Offline Consultants, What Do We Call Our Business?

Really you should call it what you think best fits your business.

We simply call ourselves:

'Business Name' is an Internet Marketing Company

Simple and to the point :-)

Depending on the business size of the prospect, I'm either a Marketing Consultant or a Marketing Analyst. I leave off the word "Internet" because it's limiting in scope and it can cause you to be lumped in with the SEO crowd.

I would probably carry these names through if I had staff.

I usually say Web Development Firm or Web Software Company personally. People seem to somewhat understand what that means.

How about *company name - Your Virtual Marketing Assistant?

Virtual meaning intangible and digital etc.

I would keep web/internet out of your title just so if you want to expand beyond the internet side of things in the future, you won't just be thought of as the "online guy". My consulting business card has me as a "Profit Improvement Specialist". Clients always like that lol.

Agree with everyone saying to keep "internet" out of your name or description of your business. Make it sounds like an offline business.

Yep, no "Internet" in there.

I would avoid "Virtual" as well.

Also depends on your geography. Larger, trendier locations will handle "riskier" terms better then small to mid size locations.

I'm a fan of marketer... also consider business adviser or similar.

I agree with leaving internet out. I just say marketing. My company name is "biz name" media marketing.

Then I tell them what I can do for them.

I'd just say I'm a consultant who helps business owners make better use of technology.

Yeah, one more to jump on the "no internet" band wagon.

I definitively leave off the internet, web or online from the name. I am starting to rethink even having a name that explicitly says "marketing" in the name.

I am finding opportunities in helping some businesses make increased cash flow, without any additional marketing. It is an easy sell to current customers, but I am thinking it is going to be harder to sell this concept to a brand new client as my first go-round with them.

-Scott Voss

It's really going to depend on the services you offer and your expertise. Keep it simple and don't try to reinvent the wheel. Advertising Agency and Marketing Agencies have been around for decades and will continue to be around.

The biggest TIP I can give someone who's launching their business is ALWAYS target your business to your clients. Remember that most business owners, have no idea what you do, nor do they want to learn your business inside and out. So the better you can put what your business does in clear concise words that the President, CFO or CEO of the company can understand the better.

Alton, your last part just reminded me of a documentary I watched about fake scam artists. They have a printer in the van, so this expert goes up to them, take pictures of an 'antique', print it out in a glossy catalog, go back and tell them there is a matching on at a warehouse, then steal their antique, put it at the warehouse, and then sell the same thing back to them. These people just want to expose how scam artists work. Can't remember the title.

But seriously speaking, is there a name card printer? I haven't seen it before. I do agree with the printing the appropriate cards for the occasion.

I'm also stuck with how to name my business. The names I want are either trademarked by European companies who love to sue, or used by other companies in similar industries. Naming it after my name sorts of limits the way company in a way as you can't sell it easily. Armand Morin mentioned something like that about not tagging his products to his name.

I also don't know what to call myself. CEO sounds a bit too superfluous. Consultant also has a certain connotation.

I understand that the word internet can be limiting but what if you actually like to position your service as solely an IM provider? I actually have no plans doing print, TV, radio, or other forms of media for businesses. Aside from having little interest and skills on those communication channels, I think most agencies are already doing a very good job on that but somehow they lack IM expertise. So i'd like to position my self on IM alone.

Google KW tool shows decent search numbers for the terms: internet marketing company, internet marketing services, internet marketing consultant, internet marketing agency. This possibly means that people actually know that what we do is called internet marketing.

I do offline consulting for seo with my partner and we just call ourselves "search engine optimization specialists." Simple... but to the core. : )

Joe

For our offline customers I commonly refer to myself as a managing editor for our publishing company which provides content development and distribution services for maximum online exposure and profits

Hi Mark, I use a name - which i like and which is recognized easily.

I also add, some workable content in it, to show - what is offered.


My companyname is SIC ( Stargate Internet Consulting )

regards, LASSE

This is what I have on my business card.

Edwards Consultant
Client Acquisition
web design|seo|marketing

(My name)
Principal Consultant

(My company's name)
(Mobile Details)

(Contact details such as website, Facebook Page and Twitter)

Depends on who I'm talking to...


