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You finished your coaching certification program and thought the hard part was over. And now you’ve got to figure out how to get clients for your new life coaching business.
Maybe you’ve heard networking is the only effective way to find new clients. Or that investing in online advertising is the quickest path to finding new clients. While both methods have advantages and drawbacks, there is no one single way to market your coaching practice. These eight proven marketing tactics work for every coaching niche.
Create a Free Resource
You started your practice to help people. You have a wealth of knowledge that can be a resource to the very people you wish to serve while also building your authority. Share your knowledge freely to build your authority while growing your email list.
The resource should help your buyer persona with one of their most significant challenges and be available in exchange for an email address. The resource can be in just about any format imaginable: an e-book, a video, a checklist, a toolbox of resources, a step-by-step guide, an audio file, a webinar, an email course, a sample chapter, or lesson.
Then, share your free resource everywhere!
Engage to Serve
Communities such as Facebook groups are a fantastic place to begin building your authority. But authority doesn’t come from osmosis. You can’t simply join a group and magically have more authority. Authority comes from engaging with an emphasis on service.
Members bring their burning questions to their communities; they are asking for help. And you can help them. Spending 15 minutes a day in various groups or forums like Quora answering questions and providing value is an easy and effective way to elevate your authority.
Focus on Value
Every single person on the planet is struggling with something at any given moment. Think about your buyer persona and identify a few ways to provide free value to her right now. What does she need?
Value can be provided through:
- Sharing educational content that she can benefit from,
- Motivational content,
- Quick tips that she can implement immediately,
- Your original perspective on a hot topic,
- That doesn’t mean you need to create every piece of content. Sharing someone else’s content that addresses your buyer persona’s challenges is still providing value.
Social Media
Social media is a great free resource to market your coaching practice. But, please, for the love of glitter, do not use your personal profile to constantly post about your new business. Using your Facebook personal profile for business purposes is against the Facebook Terms of Service. Plus, it’s icky! Constantly posting about your business on your personal profile is the same as going to a birthday party and pitching your services to every guest. The introvert in you knows it’s gross!
Instead, use your personal profile to share your life with your network. Your life includes your new coaching practice.
- Create a Facebook Business Page for your new business
- Update your Work History on your personal profile to link to your new business
- Edit your Featured Photo to announce your new practice
- Add your website {if applicable} to your Intro section
- An occasional post about your business is okay, especially if you celebrate something or share something of value. A good rule of thumb is no more than one of seven posts should be business-related.
Free Online Listings
There are approximately eleventy-billion online directories for life coaches, with many that provide basic free listings. While there are no guarantees that you’ll get quality clients without upgrading to a paid listing, having a free listing can help you build credibility and take advantage of SEO.
The two best directories I have discovered are Noomii and My Coach Match. Both are optimized for search engines.
Google My Business is a free service from Google that allows online and in-person businesses a profile on Google that shows up in search results.
Create a Video Mini-Series
Video is the most potent way for strangers to get to know you since video allows you to showcase your personality and expertise.
And the interwebz loves video. YouTube is the #2 search engine in the world. Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and even Pinterest support video.
Identify a topic you are passionate about and create a series of videos on that topic. Be clear about what the outcome is you want people to achieve with the series and include a Call to Action.
Your list may be tiny, but the people who have opted-in have already told you they want to hear from you. When they signed up, they said Please keep me posted on what you’re up to.
Email your subscribers and ask them what their biggest challenge is. When subscribers reply, invite them to jump on a call with you so you can learn more about their situation and see if you can help them with it. If you can, offer to work with them to overcome that challenge.
Referrals
Take a deep breath, friend; asking for referrals is one of the most effective ways to get clients for your new life coaching business. But it doesn’t have to be cringe-worthy!
The goal isn’t to pitch your services to your network, but rather to ask for referrals and introductions. It can be as simple as “I’ve just launched a new coaching practice. Do you know any {your buyer persona} who are struggling with {problem you solve}? I’d love to chat with them and see if I can help them get past this issue.”
Friends and Family
Consider your friends and family. As your inner circle, they want to hear about your life and support you. Ask them if they know anyone who could benefit from your services.
Business Network
You already have a group of people you’ve built relationships with inside your business network. They may know someone who would be a great client for you.
Coaching Classmates
Don’t forget about your coaching program classmates. They likely know someone who would benefit from your services {and vice versa}.
Plot Twist: Pay What You Can
Offering your services in exchange for cold, hard, cash can be intimidating for new coaches. Even established coaches occasionally feel imposter syndrome bubble up when having the money talk with potential clients.
Instead of stumbling over what to charge, or offering your services for free, offer a Pay What You Can to your first clients. Your client will benefit from working with you, and you’ll get a boost of confidence, plus a testimonial you can use in future marketing.
Every coach starts in the exact same place: with zero clients. There’s no big secret on how to get clients for your new life coaching business. Use these eight tactics to begin building your coaching practice.
Building a successful coaching business is hard. Building a successful coaching business as an introvert can feel freakin’ impossible. But it’s not. #PinkyPromise And I wrote an eBook to show you exactly how to do it. Get your free copy here.