I am a huge proponent for coaches and consultants stepping into The Confident Expert and helping them make a ton of money doing what they are brilliant at–coaching clients around their expertise! In fact, I spend most of my working hours helping established online coaches spruce up three main things that are keeping them from growing their businesses to 6 figures and beyond.
Before we dive in to the top 3 mistakes that keep you from attracting your ideal clients, you should know that I have built a successful online consulting business by following three core principles:
- Show up and be of service first. It is a pleasure to host monthly trainings and help other coaches and consultants expand their view of what is possible in their businesses; as well as what may be keeping them stuck.
- Build a tight-knit community. #RelationshipsFirst is the “rule” we live by in my world-class Facebook group. I can not tell you how true this statement is: The size of your bank account is a direct reflection as to the depth of your relationships.
- Permission and trust-based marketing. I am all about organic marketing that FEELS joyful for me (the creator of the marketing) and you (the recipient of the marketing). I teach marketing that helps you enroll your future clients in the vision they have for themselves. (It’s revolutionary and works!)
So why do so many coaches and consultants continue to struggle when it comes to finding perfect-fit clients?
I’m going to outline the top three reasons I have discovered (after working with 1000s of coaches and consultants), and my hope is that you will take this information and look at your own coaching/consulting business through a new lens.
Vague Messaging and Large Target Audience
Your messaging is the foundation for everything you do. And if your messaging is not specific, your perfect-fit clients can not hear you. Why? The marketing messages you are putting into the world simply do not stand out in all the noise.
Example: About a year ago, I began working with a health coach, whose main message was about losing weight and getting healthy (both very vague). We re-positioned her messaging to address Emotional Eating, and how understanding what type of emotional eater you are will give you lots of clues as to your overall health and wellness (or lack thereof). This simple shift helped her reach a whole new audience, and she was able to “elevate” the conversation around food and emotions, which is huge for most of us (whether we realize it or not).
After this health coach picked up traction with new messaging, we honed her ideal client even more. Instead of just talking to “women”, she niched down and started to talk to Women CEOs who wanted their health to match their wealth. This was a true tipping point in her business, because she saw ears perk up and client inquiries come into her inbox.
The Lesson: Spend time on your messaging. Lots of time. Hire someone to help you see what you can’t see. Niche down so small that you wonder if anyone will be left to serve. When both of these happen, you will most likely experience an immediate increase in the number of people reaching out to work with you.
Ineffective (or non-existent) Marketing Strategy
OY! I could teach about this for days–and write several books on this topic alone! There is a HUGE difference between tools/tactics and strategy.
Strategy wins all day long. When you have a solid strategy that is specific for your coaching and consulting business and is built upon your strengths, magic happens. Your energy increases. You will experience more joy and flow in your business and bank account. You understand how many sales you need to make, and what kind of marketing leads to those sales, and what you should be doing each week, month, and quarter to attract your ideal clients with ease.
The problem I am helping many coaches and consultants correct is that they are trying all kinds of tools/tactics without having a strategy. This is also known as shiny object syndrome. The newest “craze” emerges (hello Clubhouse or Facebook Groups or TikTok or Live Streaming [the list could go on and on]), and people jump on the bandwagon. These tools and tactics will never work to build you the long-term, sustainable business you are dreaming of. What’s needed is a solid strategy.
The Lesson: Get a solid marketing strategy in place to expand your business and attract your perfect fit clients–so you can make more money and have more time off. You didn’t start this business to run yourself into the ground or to have a glorified, expensive hobby. I bet you started this business because you wanted to help more people experience success through you expertise.
Misaligned Business Model
If your messaging is laser specific, and you’ve niched your audience down super small, and your marketing strategy is rooted in your strengths, but you still don’t have coaching clients beating down your virtual door, what else might be going on?
SO GLAD YOU ASKED!
Quite frankly, many coaches and consultants have a business model that is out of alignment with how they want to be spending their time and energy. So, deep down, it’s hard for you to sell your service to yourself (let alone others) because the thought of helping and serving more clients in this way is draining you.
I get it. And know that you are not alone. This is a REAL problem and one that should be addressed sooner rather than later.
I’ve been working with a business coach for the past 10 months. When she called me up, she was sobbing. She couldn’t figure out how she was going to build this business to beyond 6 figures without burning out. Nothing felt joyful. As I began working with her, we realized a few things: Her messaging was great. Her marketing strategy was brilliant. She knew her ideal clients and where to find them. The problem? She hated how she was serving her clients. The 1:1 work was draining her mental and emotional energy. She didn’t have energy left to joyfully spend with her two boys after her work day had ended. She didn’t want to sell any more 1:1 coaching clients spots because she wasn’t enjoying the delivery of the service.
We got to work and revamped things in her business. She wanted to host more retreats and group programs, and phase out 1:1 work. Within a few months, she was way more joyful and had more energy in and out of her business. She had graduated her 1:1 coaching clients, transitioned all new coaching clients into a retreat model and group program model, and her revenue skyrocketed.
The Lesson: There are so many business models for you to choose from. And if there is a way you want to be working with your clients, but haven’t figured out how to do that yet, it’s possible, I promise! My magic is helping you take the lifestyle you want to be living NOW and build your business around the things you want to be doing when you are not working. (This is contradictory to what is mainly taught online about business growth and expansion.)
What new insight do you have after reading this article? How can you take one of the main problems addressed here and make your coaching and consulting business even better?
An additional resource for you
Struggling to attract your ideal clients? Put joy in your marketing and watch your client attraction factor increase! Take the Joyful Marketing Quiz today, so you discover how to reach clients who are ready to work with you NOW. (Warning: Leading with joy in your marketing WILL transform your business–and your bank account. So, get ready!)