It's actually funny, most of my business comes from referrals now. When I ask my clients what they say I do, most times it's something along the lines of:

"Call James, he gets $hit done.."

And that seems to be good enough, as I rarely get asked the question of "What do you do" from my referrals. haha.


If I'm walking into a place cold calling, I'm generally a marketing specialist/consultant.

I'm never the "owner". That leaves too much room for negotiation and special treatment requests.

Hi Alton, I needed some name cards quickly and so I designed one on Powerpoint, squeezed in 4, went to a photo printing shop, got it printed like photos with gloss, and got the person to use a paper cutter to cut it into namecard size. cost about the same if i had gone to a name card printing shop and got basic looking cards.

Revenue Engineer

I would avoid virtual, sounds fake. Try Digital if you want to reference the online realm. Digital Marketing Solutions!

I say that I run a Internet Marketing Company so that its general enough to specify many different fields.

I usually using marketing consultant or internet marketing consultant depending on the scenario. As far as company, I just tell them what we do. BoostYourLeads.com. It seems to be generic enough to change as technology and marketing does. In 100 years, businesses are still going to need more leads.

I always explain the final benefits to people:

"I generate leads for any business over the internet
even if they don't have a website"

I think they understand that more than Internet marketing, etc...

I'd say..
Internet Marketing Agency.

I go with publishing and media distribution. Which actually fits what I'm trying to build.

I refer to myself as a Web Strategy Development Consultant. Because without a strategy, all you have is a bunch of tactics.

My favorite description is something that I borrowed from a past client:

"No Title, Just Results" - Not sure I'm quite as dramatic though...

I use "online offline business consultant" so I can expand and it allows me to also through my conversations with business owners to actually tie in how the online and offline marketing worlds can actually work together.

Marketing is marketing and there are some concepts of marketing that do not change no matter which sector you are concentrating on. Any marketing campaign needs to be successful and success means increase in sales and a high ROI. The cheaper the PR campaigns are also used to get mileage without spending too much. Any cleaver marketing manager would also include in his portfolio. That way he will get a hight ROI.
As far as I am concerned you are a marketing agency just like any other!
PhantomWr.

I can only give you the same advise I give a lot of my coaching students, too:

If possible call your business always something with your last name or initials + consulting.

Consulting business get the most respect in the business world, anybody with the title like "Internet Design Agency" will get kicked in the ass most of the time.

You can read more on the topic in this PDF that will fit into this discussion and has the chapter about setting up your business: http://www.richclub.us/How_To_Make_1...la_Edition.pdf

Interesting question and one that gets asked quite a bit in various forums.

What I do and coach is to have a main incorporated business (name). This relates to consulting of course.

This serves as the 'umbrella' for all the other lines of business. SO for instance, when marketing to Chiropractors I have a different presentation and domain name - For Dentists it's also different. For Coaching it's another, but tat the end of the day, the payments are made to the parent business.

This is how I brand and what I've been using since the mid 90s when I first started consulting and carried it through, launching different lines of business for different target markets including internet marketing for business.

Bayo

Offering various services I go with "Digital Media Agency"

Danny

Danny I'd think about that one. You don't want to leave your prospects confused as to what it is you do. Confusion leads to no decision. What is a "Digital Media Agency?" Is what they will think also with "Austin Seo Pros" What is that? People that need our help obviously are not in the know how.

You want your name to clearly imply benefits and paint a picture as to what it is that you do. ie...Business marketing guru Rich Schefren-"Strategic Profits"

Internet Marketing Consultant works rather well for me.

All the buzz out there is about how businesses can use the Internet to increase their profits and lower their marketing costs.

My clients all had an Internet presence of sorts that just was not working. They KNEW they need Internet Marketing help.

George

Hey Mark, assuming you already have your own company name, this is a description that you're asking about right? I think in marketing, you can go creative, but focus on the USP, your unique selling point, because as business owners, we want to know what we need to get.

I differentiate myself by using "Local Lead Generation".... Get Local leads from the net for your biz....

"I help my clients grow their sales while reducing their costs of acquiring new business."