Be an Internet Business Consultant!

by Kevin Bramlett

As the numbers of people and businesses moving Online grow incomprehensibly large, more and more entrepreneurial minded people are turning to the Web to carve out a career or profession. This is a good idea; the Internet is a positively astounding breeding ground for new ideas, new service businesses, and an excellent way to test business models before committing to them with full resources.

By far, it seems the largest segment of new Internet workers are what I call generic Internet consultants. What I mean by this is that they are people with better than average understanding of html, or e-mail, or browsers. They consult with friends and small businesses on a wide range of garden variety Internet 'how-to' subjects, with typically small to moderate degrees of success (in terms of business revenues).

Unless you're a very gifted designer or programmer, chances are you are finding it hard to compete with the massive influx of new Digitally Literate who are marketing their basic Web services Online. With tools like Microsoft FrontPage, virtually anyone can be a web developer (maybe not an effective one, but a web developer none the less). How can you differentiate yourself from the crowd with your clients, and turn your Internet knowledge into a potentially very rewarding career? Easy - by focusing your attention on Internet BUSINESS Consulting.

While everyone is quickly learning the basic tools and techniques that are used on the Internet, a relatively small number of people are mastering the knowledge that is necessary to propel an Online business venture to success. By arming yourself with some specialized learning in this area, you can greatly increase your relative worth as an Internet consultant. Even a modest success in the Internet Business world today will ensure a steady stream of new customers, as most Online businesses are struggling to find a profitable stance to take in the swift currents in CyberSpace.

Here are some key areas to concentrate your efforts on:

• Understand what Business Models are working Online, and how they are different from their real world counterparts. These include Product Sales, Service Sales, Publishing, Web Consulting, and a few others. Selling a product or service Online is usually very different from selling it Offline. Recognizing this is the first step to creating a valuable service you can market to others - or use to galvanize your own virtual sales!
• Perceive and make use of the differences in Online Advertising Media versus Offline Advertising Media. The Net is interactive, space is relatively dirt cheap, and Image is not the primary conveyor of Value (Information is). Careful examination of these types of distinctions will enable you to provide effective consultation to your business clients.
• Networking is a great model for computers, and what do you know, it's a great model for business consulting too! Don't try and be all things to all people. Develop your knowledge in a highly specialized field, and simultaneously develop an excellent database of contacts to do all the things you don't do: people who are graphics designers, and programmers, and html coders, and a dozen other Internet related fields. Having access to a support network means you never have to turn down a job - you simply outsource it. Even if you are unable to take a markup out of the middle (unlikely, but it happens), you still generate good will by filling the customers needs. He will remember.
• Study the ways in which Internet and Intranet technology can be used by enterprises to reduce costs and improve work force productivity. Most consultants are focusing exclusively on the 'making money on the Net' side of the equation - but that's only half the picture! Saving money on the Net can in some cases be more important to a large firm than any incremental sales to Internet customers. Provide a full-featured Internet Business consultation, and you will win clients and bids.

Focusing your attention on Internet Business concepts, as opposed to simply Internet tools, is a major step. Everyone is caught in the spotlight right now, dazzled by emerging digital technology - but this situation won't last for long. Position yourself now for Consulting success in the future by mastering the field of Internet Business. And for those of you who aren't interested in being a consultant, remember that acquiring these skills for yourself means you won't have to hire someone else who has to get your own Online venture jump-started ;)