The reason consultancy marketing stalls and how to get up to speed
More than half of all consultancies say winning new business is their number one challenge. But according to Consultancy BenchPress, only 17% truly differentiate themselves. That small group is twice as likely to grow fast and be highly profitable.
The consultancies that do this well usually get three things right. They know what they want to be known for. They keep saying it. And they check whether it’s actually working.
That sounds simple, but most consultancies struggle with at least one.
Scroll through consultancy LinkedIn posts and you’ll see the first challenge. “We are delighted to announce.” “What does the future of X look like?” “Value creation.” “Transformation.” “Unlock potential.” And so on.
There are a lot of consultancy content engines hard at work, but is any of it actually cutting through?
The posts get likes. Some get nice comments. But how many lead to a real conversation with a target client? Your leads still mostly come through referrals. Inbound is patchy, or if it is coming in, you can’t trace it back to anything you specifically did.
The marketing budget shows up as a cost centre, not a growth driver, and it becomes difficult to defend this activity in a room full of people who want to see a return.
There are a lot of consultancy content engines hard at work, but is any of it actually cutting through?
To extend the engine analogy, most consultancies have built a functioning engine. But what’s missing is the road (story), the fuel (systems), and the dashboard (scale) that tells you what’s happening.
And if you add AI-generated content into the mix at this stage, you’re pouring high-octane fuel into an engine stuck in the mud.
An effective marketing machine comes down to three things. And you need all three firing at once.
Story (your road). The specific, honest answer to why your firm exists, who your clients are, and what you do differently. Not a tagline – a genuine conviction that everyone in the firm shares and can articulate naturally, in a pitch or in the pub. Not just the founder, not just on the website.
Often, the story lives in the founder’s head, the systems are inconsistent, and the scale never quite builds
Systems (your fuel). The campaigns, channels and cadence that carry the story consistently, so your message reaches the right people at the right time. Not just when someone in the team has time to post.
Scale (your dashboard). The evidence that shows what’s working, what isn’t, and whether any of this is actually moving your pipeline.
Most consultancies have elements these, they just rarely line up. Often, the story lives in the founder’s head, the systems are inconsistent, and the scale never quite builds because the engine keeps stopping and starting the moment client work picks up. What you end up with is marketing that feels like effort without momentum.
Where to start.
Before investing more in content, channels or tools, ask yourself three questions:
Could a target client read your last five LinkedIn posts and understand exactly what you do and how you could help them?
Does your marketing keep running when a project lands, or does it grind to a halt?
Can you point to data showing your marketing is driving commercial results?
If the answer to any of these is no, then you need a strategy, not more content. That strategy has three parts:
- Get your key people pointing in the same direction and ask these questions: Why does the firm exist? Who is it for? What are you trying to achieve? This is your story.
- Build your marketing systems around that. What are your objectives? Where is your audience and how do you reach them? That determines which channels you should be using, how and when.
- At the same time, set your dashboard (and use it!). This should be a mix of social analytics, owned and earned channel data, and commercial metrics.
Likes and follower counts are good for the brand, but ultimately you need to know whether your marketing is driving the commercial outcomes your firm needs.
That’s the difference between a content engine and a growth engine. And that’s what we do at The Message Works, helping consultancies connect strategy, marketing and communications to create clearer, more effective growth activity.
If you want an objective view of how well your website is articulating your value proposition, get your free DIVA diagnostic report.
