This is a follow-up to my previous post about the teleseminar I did with Sandra De Freitas, “The Coach’s Tech Coach” We only had a limited amount of time on the call so Sandra kindly provided the following guest blog post as a follow-up to that interview. Here you’ll find the resources and links Sandra and I mention in the teleseminar.

If you are a coach who is avoiding marketing themselves on the internet you are letting huge revenues and fabulous clients get away!

The coaching profession is an interesting profession indeed. Not only can we help our clients achieve glowing results but we can also coach anyone, no matter where they live in the world. Sometimes we forget how lucky we are to have this great flexibility in our business, and so we tend to play a small game with our marketing. But if you want to play a big game (even just a medium-sized game) with your marketing and attract international clientele, then keep reading.

Using the internet to attract clients is easier than you may want to believe. Just take a few baby steps each day and you will be well on your way.

Here are some resources to help you:

Newsletters:

I trust www.aweber.com to manage my subscriber list and send my newsletters and autoresponders. Aweber not only offers the best value but they offer fabulous tech support and they were rated #1 in avoiding spam ratings (this is really important and ensures your communications are delivered!)

Websites, blogs and WordPress:

Take a look at the book I wrote on Blogsites and using WordPress to get you a professional looking and functioning site www.WordPressBlogsites.com

Teleclasses:

Get a bridgeline from either www.instantTeleseminar.com or www.freeconference.com. Even if you don’t need a bridgeline now get one anyway because it will be one less hurdle for you to jump over when you do need it.

Record your teleclasses to give away as bonuses, freebies (encourage newsletter sign ups) or to gather content for products later.

I use Audio Acrobat, www.audioacrobat.com, to record. There’s less fuss and mess than using a physical digital recorder (remember it’s baby steps and choosing tools that won’t overwhelm us).

Communication and Social Networking:

- Create a profile on www.Facebook.com specifically for your business (and don’t forget to add me (”Sandra TechCoach De Freitas” and Simon Allard as your friends). Spend less than 5 minutes a day on maintaining your profile, friends, inbox etc.

- Create a twitter account (www.twitter.com). It’s a microblogging tool that allows you to post updates less than 140 characters at a time. Great for keeping your fans in tune with what you are doing, promoting, creating, teaching…the list goes on and on.

- Create a lens on Squidoo for your business. A lens is simply one page on www.squidoo.com that tells us more about your business, what you do, where to find you and what you offer. (Psst…this is how Simon found me!)

And finally 5 things you should do now to get your Coaching business moving:

- Get a www.PayPal.com account. Consider a Shopping Cart (www.1shoppingcart.com) and merchant account (www.worldpay.com) only if you are making more than $1000 a month on online sales.

- Get an autoresponder and newsletter service, such as my favourite, www.aweber.com

- Get a bridgeline/conference line. The basic ones are free and will suit your needs for a while. Check out www.freeconference.com.

- Start a blogsite! There are many benefits to writing a blog. Download the free recording found on www.WordPressBlogsites.com to find out why a Blogsite over performs regular websites and how it will attract more business, new clients, speaking gigs, and Google!

- Get help or some back up help just in case you need help in the future. A great resource is our Help Desk For Coaches, where you can participate in live teleclasses, get your questions answered on the forum or listen to our audio library.

Bonus:

Sign up for our newsletter, “A Boost of Tech Esteem“, to receive more tips for utilizing the power of the internet to build a thriving coaching business.

Sandra De Freitas is a top tech coach, author, speaker, trainer and expert in internet technology. She is the founder of www.TechCoachForCoaches.com and Author of “Does this Blogsite Make My Wallet Look Fat” . Sandra has been working with coaches since 2005 to increase profitability, decrease the amount of hours they work, establish their web presence, get Google to notice them and build an online raving fan base.

Go here to read Part 1 of “Utilizing The Power Of The Internet To Build A Thriving Coaching Business… Even If You’re A ‘Technophobe’!”

