What Do Your Clients Really Need?

Learning how to “sell” yourself as a coach is an important skill, but it isn’t always effective in gaining new clients. The key is finding out what potential clients need, and communicating to them how you are a resource in helping them meet that need.

It’s essential to be aware that being a good coach is not the same as being able to start or run a coaching business. Less than 24% of coaches are able to sustain themselves and focus on coaching full-time.

Finding the Right Clients

You don’t just want to get new clients, you want to get the right kind of clients. That’s where branding comes in. When done right, your branding is what makes the right client go “This is exactly what I’ve been looking for” while turning the wrong client away.
It entails everything from your website design, to the tone of voice you write in, the type of content you share, and the way you set your prices. It’s what sets you apart from other coaches.If you offer life coaching for high-level executives, your messaging should be different than when you’re targeting new moms, and it should be consistent across all of your channels.

Starting the Conversation

So you know the perfect topic to start your conversation with, but the next challenge comes: how to present it in a way that is interesting enough to make the potential client curious and eager to continue the conversation? Find new angles to start the conversation that will spark client engagement. You can test them out by asking yourself, “Would I be interested in this conversation if someone asked this or said that to me?” Remember… you are your own best client. If it doesn’t work for you, it probably won’t work for someone else.

Emma-Louise Elsey, a professional coach and former project/relationship manager to fortune 500 companies, provides some tips in this Coaching Federation article:

One of the biggest struggles coaches face is getting clients.

It’s all too easy to fall into the trap of trying to TELL or SELL coaching instead of asking questions to help your prospects understand what they’re looking for—and then letting them sell coaching to themselves!