Practice What You Preach

The last thing we're going to talk about when it comes to landing your dream coaching client is living what you teach and leading by example. This is probably one of the easiest ways to attract people to you. It's a powerful way to show others that you don't just tell people what to do, but that you actually do it too. In other words - you don't just talk the talk, but walk the walk!

Just as in the case of testimonials and case studies giving prospective clients proof of your credibility, living what you teach can also be an extremely powerful tool in building a successful coaching business and attracting those dream coaching clients. People will be drawn to you when they see you have what they want. Meaning, if they struggle with lack of confidence but see you living boldly and confidently, they're naturally going to be interested in you and want to know how to get that.

Another example is that if you teach clients to have an attitude of gratitude then you should make sure when you're posting on social media sites or interacting with others on your website or blog that you're not always complaining about life and being negative. Instead, if you really believe and stand behind teaching others to have an attitude of gratitude then that should carry over into your life and you'll automatically just live it.

When you're passionate about your beliefs and what you coach others to do, it's only normal that it will spill over into your personal life and others will see that. So make sure you're living what you teach because leading by example is one of the greatest tools you have.

Here are some ways you can lead by example:

Honesty - don't try to exaggerate about results you have with your coaching business. Be truthful about achievements your clients have made and what you really can help people with. Never be dishonest and misrepresent who you are or what you do.

Responsibility - don't blame others when something goes wrong. Own the mistake and take the responsibility.

Listen - listen to others, it's not all about you. You have to learn to close your mouth and open your ears. Listen to what others around you are saying.

Inspiration - be an inspiration to those around you. A good coach is also a good leader and a good inspiration!

Authenticity - being authentic ties into being honest too. It means you're not afraid to open yourself up and be vulnerable. It means you're not misrepresenting who you are. Instead, you're leading by example and showing those around you that it's alright to be authentic and yourself instead of trying to be someone you're not.

Again, these are just some of the ways you can lead by example. Lliving what you teach is about living each day to the fullest, going about doing your business in such a way that it shows others you really believe and have confidence in what you're doing and live it on a regular basis.

In closing, just remember that it does take time and effort to land your dream coaching client. If you put into practice what you learned from this series, it's definitely something that can be achieved. And wouldn't you rather take the time and effort to do things in the beginning that will ensure you'll land dream clients instead of finding yourself working with people that aren't a fit?

Pricing Is Critical – But Not For The Reasons You Might Think

Now it's time to talk about that part of landing your dream coaching client that a lot of people don't like talking about - charging what you're worth. There's no right or wrong way to do this. It's going to be different for everyone. But there are some things to take into consideration when deciding what to charge

It's not just about profit - yes, you need to charge what you're worth so you build a successful, profitable business. But pricing has to do with so much more than profit.

Take into consideration your target market - you have to think about your market and what they can afford too. For example, if your market is a new business owner within the first year of business, more than likely they're not going to be able to afford $200 an hour. On the other hand, if your market is making $50,000 to $75,000 a year and want to move their business to the next level - six figures a year - then you probably shouldn't be charging them $100 an hour because that's too low for that market. It's all about balance and figuring out what the sweet spot is for them.

Costs of running your business - another thing to take into consideration when charging what you're worth is the cost of running your business. Think about your monthly expenses and break it down so you get a ballpark figure out what you're hourly fee needs to be in order to meet those expenses and have enough left over to pay your team, yourself, and put some money back into your business and savings. Don't forget to include taxes in your calculations.

These are just a few things you need to think about when pricing your services. Charging what you're worth can really be summed up with this: it's based on the value you bring to your clients. Special skills, your unique selling proposition and more are all things that can be monetized when it comes to your coaching fee. Kendall Summerhawk says it best when it comes to this: Value is perceived by your clients. Pricing is perceived by you. Your dream coaching client wants to know that they can easily justify spending this amount of money with you because of the value they will be getting in return. Your job is to help show them this.

And lastly, in order to charge what you're worth you have to be able to share that price without batting an eyelash. In other words, you have to have confidence that you're worth what you're charging.

Show Off Your Expertise With Well-Placed Testimonials And Case Studies

What’s better than social proof? A solid testimonial from a raving fan. Here’s how to get those all important first testimonials, and some common mistakes to avoid.

If you're a brand new coach who hasn't had the opportunity to work with a client, you may need to offer your services to a handful of people for free. If not free, then for a low introductory special. This way you can coach these individuals and then gather their testimonials and case studies based on their results. If you've been a coach for a while, you should have a system in place so that you're always asking for testimonials from clients and building case studies to add to your marketing materials.

Why is it important to get testimonials and use case studies? This may be a bit obvious, but it's easy for all of us to say how great our service or product is. After all, we worked hard and it's our 'sweat and tears' we've put into it so of course we know how great it is. But that doesn't matter to your prospective client. They don't want to hear you tell them how great it is, they want the proof from other people. They want to know that others have worked with you and achieved results they're looking for.

