In today’s episode, I’m joined once again by Paul Neal, from Verdant Purpose HR.

Since we last spoke, Paul has supported around 25 charities and turned what was once just an idea into a genuine consultancy.

But after a few successful months, things began to slow down.

The familiar feast-or-famine cycle returned—and Paul realised he missed the accountability, support and momentum he’d had when we worked together.

So, he (re)joined the Success Squad.

Within five days, Paul used one simple email to generate two opportunities:

• One existing client upgraded their support
• One long-term email subscriber became a new client

But it wasn’t just the email that made the difference.

Paul also changed the way he handled the sales conversations, got paid to prepare his proposal and used the Success Squad community to work through the opportunity rather than trying to figure everything out alone.

In this conversation, we talk about:

• Why Paul came back after previously working with me

• What caused his consultancy to stall after several successful months

• The simple email that generated two opportunities

• How a seemingly cold lead turned into a paying client

• Why Paul got paid to prepare his proposal

• How a second sales call helped him handle objections and win the work

• Why access to lessons isn’t always enough to keep you moving

• The value of accountability, feedback and being surrounded by other HR consultants

• Why launching something at 20% is often better than waiting for perfection

Paul is completely honest about the reality of building a consultancy alongside a full-time job—including the lack of time, the feast-or-famine cycle and how lonely running a one-person business can sometimes feel.

His experience is also proof that you don’t always need another complicated marketing strategy.

Sometimes, one simple action—combined with the right advice and support—is enough to create an immediate return.

👉 Listen now to discover what Paul did, why it worked and how you could apply the same approach to your own consultancy.

Want to build a more predictable pipeline of leads and clients — and grow your HR consultancy to £100K and beyond?

Check out your options here:

https://nickponinski.com/work-with-nick

If you’re new to Marketing Made Easy for HR Consultants, you’ve got more than 100 episodes to choose from.

Which is great… but where the hell do you start?

In this episode, I’ve picked five episodes from the back catalogue that I think every HR consultant should listen to if they want to build a more predictable pipeline of leads and clients — and ultimately grow towards a £100K+ consultancy.

I’ll explain why I’ve chosen each one, what you’ll get from listening, and the order I’d recommend tackling them in.

The five episodes cover:

• The four numbers you need to know if you want to understand exactly where your pipeline is working — and where it’s breaking down.
• The nine things every HR consultant needs to build the foundations of a successful £100K+ consultancy.
• Nine marketing truths that will help you stop relying on random activity and start thinking differently about how you market your business.
• A live coaching session with an HR consultant getting up to 140,000 LinkedIn impressions — and how she can turn all that attention into leads and sales.
• The story of an HR consultant who won two clients within five days of joining the Success Squad — and the simple actions that helped him do it.

You don’t have to listen to them in order.

But if you’re new to the podcast and wondering where to begin, start here.

Links to all five episodes here:

1. https://www.buzzsprout.com/2238493/episodes/17603787
2. https://www.buzzsprout.com/2238493/episodes/16500669
3. https://www.buzzsprout.com/2238493/episodes/15673043
4. https://www.buzzsprout.com/2238493/episodes/17557097
5. https://www.buzzsprout.com/2238493/episodes/19680045

Want to build a more predictable pipeline of leads and clients — and grow your HR consultancy to £100K and beyond?

Check out your options here:

https://nickponinski.com/work-with-nick

In today’s episode, I’m talking about why so many brilliant HR consultants still feel like invisible experts.

You know you’re good at what you do.

You’re posting on LinkedIn, attending networking events and trying to stay visible.

But those activities aren’t reliably turning into conversations, enquiries or clients.

You’re doing plenty of marketing… but everything still feels unpredictable.

The problem probably isn’t your expertise.

And it might not even be a lack of visibility.

The problem is that your marketing activities aren’t connected to a clear route that somebody can follow.

In this episode, I explain why LinkedIn posts, networking events and referrals aren’t a pipeline by themselves — and introduce the three things you need to turn disconnected activity into a simple client acquisition system.

We talk about:

• Why more visibility doesn’t automatically create more clients
• How disconnected marketing keeps returning you to zero
• Why LinkedIn and networking should start the journey — not become your entire strategy
• The danger of relying on the right person noticing you at exactly the right time
• How to Connect with a clearly defined group of people
• Why you need to Capture the interest of prospects who aren’t ready to buy yet
• Why people buy Offers, not lists of HR services
• How Connect, Capture and Convert work together to create a proper pipeline

If you’ve ever thought “I’m doing all the things, so why isn’t anything happening?” or “Why does finding my next client still feel like luck?”, this episode will help you see what’s missing.

You don’t need thousands of followers.

You don’t need to spend every evening networking.

And you don’t need to become pushy or salesy.

You need a clear route that takes somebody from discovering you to understanding why they need you — and what they can buy.

👉 Listen now and discover how to stop feeling like an invisible expert.

And if you’re listening before Monday 24 August, join me at Pipeline Playbook Live, my free online event for independent HR consultants who want a clearer, more predictable route to clients.

Check the link below to register — or, if the event has already taken place, look for details of my next free live event.

https://theinfluentialconsultant.co.uk/free-event-for-hr-experts/

Want more help getting leads and clients for your HR consultancy?

See all the ways I can help you here:

https://nickponinski.com/work-with-nick