From the Wisdom Vault…

Do you avoid telling prospects your fees until the last possible moment?

Is it tempting to reduce your rates or give fewer sessions each month?

Does the whole subject just make you squirm?

Those were all true for me once. Many of us share discomfort around asking clients to pay enough for coaching that will actually allow us to meet our financial goals. What I hear from coaches is:

But I’m new and shouldn’t charge much.

I think _______ (fill in target market) can’t afford as much as I’d need to charge to make my income goals.

I don’t care that much about money.

Yet I hear these same people in a circular struggle to invest in a website, marketing materials and a mentor coach of their own. Many are perpetually unable to quit their jobs so that they can offer full time coaching. By keeping their rates small, they keep themselves small, which is perceived by prospects, and that keeps their coaching income small.

The truth is no one wins when you stay small. 

Years ago, as a struggling coach I had a breakthrough that gave me the courage to raise my fees and stop discounting my time. To my surprise it also changed the way my clients showed up for coaching. In fact, I found that the higher my fees were the more invested clients became in improving their own lives!

This is the secret I learned about fee setting:

If I come from prosperity thinking and charge the fees that will meet my financial goals — everyone wins.

Are you ready to think big and support your clients to big wins?
Become a Prosperous Coach member today!

To Your Prosperity!

Rhonda Hess

Founder, Prosperous Coach

From the Wisdom Vault…

I know how disappointing it can be after you’ve poured hard work and dollars into your website only to have it sit there collecting cyber dust.

You’ve done everything right so far:

- Your site addresses the top challenges of your target market in a succinct and compelling way.

- Your coaching services are tailor made to benefit that target market. 

- You have a contact form with evocative questions that will entice prospects to contact you for sample sessions.

- On every webpage you have a prominently featured web form inviting visitors to sign up for your ezine, blog or other fre*ebie.

- And, you’ve created a follow up autoresponder campaign calling prospects to action. 

(Oops! Haven’t done these things yet?
Working Websites for Coaches is a step-by-step guide to show you how.)

So, now what? How do you get prospects to show up?

And once you get them there how do you sell them coaching services?

While it might seem complex, your role as an Internet marketer comes down to three simple things:

1. Generate leads.
2. Convert leads to sales.
3. Upsell the pre-qualified leads.

Wait, you say! All this marketing and sales talk makes me wince!

I understand. Honestly, I only started using those terms a few years ago myself. But it did help me focus my marketing efforts in a more successful way.

So, here it is in plain English:

1. Continuously get the word out that you and your website exist.

Every week post on blogs, submit articles for directories and publications that your target market reads. Always include a crisp bio that references your website. You’ll be amazed how quickly your credibility soars and prospects hit your website in droves.

Remember, only a few people will be compelled to contact you for coaching right away, so keep all the visitors warm by capturing their name and email address through your fre*ebie — ezine, blog, or fre*e report.

2. Weed out the non-ideal prospects.

Offer a low cost ($10 - $49) product that solves a problem for your target market. Fre*e things lose their appeal after a while. When prospects are willing to make a small investment they become ideal prospects. Warmed up to your style, they are more willing to consider your coaching.

We know this — few unqualified leads will actually buy anything. That’s okay. This is a weeding out process. After all, you don’t want to offer your expensive time to just anyone — you want ideal clients.

3. Step up your marketing to these ideal prospects. Offer your one-on-one and group coaching plus higher priced products using high touch approaches such as teleclasses and presentations to this pre-qualified group. Your sales conversion will improve because you’re not wasting time on the individuals who will never buy anything.

With a system like this (called a Marketing Funnel) it’s easier and easier to fill your practice. 

From the Wisdom Vault…

Once you’ve decided on a niche market, the next best step to building your six-figure coaching business is to develop your website.

Have you been putting off creating your website?

Many coaches say:

- I don’t know how to begin.
- I don’t know what to write.
- I don’t know how to capture leads. 

The natural thing is to look at what everyone else does. Some websites seem very impressive and imply vast credentials. Don’t let this rattle you! When you have all the right ingredients on your site with your authentic language, you’ll look good to your prospects too!

Unfortunately, most coaches’ websites are poor examples of a working website. What’s missing?

- A target market.
(Distinguish yourself from all the other coaches.)

- A compelling message.
(Speak to your client’s top challenges — what causes them pain.)

- Specifc benefits clients will reap from coaching services.
(Your answer to their pain.)

- A well designed mechanism for capturing leads.
(Recruit every visitor as a prospect with a sign up for a valuable freebie.)

- Evocative streamlined text.
(Studies show people read only 10% of text.) 

- Only essential links to other sites.
(Don’t send your visitors away from you.)

Looking at other coaches’ websites can actually lead you far astray of what will work for you.

When I was creating my first coaching website I looked for a step by step guide to break the project down into easy segments. I wanted some easy ways to generate leads. I wanted to write dynamic content. And I wanted tips to manage my web designer. But the guide I was looking for didn’t exist then.

That’s why I created Working Websites for Coaches to help you:

1. Legitimize your business.
2. Build credibility with your target market.
3. Generate leads through your ezine (an electronic newsletter).
4. Advertise your events and register participants.
5. Sell your intellectual property online.
6. Build global visibility with your target market.
7. Pre-qualify prospects into ideal clients.

Coaches who have used Working Websites for Coaches say it:

“Far outstrips similar resources.”

“Provided me with insightful industry-specific marketing savvy.”

“Gave me focus and confidence to launch my business on the web.”

Will Craig, Founder of Coach Training Alliance calls Working Websites for Coaches:

The most thorough and realistic Web strategy for coaches that’s ever been done. The attention to detail and simple step-by-step instructions make this an essential guide for any coach wanting to increase their visibility and credibility.

Let Working Websites for Coaches guide you in how to:

1. Write compelling content to pre-qualify and enroll your ideal clients.
2. Include the #1 most important aspect of your site — the sign up.
3. Lay out the pages that are critical for your success.
4. Create an expandable site that’s easy to maintain.
5. Prepare for and manage your web designer. 

Why wait to have a working website?

Get Working Websites for Coaches and have your new website done in just a few weeks!

From the Wisdom Vault…

Imagine…

What would be like to be coaching dozens of clients who value your services so highly that they work with you for a year or more? Because they continually refer their colleagues, you have this stream of pre-qualified prospects contacting you every week. You raise your fees significantly and you still have a wait list! So you put together groups so you could serve more people at one time. And, you carved out a block of time to work on that book you want to write. You’re scheduled to take a two week vacation to Hawaii at the end of this month…

Not only do I know coaches who are this successful, I am blessed to be one of them. Do we still have problems? Sure, but it’s never about getting more clients. How do you get beyond the constant issue of getting more coaching clients?

It comes down to these five keys:

5. Highly value your time.
4. Act as if your coaching business is successful already in every choice you make.
3. Deliver valuable services and products.
2. Have several support systems to keep resourced and learning.
1. Market to one very specific niche market. 

This last one is really the first key. Once you choose a niche market and click on the certainty button, you’ll not only feel better but you will also attract the best clients for you. Get ready to make marketing a whole lot easier!

Figuring out your best niche market sometimes requires expert help. It did for me. And most coaches have some pretty big resistance to narrowing their niche. But getting past that resistance is one of the most important breakthroughs needed to help you be a successful coach. I’m not just talking about a six-figure income kind of success. I’m talking about making a difference, supporting others to more prosperity, which starts within yourself.

My personal definition of success is coming out of any challenge as a better person than I was before. I wouldn’t find that success without the support of others.