One thing to keep in mind about testimonials, though: Don't just use a name. It's easy to write fake testimonials, so without a photo (or better yet, video) those kind words about your coaching work will be largely ignored. Instead, be sure to include a photo, location, website URL and other identifying information. Do whatever you can to show others this is a real testimonial from a real person.

While testimonials are a great thing, let's talk about why case studies can be even better and are important to your coaching business.

As mentioned already, testimonials are a must have, and they certainly add some credibility to you and your coaching services. But a testimonial doesn't really show what an individual client can expect to gain. That's where case studies come into play.

When you're looking for your dream coaching client, you want them to be able to come to your website and know without a shadow of a doubt that you're going to offer them the solution they need to one of their biggest challenges. And the best way for them to see this isn't by reading all the great testimonials clients have written, it's by being able to look at a few different case studies you've shared and actually learn how you helped someone solve a problem.
 
Does this mean you shouldn't use testimonials anymore? No. They still serve a purpose. But you should use them in conjunction with case studies to help build your credibility and give prospective clients proof that you do what you say you can do.

Instant Credibility

It's not easy building and running a successful coaching business. There are all sorts of coaches out there and it takes time to build your reputation and credibility. But credibility is essential to your success so you have to be willing to take action in order to build it. As mentioned earlier, you can build an online presence and that will help with building social proof but you have to go even further than that. And one of the best ways to do that is by writing a book.

You're probably shaking your head, thinking no way. I don't have time to do this. I don't know what I'd write about. It's too hard to get a book published. Nope, I just can't do this.

While these used to be good excuses, in this day and age they're not. With all the technology advances and access to things like Amazon, writing a book is a lot more doable today than it ever used to be. Gone are those days of having to find a publisher to pitch your book to and waiting to see whether they'll accept it or reject it. Now, it's just a matter of writing the content - and if you've already been blogging for a while, you have a wealth of content available for repurposing.
 
There's just something that screams expert when you can say you're an author. This builds a level of credibility that can't be beat. Think about it: anybody can set up a blog and start sharing their expertise on a topic. Anybody can write articles and submit them to directories or share on other blogs as a guest expert. Anybody can be a guest on a podcast. But not everybody will put in the time and effort to become an author. If you take the time to do this, not only are you building your credibility, but you're also a step ahead of many others in the market. That’s the power of publishing a book.

And think about how credible you’ll be when you take books with you to a speaking engagement or in person event, where your dream-coaching client may be. Handing someone a book rather than a business card makes an unforgettable first impression. Or maybe you have a chance to meet with a prospective client who is local - wouldn't you want to be able to hand them a copy of your book? Talk about an extremely powerful way to show your expertise and credibility!

As you can see, writing a book is an excellent way to build your credibility and now is the perfect time to do it.

How to Make Saying “Yes” a No-Brainer

The next strategy for landing your dream client is to make saying yes to your coaching services a total no-brainer.

Stop and think for a minute.  Have you ever been to a website before where it was so busy (a gazillion navigation buttons, a bunch of different options to buy one product, a notification to do this or wait, do this instead) that you could not choose which button to click?  What did you do? More than likely you went away without doing anything, including spending any money with them!

A confused person doesn't know what to do and instead of doing something, they do nothing instead. And that's not what you want for your coaching business.  You want people to have clarity about what you're offering and clear guidance on how to get it.

So, how do you achieve this?

You have to give your prospective clients a very clear call to action.  This means don't give them a bunch of different options to choose from or things they have to think about.  Keep it simple!  Spell it out for them.

Another way to make saying yes to you easy is to play on their emotions.  We're not talking about being manipulative here, but instead playing off of one very normal emotion all people experience - regret.

For example, you can play on this emotion of regret by letting your potential clients know that if they don't act now, they'll miss out on the special price.  If they don't act now, they’ll find themselves regretting the decision because when they do come back they’ll see the price increase.  You can also do this by mentioning to the prospective client that you only have one opening available right now for a coaching client.  Again, if they don't act now they’ll find themselves regretting that decision when they come back and you can't take them on.

 

All in all, when it comes to making the “yes” easy, it's just a matter of playing off their emotions in a positive way, and showing them (by your social presence/proof, expert articles, guest expert appearances on podcasts, etc.) you have the solution they're looking for.  And once you've closed the sale, put it in writing for them.  Have them sign a contract.  This will spell out exactly what they're getting and leave no area for questioning.

The Art of the Free Consultation Call

Want to know the top “tried and true” method of landing your dream coaching client? It’s simple. Offer a free consultation.

Here’s why. Very rarely will someone hire you as a coach – especially if your services are priced on the higher end – without first getting on the phone with you. And that goes both ways. You should not agree to work with a new client without first getting to know her better.

