How to Scale a Professional Services Business

“All money ain’t good money” is a saying where use of proper grammar would miss the mark. In the context of business development, the phrase relates to freelancing outside your area of focus. In this case, “good money” is that which helps you earn even more money later, whereas bad money is the kind that hurts you in the long run because it diverts from your more lucrative pursuits.

Don’t market services or accept matters outside your niche. It will take too much time to fulfill the contract. Time that would be better spent prospecting in your area of expertise. Moreover, clients who purchase the unrelated services are likely to refer you other clients who want that type of service, taking you away from more profitable and desirable work.

If, by comparison, you do the work you’re absolutely best at, you’ll work faster and earn your revenue with minimum effort. It’s a method of scaling a professional services business which, without canned documents, can be a laborious, bespoke operation where your revenue is capped by the number of hours you and your colleagues can work.

Importantly, this advice isn’t intended to apply to anyone who has a wealth of knowledge and experience from a prior career or business. In that case, you should still limit your branding and marketing activities to a single field. However, if you happen to receive a matter that you can service efficiently and profitably because of prior experience, consider quietly accepting the matter and earn your revenue, which can be reinvested in your current, primary business.