A prospect looking for a supply chain consultant visits a consultancy website. The homepage says: "We deliver transformational solutions that drive sustainable growth." The services page lists "strategy", "operations" and "transformation". Nothing says what problems the consultancy actually solves, for whom or how. The prospect leaves.
Consultancy websites often hide the expertise they are meant to show. Here are the common mistakes.
Mistake 1: generic language
Phrases that could describe any consultancy tell the prospect nothing. Specific language works better: "We help mid-sized manufacturers reduce stock-outs without increasing inventory."
Mistake 2: no specific problems
Prospects arrive with a problem. They want to see that the consultant has solved it before. List the problems you solve, in the prospect's words.
Mistake 3: no examples
Anonymised case examples, with the situation, approach and outcome, show expertise far better than claims. Keep outcomes honest.
Mistake 4: hidden pricing
Prospects want to know how consultants charge. Explaining engagement models, as described in rate and engagement questions consultants should answer, filters out poor fits and builds trust.
Mistake 5: no clear audience
Who do you help? Sector, size, role. A clear audience helps the right prospects recognise themselves.
Mistake 6: no personality
Independent consultants are hired for who they are. A page about you, your background and how you work matters. Insurance brokers face a similar problem with faceless websites, as described in insurance website pages that leave visitors unsure.
Mistake 7: no easy way to ask a question
A contact form is not enough. Prospects often have a question before they are ready to enquire. Letting them ask, and capturing scoping details, is covered in consulting enquiries that need scoping before a call.
Mistake 8: outdated content
Old articles, old examples, old photos. Review the site every few months.
Fixing the mistakes
Most of these can be fixed by rewriting a few pages more specifically. Then make sure the assistant learns from the updated content, as described in how to train your chatbot on your website content.
SpideyChat for consultants answers questions from your own pages at any hour and captures scoping details for you.
Mistake 9: writing for other consultants
Some consultancy websites are written to impress peers rather than to help prospects. They use industry jargon, frameworks and acronyms that mean little to a business owner with a problem. Write for the person who will hire you: plain language, their problems, their outcomes. A finance director or operations manager should be able to read a page and know immediately whether you can help.
Mistake 10: no next step
Every page should end with a clear, low-pressure next step, such as asking a question, reading a case example or booking a short call. Without it, interested visitors drift away.
Mistake 11: articles with no point of view
Articles that summarise common knowledge do little. Articles that share your view on a real problem, with reasons, show how you think, which is exactly what prospects want to know before hiring a consultant.
A test for your homepage
Cover your logo and read your homepage. Could it belong to any consultancy? If so, rewrite the first paragraph to name the specific problem you solve and who you solve it for.
Putting the rewrite live
Once the pages are updated, train the assistant on them. The guides to installing the widget and training your bot explain how.