The reason this is so important is because your prospective client wants a chance to get a feel for you and to ask you any questions they may have. It also gives you a chance to do the same thing, and to get a feel for her, her personality, what she’s looking for in a coach. You’ll also know if she’s really serious about making changes, or if she’s just a wannabe with no real ambition.

An average consult call is about 20 minutes. Set a timer if you have to so you don't get stuck on the phone longer than necessary. Twenty minutes is ample time to let you (and your prospective client) feel things out and make a decision as to whether or not you're a good fit to work together.

Another reason a free consultation call is a good idea for your coaching business is because if someone is on the fence about hiring you, you can land the sale during these 20 minutes. You'll be able to answer her questions and show your expertise in that little amount of time on the phone.

Here are a few questions you should be asking a prospective client during a free consultation call:

• What is your biggest challenge?
• What would it mean for you if you were able to find a solution for this challenge?
• How do you think a coach can help you better achieve your goals?
• Have you worked with a coach before, and what was the outcome?

These are just a few ideas of things you should ask a potential client. And maybe these are things you don't even ask on the phone, but in a pre-consultation call questionnaire (if you have something like this set up).

Of course there are also cons to offering free consultation calls. There are those people out there that are what's known as freebie seekers - they take and take and take all the free information they can get but never turn around and invest any money. In fact, these people normally have absolutely no intention of ever spending any money with you. Another con is the fact that you're giving away 20 to 30 minutes of your time. It may not seem like much but a 20-30 minute chunk of time here, and another chunk of time there can add up pretty quickly. 

Does this mean you shouldn't offer free consultation calls? No, because they can be very useful. You just need to ensure that you're not attracting all those freebie seekers with no intention of hiring you. One way to help nip this in the bud is to have a questionnaire that gets filled out before you even schedule a consult time. Find out some basic information first - how long they've been in business, how much money they make, etc. This will weed out the freebie seekers and those that can't afford you saving you from wasting both your time and their time with a free consult call. 

To sum it up, the main objective of a free consult call when you set one up is for both your prospective client and you to feel each other out and see if working together is a good fit or not.

AdSense and Social Poetry

Winter has finally come to Northwest Arkansas.  Which means I've been spending a lot of time curled up with a cup of tea and a good book.  Coincidentally, two of my recent favorites have been written by the same man - bestselling author, Joel Comm.

Several years ago, I read a book called the AdSense Code, written by Joel Comm.  I immediately put AdSense ads on all of my sites.  And I was so excited when I received my first check from Google!  Granted, it was only for $100.  But it was official!  I was making money online!  I was now a real internet marketer.  Unfortunately, I was in such a hurry to make money, that I did not actually implement everything in the book the way Joel explained it.  As a result, I'm sure now that I left money on the table.  So when I heard that Joel had written another AdSense book, I knew I had to have it.  And I was not disappointed!

AdSense Secrets 6.0 explains everything you ever wanted to know about Google AdSense.  This is not just an update of Joel's previous books on AdSense.  It is a complete AdSense how-to guide.  It starts with the very first step to making money online, building a website.  I already have several websites, so I almost skipped this chapter.  I'm glad I didn't! 

Once you have your site built, Joel goes on to explain everything else you need to know - things like how to optimize your ads, how placement affects your results, how to understand Google Analytics, the value of content, using AdSense on mobile devices and how to create a content hub.  There's a chapter on troubleshooting, if you use all his suggestions and don't get the results you expected.  He even provides several case studies from others who are successfully using AdSense.

I can't wait to go through this book again.  This time I'm going to do it right.  I'm starting with Chapter 1 and implementing every tip, suggestion, and piece of advice Joel has to offer.  I can't wait to see what that does to my next check from Google!

Joel's other book is a bit different.  I've been following Joel on various social media platforms for years.  And one of the things I look forward to are his photoquotes.  Joel uses photoquotes to share some of his best tips, his most profound thoughts - and his best jokes.  His book, Social Poetry, is a collection of some of his best.

Now I know what you're thinking.  Why would I be recommending a book of photoquotes?  Because I love Joel's photoquotes.  I see every day how he uses them to engage with people and build relationships.  And that is what social media is all about.

I've heard some say they were disappointed that Social Poetry wasn't more of a how-to book.  That was not its purpose.  That was not the purpose of this book. The intent of this book is to illustrate the power of photoquotes to capture the hearts and minds of your followers. But for those of you who desperately need that information, Joel does list the app he uses, as well as a similar app for Android, in the back of the book. So if you really need to know how to do this, download the apps. Meanwhile, I loved seeing some of my faves as well as some new photos and hearing the inspiration behind them. I am now inspired to create my own photoquotes, thanks to this book.

For once, I'm grateful for the last few cold and snowy days.  It gave me a chance to read two awesome books by one amazing man.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go optimize a few AdSense ads, find some cool photos for photoquotes, and start making more money!