Consulting Services for Small Business

 When an entrepreneur is starting a business he or she is faced with the requirement of several functions in which they might not be experts. They may know, for example, all there is to know about wholesale distribution but have no idea how to build a website.

Since most companies are started with very limited funds, many entrepreneurs are reluctant to set money aside to pay for consulting services to fill in their knowledge gaps. For example, many create a website from the many templates available. Some are even free.

Where the company website is concerned I feel that the use of existing templates is a false economy. The website functions as an online calling card and needs to put your best foot forward. The amount of time required for the entrepreneur to become proficient enough to develop a quality website takes time away from tending to functions relating to product knowledge, operations and management.

Websites, to be noticed, must go through the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) process. This again is a very specialized function that is often beyond the capability of the business owner.

There are functions which may be grouped under the heading Entrepreneurship Knowledge Services that will present the company at its best. In addition to the website and SEO examples these can include Business Strategy Planning and Business Valuation Services.

My recent experience is that the cost of business services for the self-employed is going down. This is simply my experience, and yours can be vastly different, but I got a substantial amount of website design for about $4,000 and SEO for about $2,000.

Your reaction may be that adding $6,000 to your startup expenses is prohibitive, but by farming this out the entrepreneur should find a quicker path to profitability.

John B. Vinturella, Ph.D. has almost 40 years’ experience as a management and strategic consultant, entrepreneur, and college professor. He is a principal in the business opportunity site jbv.com and its associated blog. John is co-author of “Raising Entrepreneurial Capital, now in its second edition. He recently released his latest book, “8 Steps to Starting a Business,” available on Amazon.