As announced in the first episode – the About #1CoachBiz podcast – this episode is all about choosing the client that wants to work with you.
The start of 5 episodes that explains my attracting clients model.
Episode 2
Enjoy this episode
Shownotes
Hello and welcome to episode number 2 of the #1coachbiz podcast.
In episode 1 I shared some personal information of me with you. Let’s see if we can keep this up for each episode. Here it comes: I haven’t used shampoo for my hair since July 2014, except for one time.
Today I will talk about working with anybody and everybody, how sales scare me and how online visibility is different from networking events.
Intro
Let’s see if this sounds familiar.
At some point in your life, you got stuck. The way you were living wasn’t working anymore. Something had to change. Then you found this coaching method. It really helped you to get unstuck. You want to share this insight, this new style of living with everyone. This helped you, so why not help other people with it. You started following training and workshops and even got a license for your coaching method.
You are a good coach. You learned your coaching method and practice this as much as you can. You keep on learning about your coaching method, maybe even add another coaching method. You want to become better at your coaching so you can help people even better.
So let’s start with working with anybody and everybody
As a coach, you can probably help everybody with your solution and method. And you really want to help everyone because you can help them to get unstuck in their situation.
Most of the coaching you do is for individuals. You will really help them. But you want to do your coaching in companies too. There are people in companies with the same problems and you can ask for more money for your coaching when you work for companies.
You have it in you to make our world a better place. To help people as much as you can.
You have it also in you to die trying. Continuously helping people and forgetting about yourself.
It is the same as in the airplane and where you get the instructions about the oxygen mask to remember?
You need to put on your own mask first before you can help others to put on theirs. Even when the person next to you is your child. You need to put on Your oxygen mask first before you can help your child. And you know why, if you don’t have an oxygen mask on you may die trying to put the oxygen mask on your child. Both of you could die or you die and your child lives.
The chances are much better when you put on your oxygen mask first and then your child. Although this goes against our natural feelings. You want to help others first and then yourself. This natural feeling is just wrong. You have got to make sure that you are safe first and then you are able to help many more people.
The same is true for your coaching business. You have to make sure that your coaching business is running smoothly and that you have enough oxygen so you can help more people. You can only continue coaching people when your business is running well.
This also goes against the natural feelings about this. You want to help people, coach them. You are sure when you coach more people your business will be OK. But when there is no oxygen for your business will die and you will have to stop coaching people.
The lack of oxygen will drive you crazy, it is on your mind all day, you can’t focus, you do things with fear, you can’t support your family or yourself.
So start taking care of the oxygen for your own business first.
I want to tell you more about what I am afraid of
I need oxygen. Or if you haven’t figured it out yet. I need money. Enough money so my business can run and we as a family can live. You may feel that your coaching is a gift. This helped you to get unstuck. You learned this coaching because you wanted other people to get unstuck from a similar situation
I want to help these people. How can I ask for money for that? How can I charge good money for something that feels like a gift or so easy to me?
Or when somebody needs my help and it is clear to me that she doesn’t have the means at this moment. So I just need to help. Right?
If I would charge for my coaching this feels like bad money. The money I got from helping people. So I make sure that I never charge too much for my coaching. Sounds familiar?
The problem is that you need to help so many people this way for enough oxygen for your business to survive, that you need to find people everywhere that are stuck. You need to help lots and lots of people. That is good because you want to make the world a better place.
But you and I have a limited amount of time and energy. So you have to make choices who you can help and how.
The problem is that I am afraid of rejection. We all are afraid of getting rejected. We want to do the right thing. Try to sell your coaching at a higher price with the wrong people and you will get rejected, over and over again. That is why selling looks so terrifying. When you sell your coaching at the wrong time, at the wrong price, to the wrong people you will get rejected.
At the same time, you need to sell your coaching at the right price, a higher price than you are doing now. This way your business gets enough oxygen and you can relax more.
Selling your coaching at the right price means that coaching becomes more valuable for your client. The perceived value of your coaching will increase.
When you pay more for training or coaching you want to make sure that you get the most out of it. So you will put in more effort to get the most out of the coaching. This leads to better results for you. A win-win.
To be able to sell your coaching at a higher price to the right people you need to make sure that you are visible to the right people.
So over the third pard
How online visibility is different than networking events.
You love to talk to people in small groups or one-on-one. You are good at connecting with people. They enjoy talking with you.
At networking events, you meet with people and talk.
If you are like me you hate large crowds and stand at the periphery at a networking event. But I really connect with one or two people during such an event.
When you meet someone that is stuck, You connect and start your coaching right away. You help people to get unstuck.
Meeting people and really connect during meetings and events costs a lot of time. You have the event, the travel and the following up. Hopefully, you do follow up because that gets you, client.
Connecting and talking with people online is much more efficient and still fun to do. It makes you visible not just to this one connection but for a lot more people.
Visibility online is a great way to really leverage your time and effort. Create content and a lot more people are able to connect with you.
Create digital products and you are able to help lots and lots more people with the same effort.
How do you do this?
Let’s look at my model.
The Attracting Clients Model
Writing my first book “Laat de klant naar jou komen” (Let the client come to you) I actually laid out my model without realizing it. Later I draw the model that was in the book. You can find it on my site. (see link in the show notes http://numberonecoachbiz.com/episode2)
This model helps me to systemize my work. It also helps my clients to systemize their work and start attracting better clients. So this model can also help you.
A System for my work, focus, and a plan gives me more freedom. This may sound contradictory. By planning your work and having your work ready far ahead of the deadline gives you lots of freedom.
Let me share with you what this system is.
Picture a circular system. At the top of the circle, you start with building a Power Platform. Then move to the right and down you see building a Lasting List. Moving to the left you see building a Narrow Network.
Let’s lay it out.
Build your Power Platform
A Power Platform is your domain, this is where your marketing information meets informative articles. It is a combination of a website and blog on one domain, your domain. By publishing, articles on your domain people will find you in the search engines. This is step 1 of the visibility, very scary. You need to publish so other people can read about your thoughts, ideas, and tips.
When the visitor from the search engine landed on your article and finds it interesting she wants to read more of your tips. Maybe she even reads one or two more articles from you. However, they are not ready to buy from you. They may want to read your about page.
Build your Lasting List
To make sure that she can stay up to date with your latest articles you offer an email option. When they subscribe she will receive your latest article via their email inbox. It’s not a newsletter because it is one article of you each time. So now you stay in the picture with people that choose to follow you.
Build your Narrow Network
Not everyone that is your client has started looking in the search engines. You have to make sure that you are where they are. You want to be in the right social networking sites. In the right groups on LinkedIn or Facebook for example. There you listen. You answer questions. More people will start noticing you. Sometimes you can answer a question by referring to one of your articles on your Power Platform. This closes the circle and you have a continuous process.
Hyperspecialisation
There is one more thing, that actually comes first in this model. It sits on top of the circle. You need to choose your target client. Not a target group of people. One target client. This will help you to find the problem of your client and use the right language to attract people that are like your target client.
This concluded my Attracting Clients Model you can also see the actual model in the show notes.
This concludes, episode 2.
In episode 3 I will tell you more about how you get the best clients to buy from you.
