From time-to-time, you may need to find a consultant to help you with your business. Sometimes, those needs are high level, like setting strategies or marketing plans. And other times, those needs are more point solutions, like a pro in search engine optimization or product sourcing. Whatever your need may be, there is most likely a consultant out there that is immediately available to help you. The problem is finding them. This post will tell you how best to fill your consulting needs.

1. Be Clear on the Expertise You Are Looking For

Not all consultants are created equal. A business generalist will not have the depth of a domain expert, as an example. But on the flipside, maybe your business problems are so broad, that a jack-of-all-trades is well equipped to point you in the right direction to start, to then dig deeper with a different pro on that specific topic, once it is identified. And consultants that are well versed in solutions for enterprise scale companies, are most likely not the right consultants to help early stage startups, with much lower budgets. So, be very clear on exactly what is needed for your specific pain point and company size, and focus there during your consultant interview process.

2. Decide Length, Depth and Location of Engagement

Now you need to decide how long you think this consultant will be with you, and whether it is a full-time problem or a part-time problem. Some consultants prefer bigger, longer, full-time assignments. And other consultants prefer smaller, shorter, part-time assignments. So, depending on what your business need is, will dictate what type of consultant you will need, and more importantly, where to look for them. You will also need to decide if the work needs to be done on-site, in your office, or if the work can be done virtually from the consultant’s office. The advantage of virtual consultants: it opens up the world of potential talent to you, instead of simply finding someone willing to work in your home market. That said, some work simply needs to be done in the office working hand-in-hand with your team, for efficiency sake.

 

3. Leverage Your Networks

 

Like when hiring employees for your business, it is always best to start with someone you know and trust. If not for the work itself, for the introductions to potential consultants for you. So, maybe send an email to your fellow business colleagues or fellow CEO’s, asking if they have run into the same problem in the past, and if they are aware of any experts on that particular topic. Having that “stamp of approval” from someone you trust that has worked with the consultant in the past, should increase the odds of a successful outcome from the project.

 

4. Leverage Consulting Marketplaces

 

There are several websites out there that have built marketplaces to find consultants by topic, budget and location. Those include companies like Catalant (US focus), Graphite (US focus), Business Talent Group (US Focus), Talmix (EU focus) and Expert 360 (AU focus) where you can post your exact needs, and experts will bid their expertise and costs for you to choose from. LinkedIn also has a solution here called Pro Finder, but it is not as big as the other sites listed here, in terms of activity on that site. There are also sites like GLG and Coleman, where they have a network of thousands of specific domain experts, that you can get on the phone for an hour of their time, typically focused on enterprise scale companies. So, consider posting your needs on these sites and see how it goes.