Am I A Consultant?

July 23, 2008 — Matt— 3 comments

I find that I do my best work when I’m learning and growing professionally. Yet working as an interface designer for over three years left me feeling just a bit burned-out on solving very similar problems — the 316th pixel-perfect, drop-shadowed “Sign Up” button is a lot less interesting to design than the first. Opening up to a broader set of client work, with my design studio, has already exposed me to a much larger set of new, challenging problems.

One thing I’ve found most surprising, so far, is the amount of consulting I do. And, I’m not really comfortable with that term — I’ve never really understood exactly what consultants provide in terms of a deliverable (specs, documentation, a product?). Yet, taking the term to mean “a person who provides expert advice, professionally,” is a pretty good description of a huge part of my work. I feel that, in many ways, my advice and project leadership is the most valuable part of what I offer.

Great at Saying No

Broadly speaking, I help my clients best understand how to communicate their services or products on the web. Specifically, I lead them to the simplest, most cost-effective solution possible. I “say no” to as many technical and organizational requirements as I can — I shape big ideas into small, focused projects that launch quickly and on a modest budget. What’s interesting is that it’s a service that I feel the web in general needs quite a bit more of.

As users, we’re barraged daily by needlessly complex websites and applications — sites that try to do too much and please far too many. Tighter focus in the planning stages, I think, can get many of these projects started with the right goals, and lead to great sites that are much more enjoyable to use and better solutions for both the clients and their users.

Can I sell this?

I find consulting incredibly rewarding and exciting work. I like it so much that I’m going to offer “project consulting,” very soon, as a core service to clients — those who I may not even end up working with on the design or production aspects of their project. Right now, I have no idea if there’s a client base I can reach with this service, but I’m going to try.

My feeling is this — there are thousands of businesses out there, large and small, that don’t know exactly where to start on the web, or have a difficult time releasing high quality, focused websites and applications. I’d love to find those clients, and offer my help, even if I’m not able to work directly on the design and implementation.

I’m currently re-working my studio’s site, re-hauling my pitch, and refining my service offerings. I’ll be adding this service to the new site, so check back in a few weeks.

In the meantime, anyone reading this blog think there’s a market for this service?

Both comments and trackbacks are currently closed.

3 Comments

  1. July 23, 2008 5:49 pm
    Permalink

    I would think those who need the service most, aren’t willing to admit it to themselves. The entire newspaper industry seems to be suffering from the problems you mentioned above. Besides, when they do bring in “experts”, I’m sure they spend much more than you would charge in good conscious.

  2. July 24, 2008 11:31 am
    Permalink

    My first two jobs were at non-profits, and both organizations hired general consultants to launch major web projects. (The second of those is how I got my entry into web development. They wanted an on-staff fellow to watch after the consultant, and I was the only mid-twenties guy within arm’s reach.)

    Anyway, there’s definitely a place for it – especially if you do it well. And I think being able to express how the whole “less-is-more” philosophy adds value (and saves money) for the client will be crucial. It’s a tricky bit to message.

    Good luck with this! And keep us all updated on how it pans out.

  3. July 25, 2008 11:29 am
    Permalink

    @Matt & Justin,

    I think you’re both right, that the issue is very much in how I present/pitch the service to clients. “Advice” is well and good (everyone has an opinion), but it’s always stronger if it’s a clearly actionable plan and easy for clients to see the value you’re delivering.

    For me, I think the biggest challenge is how to anchor the consulting to a deliverable. Ideally, this will be something lightweight and clear (not a 50+ technical document) that outlines problems and solutions.


Best of Brown


Introducing WhichDigi.com

Just a formal note about a site I launched a bit ago: WhichDigi? — http://whichdigi.com. It’s just a simple microsite to help people decide which type of entry-level camera to purchase.
The concept was to cut through the overloading of technical information surrounding digital cameras, with some simple and direct advice. Just spend a few […]

Been Busy

When it rains it pours right? I’ve been pretty busy this year. More than just busy though, I’ve been extremely lucky to work on some amazing projects with some wonderful teams and smart people.
This is what working as an independent, design agency is all about: good work, good people.

This week, three projects that I lead […]

Growing Pains: From Freelance to Agency

Refreshed
This is embarrassingly tardy, but I wanted to say thanks to all those attended my Seattle Refresh presentation a few weeks ago. My presentation was largely a follow up to a previous Refresh talk I gave, about my first few months of freelancing.
This time, I talked about my recent switch from strictly freelancing to a more […]

Work with me!

I run thingsthatarebrown — a smart, nimble web design studio. We make websites that help your business grow.
Let's talk.