Wondering how to get clients as a business coach?
As an entrepreneur and online business mentor, I’ve helped hundreds of thousands of business owners (just like you) grow their authority and, as a result, client roster. So, if you’re looking for proven advice to expand your business coaching practice, you’re in the right place.
Here are nine actionable strategies you can use to start landing high-paying clients.
Table of Contents
The Key Elements of Successful Business Coaches
All successful coaches share a few simple qualities. These traits help them stand out in the marketplace, which results in a flood of clients chomping at the bit to work with them. Dial these in, and you’ll always be in demand as a business coach.
Expertise
The marketplace is already a dog-eat-dog environment.
And this stiff competition is only accelerating as the market becomes increasingly saturated. As a result, you need to have a specialization or some type of specific expertise to solidify your longevity in this industry. Here are a few popular business coaching niches to consider:
- Sales coaching: Sales and marketing are the lifelines of any business. So, it’s a powerful (and profitable) business coaching niche you may want to consider for your own practice.
- Executive coaching: Executive coaching helps a company’s higher management personnel – this can include CEOs, leaders, and managers. You’ll train these organizational leaders to become more effective in their roles, which, as a result, can lead to better team management and the achievement of company objectives.
- Success coaching: As a success coach, your goal is to collaborate with clients to plan out (and develop plans for) various goals within their organizations. This alliance facilitates the success of employees, business leaders, and, eventually, the company.
- Team coaching: Team coaching strengthens cooperation within partnerships. It helps to improve common effort between team members or colleagues, resulting in strengthened relationships, improved business operations, and better performance.
- Leadership development coaching: Leadership coaching offers one-on-one training that’s geared toward the needs of organizational leaders. It helps to facilitate skills development in various aspects of leadership. Some of these areas include people management, communication skills, taking initiative, and much more.
Differentiation
Differentiation is no longer a luxury in business – it’s a necessity.
For this reason, it’s critical to determine what separates you from other business coaches. What unique advantage do you offer? Moreover, how can you package that distinct quality into a marketable feature that draws your target audience into your business coaching?
All you need to do here is find a way to put a unique spin on your brand as a business coach. Here are a few simple suggestions to consider:
- Customer experience: The feelings and emotions you leave your clients with are what they’ll associate with you. If they feel well-taken care of and that you genuinely want to meet their needs, repeat business is almost guaranteed. So, creating a customer experience where you go above and beyond expectations is essential.
- Message and mission: Prospects know what you do, but they also want to know why you do it. Your mission and message play a key role in separating yourself from the competition. Everyone has their reasons for getting into business – what’s yours? Share it on your website, social media posts, and every other marketing channel you use.
- Brand voice: Having a distinct brand voice can give you a leg up over the competition. Are you loud and assertive, conversational and relaxed, firm and decisive? A good way to determine your brand voice is to consider how you naturally communicate. The idea is to give your brand human characteristics in your language, tone, and attitude. All of these contribute to your differentiation and will help you land more coaching clients.
Actionable Strategies For Getting High-Paying Clients as a Business Coach
Attracting clients without a proven framework is like shooting darts trying to hit a bullseye while blindfolded. Whether you’re doing in-person networking, using Facebook, or trying Instagram to get coaching clients, you need a system to guide your actions.
Here are nine actionable organic marketing strategies to get high-paying clients as a business coach.
1. Show off (a little)
There’s nothing wrong with sharing your awards, accomplishments, and accolades.
On the contrary, these are all necessary to prove your credibility as a business coach. Now is not the time to be humble. Prospects want to know you’re experienced and can help them solve their problems.
As a result, it’s crucial that you “show off” a little bit to demonstrate your authority.
James Akin-Smith
James is a business coach located in the UK.
With over 30 years of business experience, he has a wealth of knowledge within his industry. This credibility attracts his high-paying clientele. However, prospects would never know this if he didn’t openly (and unashamedly) share his successes.
You can see it in the image below.
James shares his years of experience in building multiple 7-figure businesses. These are the “selling points” that boost his credibility in the eyes of his target market.
So, what can you learn from James’ example?
Put your successes out there. They are markers of your credibility as a business coach. Marketing your services is essential because prospects want to know that you’re competent. The best way to demonstrate that is through previous wins and success.
So, share your testimonials, awards, certifications, years of experience, and results you’ve helped clients generate. Post them to your website, Instagram bio, or LinkedIn to get more clients.
2. Use content marketing
As a business coach, you’re leaving a lot on the table if you aren’t publishing content. The good news is that it’s never too late. You can build, engage, and create an audience that can turn prospects into clients with the type of content you produce.
It puts you on the radar of your prospects while also building a relationship and connection with them on your behalf.
