4 Steps to Building a Successful Coaching Business It is hard to see the wood for the trees with all the noise out there.
By Sara Caroline Sabin Edited by Jessica Thomas
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
We are constantly bombarded with information. Anything we want to find out, we can through Google. It's no wonder that most of us have been overwhelmed and confused at some point in our lives.
The reality is that there is no one way of doing things. Contrary to what the gurus love to tell us about the one way that "saved their business," we have options of what we can do based on our natural skills and talents, our target audience and our stage of business. In fact, having only one way of doing things is a key risk in a rapidly changing world. What if the goalposts change?
You do not need to be doing anything complicated to build a successful, profitable coaching business. You just need to focus on a few appropriate key things and get on with it.
No expensive PR, no complicated funnels, no paid advertising, no 24/7 hustling. Simplicity is key.
Related Link: How to Become a Coach that Makes a Real Difference
Here are four steps to work smarter, not harder.
Know yourself
You don't need to follow what everyone else does. Do you really want to be on social media all the time? On every platform? If the answer is no, then simply stop doing it. The reality is some people love social media. Others don't. And if you don't, forcing yourself to be ever present on it all the time is not going to be good for your motivation.
So, it starts by knowing what you're naturally good at and applying your superpowers to generate leads in a way that resonates with you. I am not saying it will be super comfortable all the time. You will have to do some proactive outreach (yes, you do have to do this in the early stages of your business, when people aren't knocking at your door). It may bring up fear of rejection (in fact, it probably will). But it will be ten times more effective than "posting and praying" on social media.
Even within proactive outreach, there are different methods of outreach and ways of approaching it. Do what works for you. Know yourself.
Know your customer
Want to work with companies? Want to work with executives?
Decide who you want to work with and go where they hang out. You can change your niche later, but you have to start somewhere!
Wherever you might want to go, coaching is becoming a bigger part of all of our lives. Know your value, and demonstrate it to the right people.
If your target market is people who are not on Facebook looking for opportunities, you don't need to be on there. You don't need to be trawling through Facebook Groups either.
Neither do you need to be networking all the time or speaking at conferences where people just don't get you. Be strategic, whatever you pick. Not only does it help cut your workload down, but it's also much more likely to be effective.
Related Link: A 'Culture of Coaching' Is Your Company's Most Important Ingredient for Success
Know your appropriate marketing strategies (and the outcome you want from them)
Know what to expect from the marketing strategies that you have selected. Some activities are much more conducive to long-term credibility and visibility than generating cash quickly; others are much more likely to get cash flowing into your business fast. At the beginning of your business, you might do both, but the latter is the priority.
You should also not be spending a fortune on testing out Facebook ads or expensive PR. Don't listen to anyone trying to tell you you have to do this.
The problem is when people get confused by the difference between cash and visibility generating activities and are then disappointed with their results. If you are posting on social media, you do not know who is looking at your posts. Over time you might build up that desired audience, but you probably can't expect results instantly.
So, pick no more than two to three strategies, and apply them consistently over a period of time, tweaking as you go. Consistency is key. Commit to showing up and then do it. But know what you expect the KPI to be first.
Your number one priority should always be reaching out to the people you want to work with. So, find a way to get in front of them.
Related Link: How to Launch an Online Coaching Business
Stop doing the things that get you nowhere
In terms of productivity, what we need to stop doing is just as important as what we are doing.
Doing more and more qualifications, being ever-present everywhere, working for free or low rates, tweaking your website twice a day and hanging out with others who are also not getting results is probably not going to help you.
These are often effective procrastination tools, because they actually prevent us from having to get out there and try to build a viable business. If we do that, we might fail. We might be rejected. And let's face it, that's scary.
Be honest with yourself. Are you avoiding what you need to do?
