How to Productize Your AI Consulting Offer in 2026

Why focus, repetition, and niche mastery are the real keys to scale

January 18, 2026
Read Time: 9 minutes

Let’s get real: most people in AI consulting are still stuck in custom project hell. They’re reinventing the wheel for every client, scoping from scratch, and burning hours on delivery. Meanwhile, the consultants who are scaling, raising their prices, and building real businesses are the ones who’ve figured out how to productize.

But what does productizing actually mean in this space? And how do you do it without losing the “consultant” edge that makes you valuable in the first place?

Let’s break it down.

What Does Productizing Really Mean?

Productizing is a byproduct of focus. You can only productize if you’re serving the same type of client, solving the same types of problems, over and over again.

It’s not just about building a SaaS or a fancy platform. It’s about recognizing patterns. If you do ten audits for HVAC companies, you’ll quickly realize that 70% of the automations, pain points, and solutions are the same every time.

At first, every audit and implementation feels custom. But after a few, you start to see the same bottlenecks, the same software, the same workflows. That’s when you start building a library of solutions. You’re not just selling your time anymore, you’re selling a repeatable process.

Eventually, you can take those solutions and build them into a platform. Now, when a new client comes in, you’re not starting from scratch. You’re plugging them into a proven system that delivers results fast.

That’s productization. It’s the difference between being a freelancer and building a real business.

Why Productizing Is So Powerful

Let’s be honest: custom consulting is a grind. Every new client means new scoping, new delivery, new headaches. Productizing changes the game.

• Scaling: You know exactly what to deliver, so you can hire and train people faster. You can even automate parts of delivery with AI.

• Pricing: You can charge more for speed and certainty. Want it done in 48 hours? That’s a premium.

• Delivery: SOPs, checklists, and pre-built workflows mean you can deliver faster, with fewer mistakes.

• Profit: Your costs go down, your margins go up, and you can serve more clients without burning out.

The more repeatable your process, the easier it is to scale. You don’t need a team of experts, you need a team that can follow a proven playbook.

How to Start Productizing: The Real-World Process

Here’s the truth: you can’t productize until you’ve done at least ten audits in the same niche. I’ve worked with 100+ Vibe Consultants, and the ones who try to build a platform after two or three projects always end up rebuilding it later.

Start by picking a niche. Do ten audits for the same type of business. Document every pain point, every solution, every implementation. Notice which automations come up again and again.

After ten audits, you’ll have a list of the 10–15 solutions that every client needs. Build those out as reusable workflows. The more you do, the more you’ll see the patterns.

Once you’ve got your library, you can start building a platform. That’s what I did with Consultix. After seeing the same challenges and wins across 100+ clients, I built the tools, templates, and workflows into a single platform. Now, new consultants can get results in minutes, not months.

What Productized Offers Work Best Right Now?

Audits:
The audit itself is a productized offer. It’s a two-week roadmap, with a predefined process: stakeholder interviews, process mapping, implementation recommendations, ROI calculation, and a final presentation. The process is the same whether you’re working with a 10-person or 100-person company, the only thing that changes is the scale.

Implementation Packages:
Certain automations work across industries. SEO packages, voice and text automation, AI SDRs, chatbots, voice receptionists, OCR/document processing, and knowledge base creation are all highly productizable. Once you’ve built them a few times, you can deliver them faster and with higher margins.

Training:
Employee adoption training is a goldmine. Workshops on ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, or even just “AI basics for [industry]” are easy to rinse and repeat. The delivery is productized, but you still show up live.

Retainers:
Maintenance and advisory retainers are the backbone of recurring revenue. Maintenance is about keeping implementations running smoothly. Advisory is about being the go-to AI expert for your client, helping them stay ahead of the curve.

How to Package and Price Productized Offers

For audits, I always recommend $500 per head as a starting point. Ten people? $5K. Twenty people? $10K. It’s simple, fair, and easy to explain.

For implementations, it’s trickier. The value varies wildly depending on the solution. On the low end, nothing should be less than $5K. For SaaS or platform solutions, pricing is all about the value you deliver and the speed at which you can deliver it.

If you want a deep dive on implementation pricing, check out my previous newsletter on the topic [click here].

The key is to tie your price to the value you deliver. If you can save a company $100K a year, charging $20K for the solution is a no-brainer.

Balancing Productization with Customization

Here’s the secret: the more niche you go, the more you can productize. If you’re working with 5–50 person HVAC companies, you’ll see the same systems and problems every time. You can deliver copy-and-paste solutions at scale.

But as you move upmarket, bigger clients will always need more customization. They have more complex systems, more stakeholders, and more unique needs. That’s fine, just charge more for the extra work, and be clear about what’s productized and what’s custom.

Some consultants love the challenge of custom projects. Others (like me) prefer the scale and simplicity of productized delivery. There’s no right answer, just know what you want.

Biggest Mistake: Trying to Productize Too Soon

Don’t try to build a platform after two or three projects. You need at least ten audits in the same niche to see the patterns. I did 100 before building Consultix, and that’s why it works.

If you try to productize too early, you’ll end up rebuilding everything later. Get the reps, document the process, and only then start building your productized offer.

Real-World Example: Consultix

Consultix is the best example I know. After 100+ clients, I saw the same challenges, the same wins, and the same needs. I built the tools, templates, and workflows into a single platform. Now, new consultants can get results in minutes, not months.

Most people in the space are still under ten audits. They’re not ready to productize yet. But once you hit that threshold, the opportunity is massive.

Action Plan: How to Productize Your Offer This Month

• Make sure you’ve done at least ten audits in your niche. If not, focus on getting those reps first.

• Document every solution, workflow, and implementation you deliver.

• Identify the 10–15 automations or trainings that come up every time.

• Build reusable workflows, templates, and SOPs for each one.

• Package your offer: audit, implementation, training, maintenance, advisory.

• Price based on value, not just time.

• If you’re ready, start building your own platform or SaaS to deliver these solutions at scale.

And remember: productization isn’t just about making your life easier. It’s about delivering a better, faster, and more consistent experience for your clients.

Final Thought:
The consultants who win in 2026 are the ones who go deep, get the reps, and build productized offers that scale. Don’t try to shortcut the process. Do the work, document everything, and build your platform when you’re ready.

If you want help productizing your offer, building your platform, or scaling your consulting business, book a call with me. Let’s make this your year.

See you next week,

– Andrew

P.S. Ready to build your own Vibe Consulting business? Book a 1:1 strategy call here to see if you're a good fit for my personal coaching program.

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