Entrepreneurs HQ
We ensure this principle is hard at work here at Entrepreneurs HQ.
Our content marketing strategy consists of publishing helpful, in-depth articles such as this. By providing valuable content, readers (like yourself) are able to take this information and apply it to their businesses.
Once credibility is established in this way, prospects begin trusting us more.
This stage is when people usually start opting into our email list either from a call-to-action in one of our articles or through an opt-in form on our website, as seen below.
From there, we send regular emails that continue to build that relationship.
A simple caveat here is that this client acquisition process is all about the long game. While some prospects will be more ready to buy than others, the majority will take some time before they’re ready – don’t let that deter you, though.
Focus on helping your audience by providing value with your content.
So, what’s the key takeaway from our example? Use content marketing to grow your influence and attract higher-paying clientele. The best part is that there are many avenues to take with this strategy. Maybe you just want to use Instagram or Facebook for your content marketing.
Or maybe you prefer not to use social media at all for client acquisition and are more inclined toward organic Google traffic by publishing blogs on your site.
Whether you write articles, video content, or publish on social media, creating relevant content can grow your mailing list, build relationships over time, and fuel your business coaching.
3. Host virtual workshops and webinars
Webinars and virtual workshops are effective ways to attract high-paying clients.
The concept here is to give a little to get a lot. When you give free insights and advice that helps prospects solve a small but pressing problem, they begin wondering how effective your gated content is. This spike in curiosity can lead prospects to want to invest in your brand further.
Both of these online events can be described as virtual classrooms where you teach attendees how to improve certain aspects of their businesses.
Josh Turner
Josh (Ex-founder of LinkedSelling) was one of the speakers at our virtual events.
He also shared some valuable insights regarding webinars and how they can help your coaching business. Josh has webinars for leads and sales (some of which are live and recorded) that generate over five thousand leads every month.
The key takeaway from Josh’s example is to use these virtual classrooms to provide value and establish trust between prospects and your brand.
And that’s just scratching the surface of how webinars and virtual workshops can help your business. They are also excellent for creating and growing a high-ticket sales funnel. You can use webinars and recorded virtual workshops as gated content on your opt-in page.
Here at Entrepreneurs HQ, we give our virtual workshop attendees “quick wins.” Meaning, we give them easy tips they can implement right away to see immediate results in their business. It can be related to sales, marketing, high-ticket offers, and so on.
Once they get that quick win, they see the value. As a result, they become curious about learning more, and oftentimes, this leads to prospects becoming paying clients.
4. Host a virtual summit
At Entrepreneurs HQ, we have been running virtual summits for nearly a decade.
In fact, I’ve hosted about 30 virtual summits since we started in 2015. We gather expert speakers who are leading authorities within their niche to share their knowledge. Our events allow attendees to grow their networks and learn more about the latest trends in their industries.
Participants can attend for free – all we require is their email address.
Virtual summits can be one of your most successful marketing strategies because of your reach in finding your ideal customers. They provide easy accessibility (participants can attend from the comfort of their home or office), credible guest appearances, and valuable insights.
As a result, these online events are a dynamic marketing tool to help you attract more high-paying clientele.
Rich German
Rich is a speaker, author, and business coach.
He has spoken at many Entrepreneurs HQ virtual summits and now runs many summits of his own every year. As a result, Rich has garnered many high-paying clients for his business coaching as he continues to develop and fine-tune his events.
The main takeaway from Rich is using virtual summits to strengthen the credibility of your brand.
These events are simple to organize, they’re scalable and cost-effective, and you can reach a global audience. For these reasons – in addition to many others – hosting virtual summits could be an effective strategy that opens the floodgates to a higher-paying client base.
5. Host a podcast
Podcasts have become one of the most popular content mediums.
And it’s easy to see why: Entertainment, education, and convenience. Podcasts cover every touchpoint. As a result, they are an excellent way to reach, connect with, and attract more high-paying clients for your business coaching.
And the best part is that it’s easy to start one of your own or become a guest on someone else’s.
John Mattone
John is an author, speaker, executive, and business coach.
In an interview with Simon Haigh (a business and leadership growth strategist), John shares his insights regarding how leaders can develop a stronger self-image to strengthen their business operations.
John’s example demonstrates the importance of putting yourself out there to attract high-paying clients. His podcasts are engaging, informative, and always packed with valuable insights.
And here’s where it gets good: Finding guests for your podcast or getting on someone else’s is easier than ever. You can get featured or find guests via Talks.co, for podcasts by simply doing a few Google searches and sending out a couple of requests via email or social media.
6. Share your mission
What’s your reason for being in business?
