By Nazreen Daud · Published 22 Oct 2026 · Updated 22 Oct 2026
The short answer: most independent consultants get their first clients from people who already know them: former colleagues, past clients and referrals. Content rarely closes a deal on its own. Its real job is to keep your network reminded of what you do now, so when a need comes up, your name is the one they think of.
A consultant who did everything "right" and still felt invisible
I read a post on Reddit this month that stayed with me. A consultant, 40, with more than ten years in business transformation and operational performance, has been building his own advisory practice since 2023.
He listed what he had done. He developed an offering. He built the website. He published a book. He created content, approached potential partners and, in his words, "worked relentlessly on distribution". And yet he was "struggling to turn all that effort into meaningful client conversations, let alone revenue." He also wrote about how lonely it is to build a business without a team or other founders to talk to.
The thread, on r/consulting, had 104 comments when I read it. What struck me was how quickly the replies converged on one word: network.
If you sell expertise for a living, that list of his probably looks familiar. It looks a lot like the list we're all told to work through.
I used to join several networking groups, and I'm not lying when I say networking does give you clients. It has helped me, especially when the group is small and people trust you. When they need your services, you're the go-to.
Where do consulting clients actually come from?
For most independent consultants, the early clients come from relationships built before they went solo. The replies in that Reddit thread said this again and again, from people at very different stages. Content and websites help, but they mostly work on people who already have a reason to trust you.
Here's what the most upvoted replies said, in their own words:
- The top comment asked how strong his network was before he started, and argued that "relationships matter far more than your actual services when it comes to generating sales." The original poster replied: "network is weak."
- Another reply added: "People buy from people they like, people they know," and noted that for comparable services at a comparable price, they'd pick someone they know over a stranger. "Usually an old client is where you start."
- An independent of two years wrote: "I create content and post on LinkedIn and all of that. I don't think any of that has directly led to a paying client. My clients have come 100% from my network. Referrals from past colleagues and clients."
- One consultant, six months in, said all his work had come from people who knew him or knew of him. Half came from proactive phone and email contact, and half was inbound "because of my consistent presence on LinkedIn".
That last one matters. It's the counterweight. Content did bring him work, but the people it brought were already in his orbit.
These are anecdotes from strangers, not a study.
Why doesn't content alone win consulting clients?
Because consulting is a high-trust, high-stakes purchase. Someone is about to let you into their business, often with a budget they have to defend. A good post can show you know your stuff. It rarely gives them enough confidence to sign on its own.
Think of it like a kampung (a village, in Malay). In a village, nobody hires the carpenter they saw on a poster. They hire the one their neighbour used, the one whose work they've seen on someone else's house. The poster helps people remember the carpenter's name. The neighbour is why they call.
Content is the poster. Your network is the neighbour.
There's a second reason, and one of the Reddit replies put it bluntly. You can build a lot of things that look like marketing (a website, a book, a stream of posts) and still have very few conversations. One commenter told the original poster his list read like "a lot of output and not a lot of conversations", and suggested he pick ten people he could actually name who'd feel the problem this quarter and ask each for twenty minutes, with no pitch.
I like that advice because it's uncomfortable. It's easier to write another post than to send ten personal messages.
So is posting on LinkedIn a waste of time for consultants?
No. It just has a different job from the one most people give it. Posting works best as a way to stay remembered by the people who already know you, and to show them what you do now. Treat it as a reminder system rather than a client vending machine and it earns its place.
This is my opinion after more than a decade of selling my own services: content doesn't replace your network. It keeps your network reminded of what you do now.
Most of your former colleagues have a fuzzy, years-old idea of what you do. Maybe they remember you from a project in 2019. They don't know you now help with X, for Y kind of business. Every useful post you write corrects that memory a little.
So I'd write for the 200 people who already know you, not the 20,000 who don't. Those numbers are illustrative, not a statistic. The point is the audience. When you write for strangers, you write generic advice. When you write for people who know you, you write specifically, and specific is what gets remembered and passed on.
