The Marketing of Professional Services

The recognition by professional services firms of the need to become marketing-orientated and apply marketing techniques is of recent origin. Yet their need to identify, anticipate and satisfy client requirements profitably, rather than passively wait for clients to request their services, is overwhelming. The professional services provided by such specialists as accountants, advertising agents, banks, computer consultancies, consulting engineers, and management consultants are highly people intensive. Consequently, there is more room for individual discretion, eccentricity, delay and error. This article argues that professional services companies can systematically plan the marketing of their services so that they can provide value satisfactions that will create and keep their clients and produce profits.