50 Profitable Consulting Business Ideas

Starting a business is always seen as a capital intensive process, but it need not be the case. The digital realm we now find ourselves in with modern technology providing new opportunities each day.

Digital nomads and consultants make up a large part of the impendent gig economy, and it continues to grow each day.

Globalisation has been the springboard for a new age of business professionals with the search for affordable skilled labour continuing to grow.

Why the need for consultants

Many overloaded business owners and busy individuals need to resolve issues that require specialised expertise.

This situation is when they go looking for a professional consultant who can provide the knowledge and experience for as little or as long as they need help, which creates new business opportunities every day.

Starting an independent consulting practice is one of the best ways to turn your depth of knowledge and years of experience into a business.

A consultant is an expert who advises others in a specific field or to fix particular problems. To improve results in their lives or businesses, people bring in one or more consultants to assess issues, provide solutions, and help to implement necessary changes.

Consultants assess an issue and prepare a solution with a focus on processes and provide support until the project is completed.  

The pros of independent consulting work

Since you don't need much money to start and you're selling your skills for a set time or a project, consultancy offers you:

• Flexibility to set your schedule
• Ability to earn more with your experience, knowledge and low overhead than with a job
• Startup time is quick, and startup capital requirement is low

The cons of independent consulting work

However, like most home business ideas, consulting has a few disadvantages as well, such as:

• The time it takes to build up and maintain a clientele
• Income may be inconsistent
• No admin and office resources (IT or HR support, accountant, etc.)

While you can turn any knowledge into a consulting business in several industries, here a few of the best industries to consider now. 

Website Consulting Business Ideas

1. Website designer
2. Graphic designer
3. UX and UI designer
4. SEO Expert
5. WordPress/CMS Consultant
6. Photographer and Image consultant

Online marketing consulting business ideas

7. Online Sales Funnels Consultant
8. Social Media Marketing Consultant
9. Videographer & YouTube Consultant
10. Paid Ad Consultant (Google Ads, Programmatic)

Marketing & PR consulting ideas

11. Email, Direct Mail or CRM Consultant
12. PR Consultant
13. Corporate Retreat Consultant
14. Interior Designer
15. Event Management Consultant

Publishing consulting ideas

16. Copywriter and writing Consultant
17. Fiction Writer Consultant
18. Self-publishing Consultant
19. Book Editor
20. Ghostwriter
21. Transcriber
22. Translator

E-Commerce consulting business ideas

23. eBay/Gumtree/Facebook Marketplace/Amazon Consultant
24. Shopify/Magento Consultant
25. E-commerce Implementation Consultant

Personal development consulting business ideas

26. CV/Resume Consultant
27. College Counseling
28. Time Management Consultant
29. Retirement Planning Consultant
30. Personal & Home
31. Clothing/Wardrobe/Fashion/Image Consultant
32. Fitness Consultant / Personal Trainer
33. Wedding Planner
34. Dating Consultant
35. Life Coach
36. Career Counselling

Business-related consulting ideas

37. Bookkeeping Consultant
38. Employee Motivation Consultant
39. Business Presentations Consultant
40. Fundraising Consultant

Green consulting ideas

41. Organic Farming Consultant
42. Environmental Consultant
43. Air Quality Consultant

IT consulting ideas

44. Computer Maintenance Consultant
45. Computer Network Consultant
46. App development and management Consultant
47. Cloud migration and cloud services Consultant
48. Blockchain and cryptocurrency Consultant
49. AI consultant
50. IoT consultant

Consult with us

Do you have any consultancy ideas you feel should be added to our list? Let us know in the comments below. Alternatively, if you are a consultant and you're looking for a website or more online leads then speak to us.

Are you looking to promote your business?

South African businesses and freelancers can create your free business listing on nichemarket. The more information you provide about your business, the easier it will be for your customers to find you online. 

Registering with nichemarket is easy; all you will need to do is head over to our sign up form and follow the instructions. If you require a more detailed guide on how to create your profile or your listing, then we highly recommend you check out the following articles.

• How to create a nichemarketer profile
• How to create a nichemarket business listing

Recommended reading

If you enjoyed this post and have time to spare why not check out these related posts and dive deeper down the rabbit hole that is starting a business.

• Over 40 South African Tech Business Ideas That Require Little To No Capital
• 30 Successful Startups That Outsourced Their Development
• Tips To Turn A Failed Startup Into Fruitful Business
• Branding For The Online Start-Up
• Alternative Funding Solutions a Small Business Needs to Know

Tags: consulting , startup, small business , freelance