top 5 mistakes to avoid when building a college consulting practice

Top 5 Mistakes to Avoid

When Building a College

Consulting Practice

Presented by….

Cyndy:

25 years of professional experience in private

practice & in public schools

Founder/President GuidedPath/MyCCA.net

Kim:

12 years of experience in Customer Support

International experience

Kim Wagner &

Cyndy McDonald

How do you rate yourself?

1= I still love pen and paper

2 = I am a neophyte I can answer email, barely

3= I am comfortable with technology

4= I enjoy technology- I am a iphone addict

5 =I LOVE technology- I talk to Siri daily!

Techno Savvy Rating

1. Lov e pen and paper 0%

2. Neophyte , answer emai l bare ly 6%

3. Comfor tab le wi th t echno logy 70%

4. En joy techno logy- i phone add i c t 21%

5. LOVE techno logy- ta lk t o S i r i da i ly ! 3%

Techno Savvy Survey results

Building a Practice takes Tools

How do you

build your

practice?

1. Sure you can call me at 10 pm!

Setting Professional Boundaries.• Cell phone

• Office

• Response time

• Other?

Respect your

students &

yourself.

2. I wanna hold your hand…

Finding the balance between providing

professional expertise and becoming a babysitter is key to

success as a business person & educator.

Goals:• Enpower students

• Engender trust in parents

3. Post It notes + source book ≠

organizing system

Don’t work harder, work smarter!

Make an organizational plan

Use online tools

Include college resources, college planning

Explore options that will work best for you.

Technology- Embraced

“Youth see technology as Plah-Doh –something they use in an utterly malleable and instinctive way. Older generations start with ‘what will this box allow me to do?’ Whereas this generation starts with ‘what do I want to do? Where can my imagination take me?’

Technology enables young people to sense the world and make sense of the world. It is this deep relationship with technology that is shaping their attitudes towards community and truth and allowing them to re-imagine justice for a new era.”

The Truth about Youth | McCann Worldgroup | May 2011

4. Dedicating too much time to a

student yields an hourly rate of $5.00

Don’t undervalue your services

Set your rates after canvassing community

Use those rates as comparison

Track time on each student record

Pricing Services: THAT is the question!

Packaging Hourly

5. Considering a website as a complete

marketing plan.

What is YOUR

marketing plan?