖️: 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴-𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁-𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀. While lead generation efforts can deliver quick wins, these effects fade fast without brand support. In contrast, 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀, creating lasting impacts that increase your chances of landing bigger deals over time. Binet and Field's research found that B2B marketing works best when companies 𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘅𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝟰𝟲% 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁 💰 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝟱𝟰% 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱-𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀. The report also emphasizes the importance of "mental availability," 🧠 —meaning how easily your brand comes to mind when clients are ready to buy. 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹-𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝗻𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝟯𝘅 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 than rational campaigns focused purely on product details or direct selling. Ultimately, agencies and consulting firms aiming for 6 and 7-figure opportunities must 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿 💭 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲. 𝗔 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰, 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁-𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 (𝗔𝗕𝗠) 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗶𝘀 🔑 𝗸𝗲𝘆. According to researchers Binet and Field, blending these two strategies drives more effective, profitable, and sustainable growth in B2B. The message is clear for agencies and consultancies wanting stronger new business results: 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱-𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵. That's how you 🏆 win bigger, better opportunities. ___ 📥 𝗘𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀? Join 40,000+ agency and consulting leaders getting smarter about business development—subscribe to my "𝘕𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘉𝘪𝘨 𝘞𝘪𝘯" newsletter. https://lnkd.in/gv2CvHNU