by Eric Dombach | Business Coach Training
A lot of the questions people have been sending me recently all relate to one common question: how business coaches can avoid overwhelm–particularly when it comes to marketing.
To be honest, people like me don’t always help. We constantly send you new ideas and promote different tactics. All very useful in its place, but if you’re already struggling to keep up, hearing that podcasting is the next big thing or that writing a book builds credibility or a that a new web page system make it easy for you to build your own landing pages; well, it just adds to the overwhelm.
There are two ways you can overcome this problem.
The first is to cut yourself off from the world. Unsubscribe from emails like mine, don’t go on any training courses or buy any new products for a few years. Just get your head down and concentrate on getting the most from the marketing you’re already doing.
I’m not kidding, by the way, that isn’t just an “Aunt Sally” option. I think it’s a very viable and sensible one for many people. Especially those who have a tendency to be distracted.
Avoid Overwhelm as a Business Coach by Doing What Pep Guardiola Does
The other approach is to do what successful football managers do.
Great managers build a side around a system they want to play, then buy the right players to play in that system. Barcelona’s “Tiki-Taka” under Pep Guardiola for example.
If your system and team are geared up to play an intricate passing style, there’s no point in buying a big, bustling centre forward who thrives on long balls and crosses, no matter how good he is individually. Fernando Torres never seemed to fit at Chelsea. And let’s not talk about Andy Carrol at Liverpool where they bought him and then avoided playing with any wingers who could supply him with crosses.
Sure, you may adjust your system a bit to incorporate a brilliant new player. But you won’t change it wholesale, and you won’t buy that player unless he fits pretty well with the system.
Apply that same philosophy to your marketing.
It’s great to look at new tools and approaches. But only bring on board the ones that fit well within your overall system.
Positioning yourself as a leading expert in your field? Stick to books, articles, videos and public speaking rather than jumping into Facebook Ads just because someone else has just made a killing with them.
Looking to build more “passive income”? Don’t get distracted by that course on selling high-value coaching programs.
And if you buy a new player, you probably need to sell one too. There’s only so much room in your squad. Have a policy of adding in new tactics only if they can give you better results than existing ones you can then drop.
Keeping tight control and sticking to things which fit with your overall system is key to making sure you don’t get distracted and overwhelmed by all the shiny new objects being thrown at you these days.
Looking for more great business coach marketing tips like these–ones that will help you cut through the clutter and find the handful of tactics that are proven to work for business coaching success? Download our FREE ebook, Secrets of a Business Coaching Rock Star!
Ian Brodie helps consultants, coaches, and other professionals to attract and win more clients. He’s the author of the #1 Amazon bestseller Email Persuasion and has been named as one of the Top 50 Global Thought Leaders in Marketing and Sales and one of the “resources of the decade” for professional services marketing. You can get more of his in-depth tips on starting and growing your business at www.ianbrodie.com
by Eric Dombach | Business Coaching Systems
In 1994, I owned a small construction contracting business and employed a team of nine. I had another shareholder, but business felt lonely. I had no one to turn to for big decisions or just to bounce ideas around. So I hired my first business coach, Martin–and one of the most important things he did for me was to help me feel more supported and less lonely in the business. In my opinion, this is one of the most important ways you can earn business coaching clients’ trust–and ultimately become a more effective business coach.
Martin didn’t offer just the standard coaching sessions and business tools, he offered the service of being there for me. Emails weren’t that common back then, so we mostly communicated by phone. I knew that if I needed advice or help with a decision, I could call Martin and he would talk me through it. I valued this tremendously and all these years later, I’ve never forgotten what it meant to me.
More recently, during one of my coaches group coaching sessions, I was saddened to realize that many on the session don’t offer this service to their clients. Even worse, they didn’t perceive the value in it!
Earn Business Coaching Clients’ Trust by Putting Yourself in Their Shoes
During the session, I encouraged the coaches to put themselves in their client’s shoes, asking whom the clients could turn to in a moment of need. Many said they assumed their clients would consult friends, family, and perhaps other business owners. I agreed that this can be the case–but on many occasions, these sources offer biased opinions or faulty advice that is not founded on solid business practices. This can result in poor decision-making that impacts the business negatively and ultimately jeopardizes the coaching relationship (because too often, coaches are the first ones to be let go in times of financial crunch).
