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The reason as to why this enterprise aroused our interest was that they and us are in the same industry — strategic consulting, or “professional service providers”. There are as many sweet spots as there are pain points. HourlyNerd, a company that provides short-term consultant matching for SMEs, was founded in 2013. As an Internet company, it connects companies with consulting needs and freelance/part-time consultants and experts. Enterprises submit their needs on the platform, and consultants provide consulting regarding business plans, competition analysis, market analysis and research, SWOT analysis and pricing strategies on the platform. Most of the consultants are graduates of famous business schools. With the help of HourlyNerd, companies can find matching consultants at a lower price; consultants can also become independent of firms to provide service freely (Figure 1.14).

This model addresses the several difficulties in purchasing consulting services as follows:

• Not many enterprises are capable enough to pay for big consulting firms — many SMEs need consulting as well.

Figure 1.14. Business model of Hourlynerd.

Source: KMG Research.

• Not every project needs a full consulting service — many small demands are not satisfied, such as pricing for single products.

• Expenses by enterprises on consulting are never enough — but Hourly-Nerd saves them 90% of the fees.

As HourlyNerd restructures the consulting business, it is important to implement the strategies and keep these consultants active. HourlyNerd focuses on circle marketing, letting consultants who have become seed customers make the recommendation; on the contrary, they go to business schools where they source their consultants to woo. They automatically match projects with the areas and the expertise of the consultants. Project givers will receive a structured list of evaluation for each consultant so as to quantify the capabilities of these professionals. HourlyNerd also sends e-mails to reinforce ties with consultants so that a continued trading relationship could be established even if such trading does not happen very often (Figure 1.15).

Figure 1.15. Income of Hourlynerd.

Source: KMG Research.