Building a $1.5M Client Pipeline in 4 Months: Lessons from Ellie Holbert

Ellie Holbert made the leap from corporate management consultant to independent consulting just five months ago - and has already built a pipeline worth over $1 million. As founder of Impact Advisory Services, she specializes in organizational effectiveness and leadership coaching for midsize innovation companies. After her initial contract was unexpectedly canceled just two weeks into her journey, Ellie pivoted quickly and built an impressive 67-opportunity pipeline using systematic LinkedIn outreach, network activation, and strategic community engagement. She shares her specific tactics for generating 200-300 LinkedIn connections weekly, creating viral thought leadership content using AI tools like ChatGPT and Otter AI, and converting 75% of her calls to ideal client profiles. Beyond tactics, Ellie reveals how mindfulness practices and emotional regulation became her secret competitive advantage, allowing her to take consistent imperfect action while managing the natural fears of entrepreneurship. Her story demonstrates that with the right approach to business development and mindset work, rapid growth is possible even for new consultants.

Learn More:Scale your fractional practice: https://mylance.coConnect with Bradley Jacobs: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradley-r-jacobs/

Connect with Ellie: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellie-h-1b661147/

00:00 - Welcome and Ellie's introduction

00:40 - What organizational effectiveness means

01:22 - Four months into independent consulting

01:39 - Transition from corporate to consulting

02:38 - Taking the leap and early challenges

04:07 - Hitting the pavement after setback

05:28 - Figuring out service offerings

06:49 - Meeting clients where they are

08:04 - Productized vs custom services

09:11 - Pipeline success: $1M+ in opportunities

11:46 - Following systematic methods

12:14 - Three business development buckets

16:01 - Tracking CRM data and metrics

17:28 - Measuring success tangibly

18:48 - Using LinkedIn Sales Navigator

19:53 - Content creation with AI tools

21:51 - Essential business tools and GPTs

24:30 - Emotional regulation strategies

28:17 - Learning mindfulness from family

31:23 - Competitive advantage of self-care

34:04 - Processing feelings vs overthinking

36:59 - Lessons from motherhood

38:38 - Holding outcomes loosely

41:10 - Focusing on process over results

42:38 - Perfect business by year-end

44:23 - Time spent on business development

45:41 - Where to connect with Ellie