Yes, you have to make a living – that’s a given. However, people want to know that you’re in it for more than a paycheck. Moreover, business is tough. If you don’t have a more compelling reason driving you than money, you’ll find it difficult to stay the course during trying times.
So, what’s the deeper purpose that’s driving you as a business coach?
Vince Del Monte
Vince is a fitness business coach based in Canada.
He has a clear and compelling mission that drives his business: By 2025, he aims to help one thousand fitness professionals become financially free and secure. This mission is the overarching motivation that fuels his coaching practice.
Vince’s mission oozes through in his marketing, content, and customer communication touchpoints.
Here’s the key takeaway from Vince: Develop a compelling mission for your coaching business and share it with the world.
Your mission connects you to your audience, strengthens your credibility, and separates you from the competition. As a result, it’s an asset that creates relatability, allowing you to attract your ideal audience and eventually turn prospects into clients.
7. Show who you are
The irony about your coaching business is that it’s not all about business.
People want to see the “human” side of you behind the core strategy, inbound marketing tactics, and sales conversations. If all your marketing does is convey a business-savvy, to-the-point entrepreneur whose entire image is focused on the “mission,” people will find it hard to relate. You have to show that you’re a real human being.
People connect to the personal lives of others. That’s where trust and connection are formed.
And the good news is that this is easy to do.
Hillary Weiss
Hillary is a creative director, brand strategist, and positioning and business coach.
She has been coaching small businesses to find their unique voice since 2011. The moment you land on Hillary’s site, you’re bombarded with her unapologetic personality. Hillary’s visuals communicate sass and attitude.
And she’s not bothered in the least if anyone likes it or not.
However, she balances this rebellious imagery with a conversational and relatable tone.
While these details may seem to be in contrast with each other, they actually work to make Hillary more “human” and more “real.” They give her brand a tangible quality that her specific audience can relate to and connect with.
The key takeaway from Hillary’s example is to put who you are out there.
Use images, fonts, words, and tone to communicate your brand personality. The worst thing you can do is play it safe by trying to be and sound like everybody else. Your brand is an extension of you. Give it the distinguishing characteristics it deserves to separate yourself as a business coach.
This is what draws the right audience and repels the wrong one.
8. Carve your own lane
When people think of a business coach, one of the common threads is someone who does corporate or executive training.
However, business coaching can be applied to any field or profession. The guiding principles of business don’t change based on industry, so you’re not limited to administrative, white-collar clientele.
You can carve your own lane in your coaching business.
Alexis Fedor
Alexis is a writer, artist, and business coach in the arts industry.
Her company, Artists in Business, helps creative people start online businesses, turning their crafts into careers. She has assisted in facilitating over ten million dollars in online art sales. She is the perfect example of a business coach who carved her own lane.
Everything about her website communicates her niche, brand personality, and target audience. Alexis chose to serve a market she loves, and she has created a successful coaching practice as a result.
The main takeaway from Alexis is to not get caught in the business coach trap.
If you love entrepreneurship but don’t care for the suit-and-tie stereotype that’s associated with it, you can branch out. You have the freedom to take your personalized experiences and business acumen and apply them to any market you see fit.
And this will allow you to attract better and higher-paying clients in industries that are more aligned with your value system.
9. Use exclusivity
Sometimes, it pays (very well) to be the rebel who goes against the grain.
One of the most powerful psychological triggers is the feeling of exclusivity. If people feel that a resource or asset is exclusive, they’ll feel a stronger sense of urgency to get their hands on it. You can use this as a marketing advantage to attract more high-paying clients.
Ali Brown
Ali is a women’s leadership and business coach from Arizona.
She uses exclusivity in her marketing to create community and trust with her audience. You notice it the moment you land on her website. Ali’s opt-in page gathers email addresses with copy that reads “Ali’s VIP List” and “Exclusive Business and Leadership Insights.”
These simple phrases communicate that her email list is an exclusive community that offers valuable information you can’t get anywhere else.
The key takeaway from Ali’s example is to use exclusivity to create a sense of community with prospects.
People want to feel like they’re a part of something bigger than themselves. By creating an environment where a unique group of people (your audience) can rally around shared values, you meet people’s natural desire to belong.
As a result, you can bring in more leads that will eventually convert into paying clients.
Key Takeaways
Regardless of where you are in your coaching journey, you can attract clients by following proven steps.
Like anything else, success can be achieved with a little time and perseverance. However, if you need additional assistance, we can help. At Entrepreneurs HQ, we have helped thousands of coaches grow their impact, increase their income, and scale their businesses.
So, if you’re ready to take your business coaching practice to the next level, watch our free training on how to get coaching clients.