Many experts in various fields are increasingly becoming interested in starting their own online coaching business. However, this comes as no surprise as it can be a rewarding career for those who take pride and joy in helping people reach their goals. Although the coaching business is not a new development, the wide-spread adaptation of the internet has made it possible for any individual to start their coaching career without a great amount of capital investment.
What is an Online Coach?
Essentially, a coach is a guide who helps their clients move closer to achieving their goals by providing actionable and impartial advice or support. As many things have begun to move online with the arrival of the internet, so did coaching. Today, it is quite common for coaches to deliver their lessons to their clients through video or audio calls, giving them the ability to tap into a worldwide market.
If you do believe that you have a high level of expertise at a core skill, and would like to monetize it, then you may also be considering taking up online coaching. However, many people often struggle to start their coaching business and are unsure of the right steps to take. This post will share actionable steps that can help in making your coaching dream a reality.
How to Start a Coaching Business Online?
Step One: State Your Mission and Know Your Goals
This is a very key aspect of online coaching and it is often seen as the foundation of starting a coaching business. However, you may be surprised to learn that many coaches fail because they did not clearly define their goals and mission from the onset.
When defining your goals, you should not only refer to them as your ambitions but also as the constraints that will keep you focused only on the things that matter.
To define your goals, you should first examine skill sets and decide the type of coach that you would like to be. There are several types of coaches, e.g., life coaches, financial coaches, wellness coaches, career coaches, etc. Many coaches fail because they try to be too many coaches in one and fend up not mastering any. To narrow down the type of coach you would like to be, you should ask yourself, what you are best at, what you are most interested in, and what you think people need the most help with.
While defining your goals, you should also give thought to the style of coaching you want to have i.e., your coaching philosophy. This philosophy determines the different ways you would treat your clients and how you are going to give advice.
Noting your mission and goals down will help your business become more outlined even before its inception, resulting in a more efficient service.
Step Two: Know Your Target Audience
Once you know your coaching style and philosophy, you should begin to research your target audience. These are the people that you feel are most likely going to be interested in your coaching service. There are many ways to narrow down your target audience, but the most common method is to use some form of demographics such as age or income level. You can then combine your demographics with other key factors to further ensure that any client you take would be the correct fit for your business.
However, setting out a target audience is not enough to succeed as a coach, you must also research the different experiences that your clients are likely to go through. This means that you can give actionable advice to them when the need arises.
Step Three: Create Your Product
To be a successful coach, you must view your advice and philosophy as the product itself, as this would be what is monetized. Different online coaches have different ways of selling their products. Many coaches often deliver their products to their clients using teaching plans. This way, you can get your prospects to subscribe to a plan and then deliver the lessons incrementally e.g., every two weeks.
Live video has become another popular method that is now being adopted by online coaches. This way, multiple prospects can watch live as you deliver lessons. This method is an excellent way to drive engagement among your prospects as it enables you to have conversations with them over the internet, resulting in a more immersive experience.
At this stage, you should also begin to note down the prices you aim to deliver your product at. Pricing your product is a very important phase of online coaching and many coaches either undercharge or overcharge. Whatever product you are offering, it must be value for money, and client satisfaction should be your only concern. If you feel that you have a premium product, then you should not restrain from charging premium prices.
If you are unsure about the right prices to attach to your products, many coaches often employ a tiered product plan, whereby less content or benefits may be offered to clients who pay for a cheaper tier.
Once you have noted down the different products you will be offering, then you must deliver them. Remember, client satisfaction should be most important to you, and you should avoid scenarios where a client may have paid for a six-month plan, but you were only able to deliver three-months of coaching because you decided to change your system halfway.
Step Four: Create Your Website
A good website is a great way to add credibility to your service, and you should aspire to have one. The website would also act as a platform that would help you deliver content directly to your clients. You can utilize your website in whatever manner you choose. Online coaches may often add additional information about their service or use it to remain engaged with their clients.
The website is also important because it is a great way for potential prospects to learn about your coaching services, making it a crucial marketing tool. Today, there are many web development services such as WordPress or Wix which online coaches use to help them create their websites, making it a much less daunting process than it once was.
Step Five: Market and Deliver Your Service
Once you have created your website, you must begin to market yourself to your targeted audience. As you are working online, the best methods of marketing would be through online channels such as social media or pay-per-click ads. A major advantage of online coaching is that if you are delivering a strong service then once you have secured your first clients, they would effectively become an additional marketing tool.
Once clients begin to get drawn to your website or product channel, then you can start delivering your service and begin your online coaching career.
