We're having a great discussion on our private ACRE list serve, The Coaching Exchange, about consulting. It's clear from the discussion that there is still a lot of confusion about the role that a trained consultant performs and how they are paid for their services.
As we've said many times, consulting is not about a fee schedule! Consulting is a practice that provides quality, transparent choices with commission being just one of the choices offered. You can do 100% of your business by commission and yet practice as a consultant because you have the tools in your toolbox to offer other choices, both in the services you offer and how you can get paid. Providing choices is a wonderful thing - it brings you the business regardless of how they ultimately pay.
Coach Merv Forney said it very well:
"Let's be sure we differentiate role vs payment method. Our role as a consultant has nothing to do with how we get paid. The traditional real estate agent role is a sales person. In fact, in Virginia we are licensed as real estate sales person.The role of a consultant puts the client's objective in full focus without regard to our self (financial) interest. We provide guidance and back it up with documented evidence. Our guidance may, in fact, result in no business with the client at all.
A sales person could certainly offer choices in payment method and many real estate firms do but they still function in a sales role. Consultants can also offer choices in payment methods.
Conducting oneself as a consultant AND offering transparent choice in services provided and the cost associated with those services sets us apart."
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