As many people will now know, I have been doing a “Business-Building For Coaches” teleseminar series where I interview some of the brightest experts in the world of coaching today on topics relating to … yes, you guessed it … business-building for coaches.

I recently interviewed Toronto-based technology and internet coach, Sandra De Freitas, AKA “The Coach’s Tech Coach”, on the topic:

“Utilizing The Power Of The Internet To Build A Thriving Coaching Business… Even If You’re A ‘Technophobe’!”.

I invited Sandra to join me as part of the Business-Building For Coaches Teleseminar Series” because I wanted an expert who could demystify much of this stuff called “internet technology”. Many of my clients and fellow coaches have told me that they really want to get more into this “techie stuff” but consider themselves to be a “‘technophobe”. So when I was looking around for someone who could explain how to utilize the power of the internet to build a thriving coaching business, I was also on the lookout for a person that could explain it in plain English.

Sandra is one of a growing number of coaches who work with entrepreneurs, business owners, small groups or companies to help them improve productivity or market presence using the internet and other forms of technology. One of the services Sandra provides is a truly great resource called “Help Desk For Coaches”

Coaches such as Sandra have variously been labelled with a range of different titles such as “internet coach”, “internet business coach”, “tech coach” and recently I heard the term “digital coach”. (Side note: Sandra was recently voted #1 in an online list of over 100 … Yes, over one hundred … “digital coaches” from around the world.)

As coaches, we all need to understand that we must have a decent grasp of the internet in order to build a solid coaching business …

And the list of “techie stuff” we’re told we need seems to get longer and longer every week …

* Emails

* Domains

* Hosting

* Websites

* Blogs

* Newsletters

* Ezines

* Podcasts

* Autoresponders

* Shopping Carts

* And a load of other techie things

But, like a high number of coaches, you may be struggling to get your head around the basics and/or complexities of the technology involved.

And, if you’re anything like me (and, I know, you may be absolutely nothing like me, so much of what follows may not apply to you), wouldn’t you love the opportunity to say “Goodbye” to those technology-induced, stress-laden headaches and get on with what you love most about your coaching business …helping your clients prosper and sharing in their victories.

If that sounds like you, then read on …

In the teleseminar, Sandra covered the key internet technology issues that every ambitious coach should be getting to grips with in order to grow their business …

…And Sandra does it in plain, easy-to-understand language that even the biggest “technophobes” amongst us can get!

Having said that, don’t make the mistake of thinking that there is nothing of value here for the more advanced internet technology users. Far from it …

The steps and strategies that Sandra lays out in this interview are profound in their simplicity and if you care about the progress and growth of your business you’ll want to listen to this interview and take note of the action points and then implement them straight away.

… And, by the way, you don’t need to be an “Internet Guru” to act on Sandra’s recommendations … But you do have to want your coaching business to be successful.

After hearing what Sandra says, there is absolutely NO EXCUSE for you not moving the online side of your business forward. The quality information in this interview will give you a rock solid foundation for accelerating your coaching business growth and success.

To listen to the replay of that teleseminar go here.

And don’t forget to check out Sandra’s superb “Help Desk For Coaches” service. Check it out here

Click here for Part 2

I recently conducted an information-packed interview with Kathy Mallary, marketing strategist and business development coach, on the hot topic of “Creating Multiple Streams Of Coaching Income”.

This was part of my “Business-Building For Coaches” teleseminar series where I interview some of the brightest experts in the world of coaching today. You can find further information by going here

As a result of the excitement this interview generated, Kathy kindly provided the following guest blog post as a follow-up to that interview.

7 Ways to Wreck Your Sales Funnel

by Kathy Mallary

Last week, I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Simon Allard on one of my favorite subjects: Marketing a coaching business (specifically, sales funnels and multiple streams of income). Listen to the interview for free here.

