I am currently working as an ECommerce professor at a local college. I would like to spin off this experience and qualification to become a consultant for small and medium-sized businesses looking for an ECommerce strategy or other business services such as technical or business communication.
What do you feel would be the best way to capitalize on my current position in order to attain my goals?
Yours sincerely,
Simon Proops MBA

Simon:

In order to accomplish your goal, you need to establish credibility and visibility. In my opinion, a key component of your marketing campaign would involve public relations and media relations.

Set the stage by contacting business and technology reporters and editors in your region to let them know you're an authority on the subject of ecommerce and that you're available for interviews or just brief comments for future articles they might be planning (journalists are always looking for authoritative news sources). Also, if you can get interviewed on a couple radio programs or persuade an editor to let you write a monthly column, then, in effect, you'll have achieved instant credibility and visibility. Obviously, it's an ongoing process, and every strategy builds on all other facets of your marketing campaign.

Here's an idea: If you've observed trends in ecommerce that haven't been widely written about or discussed, you could get some (free) press coverage by issuing a news release to the media about the trend or even focusing on a plausible-sounding prediction.

Non-PR marketing techniques you might want to pursue include a yellow pages ad, targeted sales letters, telephone calls, and setting up meetings with CEOs, CIOs, and other executive-level people. It may also be to your advantage to contact procurement departments and see if they send out RFPs prior to hiring consultants. Getting on those mailing lists and responding with convincing proposals can be one of several effective approaches to establishing yourself as a working consultant.

Two final thoughts I'd like to pass along: 1)Read a book on starting a consulting business (I know of at least one, and there are probably several); and 2)Develop a detailed marketing plan and implementation schedule for making it happen!

Best of luck!

Regards,
R.J.
rj@prweb.com
Optimal Marketing
http://www.marketingsurvivalkit.com
"Free and cost-effective marketing tools for small businesses"

Thanks for your comments, R.J. I think you are spot on when you say it is important to raise my profile through the media, either by being interviewed or by writing articles. It is difficult to know where to start as there are so many topics now concerning ECommerce, especially after the highly-publicised dot boms.
One point you made is especially useful - to try and see trends that the mainstream media may have overlooked.
I see that many companies are adopting a 'wait and see' attitude towards ECommerce rather than being the early adopters. This may be because of immature technology but I suspect that it is mainly that the benefits of the Internet have not been explained sufficiently well to the decision makers.
That brings me to your last point about contacting CEOs and CIOs and engaging them in discussion, either over the phone or by email or regular mail. Where would I find such information on who to contact, and where? We have something called the Scotts Directory of manufacturing companies here in Canada but some of the information is woefully out of date.
Best wishes.
Simon Proops MBA

Hi Simon:

1) Have you asked a research librarian if there are other directories?

2) Are you allowed/able to contact past students who may be well placed in businesses and know about your expertise?

3) If you're allowed to bring in successful business owners/executives as class speakers, you can get exposure to them that way. After they speak to your class, you can approach them about being clients.

4) Are you allowed/able to help businesses as class projects? If so, you may gain these clients from project businesses after the project is over.

Dennis S. Vogel
thrivingbusiness@email.com
Here's how & why your business will thrive,
no matter who your competitors are.
http://wz.com/business/SmallBizThriving.html
http://www.thrivingbusiness.homestead.com

Hi Simon,

One way is to serve as a Board Member or advisor to a company. This adds credibility and gets your name into the business community as an expert.

I am working with a small public company that is about to raise capital to launch a traditional marketing campaign in conjunction with an Internet E-commerce business. They would likely be interested in bartering some equity and exposure for E-commerce advise.

If you have an interest in this type of arrangement please feel free to contact me at pespo10507@juno,com.

Thanks, Paul

Paul:
I hope you received my email. I think your idea of exchanging ECommerce consulting and brainstorming for some exposure and equity is a grand idea. I am always in favour of a barter economy!
I am trying to implement some of the other suggestions I received such as contacting CEO / CIO professionals in the area where I live. There is a website published by the Canadian government which lists indutries by catergory and companies within those categories along with some contact names and telephone numbers.
I am still a long way from establishing myself with the media, however. I was interviewed by the online content provider TechRepublic but they have gone through an ownership change and I hear very little from them at the current time.
Keep the good ideas coming and let's contact each other directly.
Yours sincerely,
Simon Proops

I didn't see this mentioned, so...

What about submitting some articles for e-zines? There are TONS of e-commerce e-zines out there for you to "speak" to or give min-presentations to in the form of articles...

I myself subscribe to a half dozen or so weekly e-zines of this nature...

You could write up a few articles to get started and submit them to different e-zines at different times (in a sort of round-robin), which will get your name out there - especially if your byline has a link to a site/page about you and the services you offer; sort of an online resume'...

Best Wishes,

Deanna Risch
Garden of Earthly Delights
http://embark.to/goed or
http://www.giftsolutions.shop