Get Big Quick!!

Starting a consulting company, or any company, with the goal to be really big is extremely hard.

Being BIG is underrated, particularly today with the fleet of self help gurus telling you that you can fly solo and make it. But when you are big, it changes everything.

Clients leave their doors ajar for you, initial contact is often them pulling you rather than you pushing them, and passive revenues beat chasing the next contract any day.

BIG doesn't mean numerous, or next door to Google, it means BIG.

Seth Godin is BIG. His books fly of the shelves, his speeches gov viral, and his blog posts are daily fixes of alternative perspectives - often with some real cashable value associated with them. But he is one man...

On the other hand - Oracle is BIG too. And despite Larry Ellison's reputed manner - there are thousands of them!

How many times, every day, do clients say "Get SAP", "Get IBM" or "Get Seth Godin"?

How many times every day does Salesforce.com leverage it's existing user base, which pays repeat income, to sell even more services?

I work for a big company right now in the business development area, I have worked for small firms all my career prior to now. The difference is stark...

1. You have access to capital if you have a strong justification.

2. You have repeatable income streams.

3. Competitive advantage becomes almost unchallengeable. Particularly when it is incomparable depth and breadth.

4. Clients call to see us.

5. You can work on other stuff and in other areas.

6. Annual predictability beats the heck out of monthly uncertainty.

BIG is definitely being demonized of late, but if you want to get BIG - whatever that means to you, then here are a few things that I see as key steps.

1. Develop trust based assets. (BIG or small, there is just no comparison)

2. Develop subscription based services. Repeatable income for software programs, IP licensing, maintenance fees, subscription member sites etcetera.

3. Develop sale-able IP. Books, presentations, documents, reports, videos, audio books, podcasts - whatever. Something that can be monetized because of the scarce advice and value it contains.

4. Use additional revenues to create foot holds in related but separate markets.

5. Measure and continually improve your repeat work ratios.

6. Become what you fear. What is it that you fear in your particular niche? How could somebody try to push you out of your present revenues streams? Be that...

BIG is underrated and demonized a heck of a lot. But BIG changes everything...

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