There are many business consultants. Whether you have a large or small-medium-sized business, hiring a consultant can help you increase your profit margins, get the best leadership training, and level up your business.
Bill Smith of Double Iron Consulting focuses on helping small and family businesses because of his experience with his own family business, Royal Cup Coffee.
Double Iron Consulting is unique in this manner. Their boutique-style consulting firm focuses on one-on-one consulting to better help individuals and families with succession planning, leadership transition, and more.
The most in-demand consultants are financial and IT consultants. About 40% of small-to-medium sized businesses (SMEs) have hired an IT consultant. About 25% of SMEs plan to hire a financial consultant. SMEs are also hiring legal, marketing, and strategy consultants.
Financial consultants help small businesses navigate through tough economic times. Legal consultants provide much-needed legal expertise. To facilitate business growth, it is essential to involve a strategy consultant.
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Is It Time to Hire a Consultant?
The decision on whether or not to hire a consultant is one that a small business owner will need to make. An SME will sometimes require expertise that cannot be found in-house to help solve complex problems related to finances, technology, legal issues, and business strategy. They will have to involve consultants.
Consultants will bring in outside perspective and a fresh point of view, and objectivity to a business. An outsider will see things from a different perspective; they will offer unique insights that are not available in-house.
A consultant will help a business keep up with market trends. They will advise on the trends that best suit a business’s needs.
IT Consultants Are the Top Choice for SMEs in 2022.
Over 39% of small businesses have already hired a tech consultant, and about one-third have plans to hire one. The top choice among small businesses seeking consultants in 2022 is IT, consultants.
According to Statista, many small businesses show significant improvement when assisted with IT consulting. Hiring a tech consultant will revamp the IT strategy and make a business realize its true potential. Tech consultants can be hired to deal with specific business problems.
IT consultants provide small businesses with cybersecurity solutions and help implement new technologies. They facilitate migration to new digital platforms or technologies.
An IT consultant will assist with completing critical projects that can unnecessarily burden the IT staff. Working with an IT consultant is more cost-effective for a single project than hiring a new team member. The business will benefit from the expertise and support offered by the consultant.
A tech consultant will revitalize the organization’s IT system. They will audit the system and identify areas that need improvement.
They will offer support in various areas, including cybersecurity, cloud platforms, software development, website design, SQL support, and compliance.
1 in 4 Small Businesses Plans to Hire a Financial Consultant
In 2020, one-third of small businesses hired a financial consultant, while 25% planned to hire a financial consultant.
The Covid-19 pandemic adversely affected SMEs. According to a 2020 Yelp report, about 100,000 small businesses closed during the earlier months of the pandemic.
Financial consulting services have helped businesses to find solutions for pandemic-related financial challenges.
A financial consultant will create a long-term sustainable financial plan for a small enterprise. They will help solve specific accounting and financial challenges that in-house expertise cannot solve.
Financial consultants will also assist with taxes, federal audits, identifying inefficiencies, balancing budgets, and finding opportunities for financial assistance. A small business may hire a financial consultant to make accounting processes more efficient and improve profit margins.
Hiring a Marketing Consultant
Marketing consulting encompasses digital marketing, print marketing, branding, and public relations.
A small business owner can hire a marketing consultant with expertise in social media marketing to help launch a new Facebook page or advertising campaign. Another business might require a specialist who will help with branding.
Marketing consultants offer expert advice on branding, advertising, public relations, social media campaigns, SEO strategy, and web design. They can undertake branding to increase sales and facilitate customer retention.
With a marketing consultant, business owners will obtain fresh perspectives. A new perspective can unearth opportunities and expose flaws. The consultant will also offer objective feedback and insights.
It can take years to understand the intricacies of a particular digital channel. Most small business owners can only spare so much time.
Hiring a marketing consultant gives an entrepreneur access to vast knowledge, experience, and expertise. A consultant can quickly tell what works and doesn’t based on their experience.
Small Businesses Hiring a Legal Consultant
Hiring full-time legal counsel is out of the question for a small enterprise; the business might need to afford the cost of in-house counsel.
For SMEs, hiring legal consultants is the best option; they offer advice on legal issues without the price tag of a lawyer on a retainer.
A legal consultant with specific expertise can be hired to address issues such as wrongful termination lawsuits, business incorporation, and workplace harassment.
Legal consulting will be helpful to an entrepreneur crafting nondisclosure agreements, dealing with complex patent law, or applying for a business license.
1 in 5 Small Businesses Has Hired a Strategy Consultant.
Where will a business be in the next five to ten years? What is needed to get there? What are the opportunities and threats that face the business? A strategy consultant will address these issues.
Investing in a strategy consultant is an important decision for the growth of a business. They will contribute fresh, new ideas for the formulation of long-term plans.
A strategy consultant can help an entrepreneur to understand and achieve a vision for their business. This is one of the primary roles a consultant like Bill Smith at Double Iron Consulting takes on.
A strategy consultant can be brought in to deal with essential decisions vital to the future of the business. They will ensure that every angle is taken into account. It is usually difficult for those close to the business to correctly assess what is going wrong.
A strategy consultant may also help develop an advisory board and sit on that board to help with many strategic and business decisions. Double Iron Consulting helps businesses develop these boards to help businesses make critical decisions.
Double Iron Consulting: Helping Businesses Reach the Next Level
Bill Smith is a strategy consultant who helps businesses achieve strategic growth by developing clear goals. William Smith bridges the gap between intentions and actions, creating a pathway to sustainable growth.
Through his firm Double Iron Consulting, Bill Smith helps small businesses with succession planning, leadership development, internal alignment, and strategic growth.
Bill has excellent experience running his own family’s business from 2014-2020 as the CEO of Royal Cup Coffee. After the company’s transition to non-family leadership, he established Double Iron Consulting to implement his expertise by helping other small family businesses grow.
The difference between Double Iron Consulting and other business consultants is the years of experience Bill has with family businesses. He focuses on one-on-one consulting, putting his experience to work to help businesses achieve long-term success.