Do you give potential consulting work emails the next highest priority after existing clients?

It is extremely important to demonstrate to potential clients a high level of quality service and attention to their needs; Whenever you receive an email from a potential client in relation to possible consulting work, you should make sure they receive an answer within 5 minutes of you receiving it. This is for 2 reasons:

• To show you are keen and to give an indication of the level of service they will receive
• To stop them "shopping around"

They will quickly recognize that they will not receive that kind of service anywhere else!