Nobody has been spared by the traumatizing emotional effects of COVID-19 since it has surfaced. Where on one hand it has affected the physical health and financial stability of masses, on the other hand, it has posed detrimental effects on one’s emotional stability owing to social isolation, bereavement, and a constant state of fear. A great majority has been afflicted by its agonizing effects in terms of loss of optimism and zest. This scenario has greatly emphasized the need for saviors that can help people get back their hope and vitality for life. Such mentors and rescuers, also known as life coaches have been among the most sought-after professionals during this time.
The massive rise in demand for life coaches has prompted many professionals from different walks of life to join this field as a side hustle or a full-time job. Where many businesses have collapsed, the life coaching business has been comparatively less affected during the harsh economic crisis of the coronavirus pandemic.
It is obvious from the fact that people prefer to seek professional consultation for clearing their mental clouding and getting a fresh start in the new normal. Besides, a life coach is considered an acclaimed mentor and guide for the youth that are getting their career started. Also, it is among the well-rewarding professions with considerably few start-up requirements. Furthermore, online life coaching has made it even easier where you can offer your professional services to anyone in the world via digital platforms.
This must have got you thinking about how you can start your life coaching business, or will it come out as a profitable option if you are not experienced in this niche. Well, the good news is that you can easily start a coaching business from scratch or flourish the existing one in the post-corona time with little but focused efforts.
Before embarking on your coaching business journey, ask yourself; are you passionate about helping people reshape their lives? Do you find yourself good at analyzing complex situations and critical issues? Do you like to offer evaluative solutions after long sessions of empathetic listening? If your answer to these questions is yes then you can be an adept life coach with learning and practice. In addition, you can serve as a life coach while working full time by launching an online coaching business.
The following five practical suggestions will prove to be an all-inclusive guide for you to succeed as a coach in the post-COVID world.
1- Defining your niche
Simply targeting the wider public is not enough for the growth of your coaching business rather specifying an area of expertise is the key factor for flourishing. As Paulo Coelho says, ‘no one can hit their target with their eyes closed.’ In other words, you have to clearly choose your niche according to your skills and aptitude.
Effectively niching your coaching services act as the determinant factor for making or breaking your coaching business. Those who overlook this essential step often remain unable to take their business any further. In fact, some lose their potential clients because they do not have a clear idea of a niche and so they consider targeting a huge demographic to get more clients.
In this highly competitive field, thoughtfully niching your coaching services can largely help you stand out and target the right clients. Also, make sure that your niche coincides with your passion so practicing it may not seem laborious to you. There have been so many types of coaching services that you can choose from so that you can excel in your chosen domain.
2- Leveraging Technology
Life coaching in the post-corona period has largely thrived due to the digital technology that everyone has access to. Thus, you should leverage technology to expand your outreach. These exclusive online sessions have largely facilitated people worldwide to avail coaching services from anywhere in the world without stepping out of their homes. Besides, launching an online coaching business requires little investment as compared to in-person coaching. Approximately 74% increase in the ratio of life coaching services offered through various digital media has been observed in the 2020 Global Coaching survey, conducted by the International Coaching Federation. Whereas, 80% decline has been observed in the in-person coaching services according to the mentioned study.
3- Packaging Your coaching
After defining your niche and the medium of offering services, you need to price it wisely. A well-thought-out pricing plan can save you from the constant trouble of attracting and retaining clients because such a plan will help you get the clients who are excited about getting coached by you, pay you well for it, and are willing to create a long-term connection.
There are different ways of pricing coaching services. The best way is to define your coaching packages according to the dedicated outcome. Global Executive Buyers Insight Survey mentions that 74% of buyers make a favorable decision based on the value of the communicated outcome. Charging your clients based on your proposed solutions to their problems seems more credible and can help you raise your pricing packages. On the contrary, charging coaching services based on offered hours is highly unlikely to retain your clients for longer.
4- Choosing the right marketing channels
Marketing your coaching services is also an essential aspect of growing your business because this is the way where you let your potential clients know about your expertise. To turn your targeted audience into paying clients, you can figure out the best-suited method from the following twelve types of traffic generation methods. These are getting press or media coverage; blogging, SEO, and content marketing; posting online advertisements on well-known platforms; email marketing; getting traffic from online educational platforms; stage sessions; community building on famous social media platforms; print media advertisements or other offline advertisements; getting traffic through referrals and connected networks; trade shows and offline events to showcase your services; creating viral content; and creating tools and resources that people find useful so they consider hiring your coaching services.
5- Effectively converting traffic to sales
Finally, you need to learn how to convert the generated traffic into loyal coaching clientele.
This is achieved by using a ‘funnel’ strategy where you build trust, demonstrate credibility, and generate the need for the intended outcome which your clients want to see. Using a funnel system you take your prospective clients through a value-adding process that can inspire them to sign up for your services. Peeping into the funnel structure, it comprises attracting traffic, engaging them in conversation and prompting them for taking action, generating sales, and encouraging your clients to come back for sustaining the achieved results or reforming another area of life.
Final Thoughts
Using these proven strategies, you can successfully launch and thrive your coaching business in this post-COVID time where a great majority is in dire need of getting coached to overcome the new challenges and setbacks in their way of progress and normality. All you need is to take action because the only distance between your dream and reality is your courage to take action.
