I've had my consulting practice for 20 years, and I specialize in the construction industry. The so called stigma comes from some of these "consulting companies" that consider consulting a transactional business. They are more of a sales organization than a consulting organization, always looking for the next business to fleece without delivering sustainable value.

I believe you have to have a value proposition that meets the needs of your client, not your needs. And while serving your clients, you have to show them that you truly care about them and their business. Showing "care" will enable you to separate yourself from the stigma of the industry. And I feel that caring for my clients has enabled be to maintain my consulting practice for this length of time.

I also believe that you need to have a specialty, and area of expertise. Being a generalist or trying to be everything to everybody is very difficult, and prevents you from immediately delivering precise value to your client. Failing to deliver value helps to feed the stigma.