I thought I’d outline the tips here on the blog, only instead of doing the predictable thing and listing what TO do, I figured it might be interesting to look at this from the “what NOT to do” perspective.

First: “Tell me again, what’s a sales funnel and why do I need one?”

A sales funnel is simply a way to describe how you get, keep and grow the lifetime value of customers. It defines the stages that people move through in your business and the strategies you use to help them move from one stage to the next.

Without a well-planned sales funnel, you’re much more likely to have gaps in your marketing system — and gaps can be fatal.

So if your business is not what you want it to be – if your list isn’t growing; if getting clients seems harder than necessary; if your marketing is landing on deaf ears – check to see if any of these techniques for wrecking your sales funnel sounds familiar.

7 ways to wreck your sales funnel

#1: Just say no to a target market.

What do you say when someone asks, “Who do you work with?” If your answer begins with “Anyone” or “Everyone,” or if you can’t outline the problem that your business helps them with in a simple sentence, your market is probably too broad. And the broader your market, the less relevant you’ll seem to individual prospects.

Unfortunately, a broad market is something few self-employed professionals can afford. It eats into your profitability, because proving that you’re relevant to a variety of people with widely different goals and needs takes more time and effort.

It’s far more profitable (and easier!) to focus on a well-defined target market – a group of consumers who share certain key characteristics, including a common problem or goal. You’ll find that it’s easier to connect with potential customers and help them get the results they’re looking for.

Bottom line: Make sure you have a clear understanding of your target market and the problem that your business solves.

#2: Blend in.

This is the Information Age; as consumers, we’re constantly bombarded with information through all kinds of media. Think about it: of the thousands of ads that you’re exposed to every day, only a couple hundred might register for a few seconds, and an even smaller fraction will stand out enough to actually grab your attention or stay with you for any length of time.

We’ve learned to tune most of it out, like so much background noise; we have to, or we’d go nuts!

The thing is, if you don’t rise above the noise, your market will simply never hear you. You need to stand out. You also need to make your message ‘sticky’ so people don’t forget you in ten seconds.

Bottom line: Have a strategy for standing out and holding the attention of your market.

#3: Put junk in your freebie.

Some coaches grab any old stuff that’s laying around and dress it up as their freebie. They’ll dig up an article they wrote last year or string together ten random quotes and call it a ‘special report.’ It often doesn’t have anything to do with their customer’s coachable issue or the coach’s approach to solving it. It’s just free junk.

They do this because they don’t understand the real purpose of a free sample. They think they’re just giving something away to get people on their mailing list, but a proper free sample does much more than that: it introduces your approach and pre-qualifies your leads so that they’re more likely to become customers.

Instead of putting free junk out there for anyone who happens to wander by, offer something designed to make a real impression on your particular target market, something that gives them a real taste of your signature approach to their problem. Leave them thinking, “Wow, I would have expected to pay for this level of value, and instead, I got it for free! I wonder what else this coach has to offer…”

Bottom line: Offer a generous free sample that introduces your approach to solving their problem.

#4: Ignore your prospects.

A prospect is someone who has opted in to your mailing list, but hasn’t bought anything yet. They trust you enough to give you their email address, but not enough to give you their money yet.

People buy from businesses that they know, like and trust. In other words, they buy when they feel they have a relationship with you.

So one of the best ways to wreck your sales funnel is to simply ignore your prospects. Give them the special report and then leave them alone until you’re ready to promote your next teleclass; harass them with emails about the teleclass for a little while, then leave them alone again.

Whatever you do, don’t send out a newsletter on a consistent basis. And if you REALLY want to shoot yourself in the foot, don’t use a list management/auto responder system like Aweber.com or 1shoppingcart.com; instead, keep all your leads in your personal address book and try to remember to add and remove subscribers by hand.

(Just don’t be surprised when you’re blacklisted as a spammer.)

Bottom line: Put a system in place to automatically capture, manage & keep in touch with prospects over time.

#5: Paralyze your prospects with lots and lots of products and options.