I strongly suggested that as coaches, they should be the first ones their clients turn to for help and guidance. Clients should feel safe with their coaches and confident that any input will be for the better good, that it will be objective and challenge the owner to reach informed, profitable decisions. Heck, if only for retention purposes, the coach should be the first call.
We then discussed the value of this service. The results from great counsel can be outstanding–and hence the value is priceless.
Will this Become a Time Suck?
One coach asked how much time this might suck out of her daily schedule. In my experience, the answer is not a lot.
Sure, there are some clients who are needy and I have to be careful not to spend an excessive amount of time with them, but most are infrequent with their requests. And of course now, in a world where digital communication is more commonplace than even the telephone, I ask clients to email or message me first. On some occasions, it is necessary to have a call, but most of the time it can be handled without a phone call.
But even if you need to pick up the phone a little more frequently than you are now, consider how much time it takes to secure a new client when you lose one. To me, five minutes once in awhile to offer great value right when my clients need it most is well worth it.
How to Implement This Service
Here are some recommendations for rolling this service out:
- Make sure that this support service is part of your sales pitch and program.
- Set the rules of frequency and method of communicating between sessions – I offer unlimited contact, by the way.
- Never be judgemental.
- Refer to any contact in the next session and gather feedback on the impact or results.
- Consider using closed Facebook groups to share with your clients. They can also learn from each other, as many of my coaches do in our group.
For more great strategies, tools, and insights on creating profitable, long-lasting business coaching relationships, request a FREE 30-day trial of our complete business coaching system!
by Eric Dombach | How to Become a Business Coach
Looking to become a successful business coach? You have to do more than speak the right words. You have to prove through your actions that you can be trusted–that you’re worth the commitment you seek. One of the best ways to do that is by taking extra care to treat people right and delivering jaw-dropping customer service (both before AND after you close the sale). Here are my 10 Commandments of Client Service for Business Coaches. I share them with you so that you can become the most successful business coach you can be…
- Don’t expect your clients to tolerate client service mistakes.
- Always do what you say you will do, when you say you will do it.
- Never, ever make a promise you’re not absolutely sure you can keep, because promise-breaking is the same as lying.
- Never try to remember your promises. Write them on a task list.
- Remember that unacknowledged communication is a profound form of disrespect.
- Reply to every inbound email or phone call within half the time your clients expect you to.
- Review your task list before the end of the day to make sure you haven’t broken any promises.
- If it appears that you won’t be able to keep a promise, re-negotiate before the deadline.
- Always use auto-responders and voice mail messages to communicate your absence so you don’t appear non-responsive.
- Communication technology problems are never acceptable excuses for breaking promises, so make sure your technology is working.
Yes, You Really Should Stick to these 10 Commandments of Client Service for Business Coaches!
These “commandments” might seem a little hardcore, but I can’t tell you how many prospects I’ve won over and clients I’ve impressed by being a stickler about them. I often receive the comment, “You’re one of the most reliable, dependable people I’ve met–and that’s why I want to work with you.”
Not only that, keeping these commandments demonstrates your credibility as a business coach. Every day, you tell business owners that you can help them follow through on their goals and objectives, teach them how to take control of their time, and motivate them to get on top of their game. If you want to make those kinds of claims with any degree of believability, you must show them that you are on top of YOUR game, and that you practice what you preach.
Finally, there’s something to be said for the power of simple human courtesy–something that’s sorely lacking in this fast-paced, technology-driven world. When you treat your clients and prospects the way they deserve to be treated, they’ll notice that something is different about you. And that will open the floodgates of increased sales, more referrals, and positive word-of-mouth.
For more great tips on becoming a business coach, check out our FREE ebook, How to Become a Business Coach!
by Eric Dombach | Business Coach Training
This post is brought to us courtesy of Bob Bly, one of the best copywriters in the business. Here he shares that one of the best ways to close business coach clients is to pay attention to the timing. Check out his Direct Response Letter for more gems like these.
Amy and I attended a wedding recently.
We knew the parents of the bride but almost no one else there.
Given that I am not outgoing or terribly social, these situations are always uncomfortable for me.