Justin Welsh made a related point in his 17 October 2026 newsletter, "Go make some friends." He described how people get angry when successful entrepreneurs promote one another, and argued that "you cannot build the kind of network you spend your time resenting." He gave ordinary examples from his own career: a standing quarterly catch-up with one friend to compare notes, a weekly live show started with another in 2020, a few dinners with a third. None of them were well known online at the time. His line: "You can build a powerful network long before anybody in it is powerful."
That's the quieter half of this answer. Your network isn't fixed. You can still build it now, slowly, by being genuinely useful to people doing good work.
If you're in Singapore, I wrote more about this local, relationship-first way of doing business in lepak, profits and small business networking.
Want a second pair of eyes on how your offer and website support those warm conversations? Book a call with me.
What does a simple weekly plan look like?
Split your week between conversations and content, with conversations first. Content supports the network; it doesn't stand in for it. A plan you can keep for a year beats an ambitious one you drop in a month.
Here's how I'd compare the two, honestly:
| Network (relationships) | Content (posts, articles) | |
|---|---|---|
| Best at | Winning the first and next client | Keeping you remembered and understood |
| Speed | Faster when it works | Slow and cumulative |
| Trust level | High, borrowed from people they know | Low to medium, until they've met you |
| Main risk | Dries up if you stop reaching out | Becomes output without conversations |
| Your weekly job | Reach out to named people | Post for the people who already know you |
And a simple weekly rhythm:
- Write down ten names. Former colleagues, past clients, partners. People who could hire you or refer you this quarter.
- Have two or three real conversations. Ask how they're handling the problem you solve. No pitch. Listen for "could you help with this?"
- Publish one useful thing. A post or an article that answers a question you heard in those conversations.
- Send it to one person it would help. Personally, with a line about why you thought of them.
- Keep a small peer group. The Reddit poster was lonely. One reply suggested finding two or three other independents to trade notes with every couple of weeks. I'd second that.
The trap I'd watch out for
The trap is mistaking activity for progress. More posts, more tools, more polish, and still no new conversations. I wrote about this pattern more broadly in why "more" is often the problem.
One reply in the thread offered a sharp test: if warm introductions still don't lead to paid work, the offer probably isn't urgent enough, and more content or follow-ups won't fix that. That's worth sitting with. Sometimes the network is fine and the offer is vague.
And when an enquiry does come in from your network, read it carefully. Not every warm lead is a good fit, which is why I keep a list of signals I watch for in a first enquiry.
FAQ
How do most independent consultants get their first clients?
Usually from people who already know them: former employers, colleagues and past clients. In the Reddit thread I read, two independents said all their work came from their network, referrals or people who knew of them. Content and websites helped some, mostly with people already in their orbit.
Does posting on LinkedIn bring consulting clients?
Sometimes, but rarely on its own. One consultant in the thread said half his inbound work came from a consistent LinkedIn presence, while another said none of his clients came directly from posting. Treat LinkedIn as a way to stay remembered by your network.
What if my professional network is weak?
Start building it deliberately. Name ten people who might feel the problem you solve, ask each for a short conversation without pitching, and keep in touch. Justin Welsh's point applies: you can build a strong network before anyone in it is well known.
How much time should a consultant spend on networking versus content?
There's no fixed ratio that suits everyone. A practical approach is conversations first, with two or three real ones a week, then one useful piece of content drawn from what you heard. Adjust once you see which actually leads to paid work.
Should a new consultant partner with an agency or firm?
It can help. Several replies in the thread described working through agencies or a former employer that brought the clients while they focused on delivery. You give up some margin and control, but you get work while your own network and name grow.
So, for your own practice: where did your last three clients really come from, your network or your content?
About the author: Nazreen Daud is Founder of Roquepress and a Malay web consultant and marketer in Singapore. He has built websites for businesses since he started freelancing in 2013, registered Roquepress in 2019 and founded Mulacan in 2022. He writes practical, hype-free notes on websites, SEO and AI for service businesses.