This is where people tend to go a little overboard about the whole ‘multiple streams of income’ thing. They start dreaming about passive income and suddenly they’re whipping out ebooks and audio programs left and right. Before you know it, they’ve got sixteen pages of products, and every product has at least three bonuses.

And their prospects have a slight headache and a dazed look on their faces as they quickly click away. Because there’s too much; they can’t make up their mind.

The primary objective at the introductory product level of the funnel (level 3) is to convert prospects to customers; passive income is a secondary goal. To convert more customers, more quickly, remove as many barriers as possible; keep the price low, remove risk with a money-back guarantee, and make a compelling call to action – promise them some relief from the problem they’re struggling with.

Bottom line: Offer a low-cost/high value introductory product that addresses the customer’s #1 problem and gives them some relief.

#6: Leave money on the table.

Here’s something that few coaches realize: One-to-one coaching isn’t the most profitable level of your sales funnel. Yes, it’s the most expensive level (level 5), but it’s also the most time-consuming and the most limited in terms of how many ‘units’ you can potentially sell – because you’re the only one who can deliver this particular service, and there are only so many clients you can work with at any given time.

So where’s the most profitable level of the funnel? It’s actually the level that many people overlook or skip: Level 4. The purpose of this level is to keep and grow the value of customers; the key is to offer high-value, moderately priced products and programs, especially do-it-yourself programs (homestudy programs; toolkits; audio programs), group coaching programs and membership programs (coaching clubs).

A significant number of the people on your mailing list today will NEVER buy 1:1 coaching. They’ll hang out on your list, happy to get whatever you give away for free or offer at the introductory level of the funnel, but they either can’t afford or don’t want 1:1 coaching.

However, some of them MIGHT buy something other than your premium coaching…if only you had something in between levels 3 and 5 in your sales funnel.

If you don’t offer it, they can’t buy it from you. (And of course, if they want it bad enough, they’ll just go buy it from someone else.)

Bottom line: Offer mid-level products and programs for the value shoppers.

#7: Hide the silver.

Do you know what the single most valuable asset in your business is? It’s YOU; your expertise, knowledge, connections, and especially your time and attention. Without you, there is no service. You are your own golden goose.

Unfortunately, none of those concepts (expertise, knowledge, connections, time, attention) is tangible. You can’t actually see or touch them, which makes your premium services seem less ‘real’ to customers.

But it’s actually not that difficult to package your premium services in a more tangible way, by including value-packed features and benefits and by creating a graphic image for the coaching package.

Don’t hide the value of your premium program just because it’s less tangible; showcase your coaching services to get more clients.

Bottom line: Create an attractive premium coaching package for customers who want customized or exclusive access to you.

©2008 by Kathleen L. Mallary. All Rights Reserved.

Kathy Mallary is a marketing strategist and business development coach who specializes in helping professional coaches find a lucrative niche and create signature coaching programs and products. Discover how to build a thriving one-of-a-kind coaching business at www.spiritspring.com

Following on from my last post, I did the interview with Hannah on the topic of “Choosing Your Coaching Niche”.

Wow! Hannah packed so much information into the hour we spent together that I am still going back to the recording to take even more notes.

It’s one of those times when you go back over something (whether it’s a book or an audio or a video) and you get something on a more deeper level than before.

I’ve heard the recording several times now and I’ve got one or two new distinctions each time that takes my understanding that much further.

Choosing a coaching niche is a key aspect of building a truly successful coaching business and, in an ever-increasingly competitive coaching marketplace, those coaches that really “get” this stuff are the ones who have the advantage over the “I-want-to-coach-everybody” category.

There is far too much information to relay it all in this post so the best thing is to listen to the full interview by clicking here

Coaching is a business

Some of what Hannah spoke about might “ruffle a few feathers” amongst coaches but what many of us in the coaching industry need is to be regularly reminded that we’re in a business… and that means we have to really face some hard truths sometimes if we want our business to be successful.