Anyway, to avoid awkward silence, I forced myself to make small talk with RH, the guy sitting next to me at my assigned table.
RH and most of the other friends of the bride’s parents were a tad older than me — early to mid-60s.
Anyway, I asked RH what he did, and he told me that even though he had been in corporate IT, he was now working as a high school janitor.
I assumed he had been fired from his IT position.
He was sort of, but not quite.
The company didn’t outright fire him.
They said they were shutting down their NJ office, which was about a 20-minute drive from his home. He had worked in this nearby office for over a decade.
They gave him a choice: get downsized or keep your job but move to our NYC office.
He told me: “I almost did, but at my age, I just didn’t want a 90-minute commute to work.”
“And so even though I didn’t want to leave my job, I refused the offer — and I was out on the street.
“No one wanted to hire a senior IT guy whose experience was strictly on older platforms, so I could not get another corporate job and ended up making a tiny fraction of my old salary doing
menial work.”
But that’s not the end of the story.
The company’s NYC office was in the World Trade Center.
A few weeks after he would have moved to that office, 9/11 happened.
Everyone in the office was killed, as RH would have almost surely been had he taken the job at the WTC.
Timing Is Everything
The lesson is something you already know.
A lot of what happens in life, good or bad, is timing, which is just a subset of luck.
So don’t beat yourself up too much over the bad stuff — and conversely, don’t pat yourself on the back too briskly for the good stuff.
Much of what happens results from factors beyond our control.
If you want more proof that forces we have no control over what determines much of our lives, read Adam Alter’s excellent book on that subject, Drunk Tank Pink (Penguin).
Close Business Coach Clients with Timing and Marketing
But here’s the good news about timing as it applies to marketing (Alter is a Marketing Professor).
To make the sale, you have to be in front of the prospect at the right time — the time he is thinking about buying your product or another like it.
And the way to be there at the right time is to be there ALL the time.
In the pre-Internet era, that was almost impossible, because print and broadcast media were generally too expensive for that kind of frequency.
But in the digital age, we CAN be there all the time … or at least much of the time … in an affordable way with blogs, e-newsletters, banner ads, and other online media.
So timing is everything. And the best way to make sure your timing is right in marketing is to be there all of the time — or as close to that as you can get.
Looking for more great business coach marketing tips like these? Download our FREE ebook, Secrets of a Business Coaching Rock Star!
by Eric Dombach | Business Coaching Franchise
Here’s an important question we get from people considering investing in a business coaching franchise: how much will I earn in a business coaching franchise?
It’s no secret that business coaches can make a great living.
Most of the successful business coaches out there are earning at least a 6-figure income–anywhere from $100,000 to $200,000 per year. Many of the folks that I have personally trained and mentored in this business for the last ten years have gone to earn $200,000-$300,000 per year, and my average is $410,000. But that doesn’t mean that everyone can experience results like that.
In fact, a number of years ago we conducted a study of the actual revenue performance of franchisees and regional managers in one of the major franchise brands. The study involved seven territories of the UK and five territories in the U.S.
And the average coach in this particular brand was earning the equivalent of $81,113.
You might say, that’s not bad. $81,000?
And you’re right–that’s not bad at all…until you factor in costs.
The Hidden Costs of Being a Business Coaching Franchisee
See, there are dozens of hidden costs that business coaching franchises don’t tell you about–costs that significantly impact your take-home pay.
You’ve got $2,000 per month in overhead, marketing, IT, insurance, taxes, software, etc.,–or $24,000 per year. And then you have the franchisors royalty. This is typically anywhere from $1000-$1800 a month (we’ll say $1500 as an average), for another $18,000 per year.
The result?
Your $81,000 has been reduced to $39,000 just like that.
Do you really want to invest $100,000 to earn $40,000 per year?
Your question was, how much will I earn as a business coaching franchise? When you run the numbers, you realize that franchises seriously eat away at your profits–so that if you earn the average of $81,000 per year, you’ll be left with less than half that when all is said in done.
Take that into account as you’re thinking about business coaching franchising as a solution to getting into the business coaching industry.
And if you want more information, download our free ebook, The Business Coaching Franchise Buyer’s Guide. It will help you think through all the pros and cons of buying a business coaching franchise. Enjoy!
