Brand, Ideas, Story, Style, My Life: Is Thinking Like a Coach Hurting Your Coaching Business?

Wednesday, May 9, 2018

Is Thinking Like a Coach Hurting Your Coaching Business?

If you’re like so many of the coaches I talk to, you’re fired up about helping people. You want, more than anything, to find clients you’ll love working with, so you can guide them through a powerful transformation.

But … you don’t know how to find new leads, or get clients beyond the people you already know.

So, when it comes to finding, attracting, and converting prospects into clients, you’re trapped in a spiral of chaos, flying by the seat of your pants, hoping something will work, so you can do your work!

You just want to coach … to do what you love and help people. I mean, how much would you love it if someone just handed you clients, or if they just magically appeared?

In other words, you’re thinking like a coach.

You’re focusing on the end result: getting and coaching clients. And that’s great! There’s nothing wrong with keeping your eye on the prize—visualizing your big dream and desire.

But, if you’re focusing only on the end result and not on the process—what, specifically, it takes to find, convert, and enroll leads and prospects—then you’re probably struggling to actually get and coach clients … which means you’re not making your biggest impact or turning a profit.

You’ve probably realized that—which is why you’re here.

You may feel a bit like you’re floundering, stumbling, or scrambling … like you’re beating your head against the wall. You’ve heard the saying, “Doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results, is the definition of insanity.”

So what if there was a different approach to getting and coaching clients?

There is:

Thinking like a business owner.

When you think like a business owner, you visualize the end result and you also focus on the process of getting there: doing what it takes to find new leads, convert prospects and actually enroll clients.

Instead of chaos, stumbling, or scrambling, you need structure.

(Wait! Hear me out. Structure is not a dirty word! In fact, structure leads to function, which leads to freedom.)

With the right structure—an intentional way to generate awareness and find new leads—you will attract and convert prospects with ruthless efficiency.

Therefore, instead of playing catch-up, trying to tie up loose ends and track down leads, you’ll have more freedom to spend time coaching (or doing whatever else you want to do!).

I’d like to introduce the very same system we use here at The Coaches Console: a structured lead generation funnel (which leads into a structured and effective sales funnel).

Here’s a diagram showing what that lead generation funnel looks like—and how it compares to what you’re likely doing now:

As you can see, in the chaotic approach to lead generation, leads are flying all over the place, going by the wayside becoming missed opportunities because you forget to follow-up—or landing haphazardly in random spots for you to pick up and redirect (which is so time- and energy-consuming).

But in the structured approach, leads are engaged through a series of follow-up messages, provided value along the way, and then funneled directly into conversations with you, followed by a sales funnel, where you can reach out to those people you’d love to work with.

You’ll see, too, that the first step to taking the structured approach is to create a lead magnet. And because I know this can feel a little overwhelming, I’ve included a worksheet below, designed to help you create a great lead magnet that can serve as a powerful foundation for your lead generation structure.

Worksheet

When you answer the following questions, you’ll begin developing the content for you lead magnet, which you’ll then insert at the opening of your structured lead generation funnel.

Think about the people you love working with. What is the top challenge they struggle with? As much as possible, use their words to describe it here.

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Note: Your answer to this question will guide you in beginning your lead magnet with copy that illustrates that you understand your ideal prospects’ pain, their struggles, and the challenges they face.

What are some of the mistakes you see people making when they try to solve their top challenge on their own?

Note: Your answer to this question will provide the foundation for you to share the mistakes you see your ideal prospects making as they strive to overcome their challenges. When you mention these in your lead magnet, you’ll establish yourself as an expert, because you are helping them identify what they’re doing wrong.

What simple exercise can you provide to help people stop making the mistakes you’ve described and start moving in the right direction?

Note: Your answer to this question will give people a taste of how you can coach them through their struggles as they strive to transform their lives.

In conclusion …

When you start thinking like a business owner, you can put in place the structure necessary to efficiently attract and convert leads, so you experience a steady stream of ideal clients—and a steady income, too—and make the biggest impact possible as a coach.

Complete the exercise above, and then watch your inbox for another special gift we’ve put together for you … one we believe may be just the “aha!” you need to revolutionize your marketing so you effortlessly attract and engage your prospects.

Next Steps…

In the meantime, if you want to discover the first steps you can take to begin finding, attracting, and converting prospects you don’t already know, I’d like to invite you to a new, complimentary training I’m offering, called, “How to Consistently Generate New Leads Beyond the People You Already Know.”

When you sign up to join me for this training, you’ll learn how to reach and make connections with the people who need you most—without guesswork or wasted time. You’ll discover the three greatest myths around finding your ideal clients, and how to make sure they can’t wait to work with you!