Hannah tells it like it is in this interview (as she does on her website Marketing Help For Coaches ) and once you listen to what Hannah says, you’ll understand what I mean.

After listening to the interview, please let me know here in the comments section what thoughts you had, what came up for you.

Were there any parts that particularly resonated?

Did you disagree with… or were shocked by… anything Hannah stated?

And of course, what other questions did you have as a result of listening to the interview?

And finally, if you’re one of the few who don’t know about Hannah’s book you’ll probably want to check it out.

I look forward to hearing your comments.

“Coaching Niches” is a hot topic in coaching right now, and not without good reason. The coaches who are doing especially well in business are those who know how to take advantage of selecting the best coaching niche.

Here at Coaching Resources Worldwide, we’ve set up a teleseminar series called Business-Building for Coaches where I get some of the world’s top coaching experts to reveal to their most powerful and effective strategies, techniques and tips to transform your coaching practice into a truly world-class business. Oh, by the way, the teleseminar series is FREE to join.

My first guest is Hannah McNamara, author of “Niche Marketing For Coaches”, who will be focusing on “Choosing Your Coaching Niche”.

Hannah, an expert on this topic, will reveal how you can do the same when I grill her for answers this coming Tuesday, 22nd July.

You can get the full details by clicking here

You can also get regular information about all the events in the Business-Building For Coaches series automatically sent straight into your inbox by signing up at:

http://businessbuildingforcoaches.com/

It seems that more and more people than ever before are becoming coaches and there are many great coach training schools for coaches to hone their skills.

That is good news for people who want to be coached because coaching can bring truly huge benefits to clients but it could be very bad news for many coaches.

My thinking is based simply on the law of supply and demand.

As an ever-greater number of well-trained and competent coaches enter the industry, the result is that the marketplace becomes more competitive. Which in simple terms means that a smaller percentage will succeed financially.

“You don’t have to be a ‘bread-head’ to want to succeed financially”

I don’t want to come across as a “bread-head” whose sole priority is financial gain.

Those who know me well would attest to the fact that the oft-quoted line “My goal is to make a positive difference in the world” is a phrase, that while clichéd, is one I am proud to use .

Coaching done well really does have the power to transform lives and, in the process, make the world a better place.

But, as coaches, we have to acknowledge that we are in business and a primary drive in business is to make a profit. We can dispute the meaning of “profit” but for me the way I like to define it is that profit is the result of the value I bring to marketplace.

My clients are the ones who will tell me whether I am bringing value to our relationship and they’ll do this by staying or walking.

Back to the “financial success” thing.

Statistics show that very few coaches actually make a decent income from coaching and that many coaches face an uncertain financial future.

Here’s what Stephen Fairley, author of ‘Getting Started in Personal and Executive Coaching’, found in his research:

“73% of all coaches make less than $10,000 [about £5000] in their first year…

Only 60% of all second-year coaches have managed to find 10 paying clients…

Less than 11% of all coaches make more than $50,000 [about £25,000] by their second year in practice…

Only 9% of coaches make more than $100,000 [about $50,000] a year doing coaching.”

Ouch!!!

But there is some good news though!

The Harvard Business Review reported that over one billion dollars is spent annually on coaching in the United States. That shows there’s plenty of demand.

Coaching can be very lucrative for those who have the ambition, determination, skills and knowledge to get to the top of the field.

Successful people in any area of life are able to draw upon a mixture of inner and external resources that separate them from the majority of others in their chosen field. This is also true of the coaching industry.

I think market forces are placing us firmly in the position of having to make a clear decision when it comes to how we want our coaching business to be. We must ask ourselves:

“Will we do what is necessary for our business to succeed financially, or will we be another one of the would-be-great coaches who have to give up on our coaching career because we simply cannot financially afford to continue (even though we love to coach)?”

If we’ve got no coaching business, how can we help our clients then?