An online coaching business can be so much fun. How do I know? 

Since the pandemic we all needed to shift in one way or another. When I just started my self-employed life in January with a vegan brunch and workshop business, I soon realised I needed to shift. And that’s when online coaching came onto my path. 

Since shifting to an online business, I’ve gained so many new insights. I am not a slave to my business anymore. I can take time off whenever I want. I’ve met so many beautiful entrepreneurs and my financial freedom is on the rise. 

Let’s see what 6 steps I took to become an online coach…

Tip 1: Niche down – Think about your 10% advantage

First, think about your strengths. You only need to know 10% more about the topic you’re coaching than your client does. 

You want to narrow your stance within the industry. What are the struggles your ideal customer has? What superpower do you have that your ideal customer needs? Who else is your target audience hearing from? What other messaging are they exposed to? How can you differentiate yourself and cut through the noise? This is called niching down. 

It may seem scary at first to narrow your offer, because you’re appealing to less people. But look at it more this way – you’re crafting your message exactly to this smaller group of people’s needs. You’re making your offer irresistible to a specified audience, establishing yourself as the clear choice. IF YOU ARE TALKING TO EVERYONE, YOU ARE TALKING TO NO ONE.

If you’re looking for more guidance on niching down, check out our blog post! 

Tip 2: Think about your ideal customer avatar

Second, you need to know who you’re going to be coaching. Just like in any other business, you want to create your ideal customer avatar to better understand your audience. 

If you haven’t read our previous blog, your ideal customer avatar is created by taking all the characteristics of your current/ideal audience, and accumulating them into a single person that you’ll keep in mind when creating content for your business. 

This ensures that everything you create for your business – from social media posts, to blogs, to the website, to flyers and advertisements – is all on brand and attracting the kind of clients you are looking to coach. 

Tip 3: Establish yourself as the expert by sharing FREE value online

Alright, you’ve identified your ideal customer and you’ve specified your offer to fit their needs. Now, it’s time to show them that you know what you’re talking about. You need to establish yourself as the expert in your niche. 

How do you do this? By sharing your best value…for free.

By giving away your most valuable advice, tips, and tricks for free, you’re proving to your audience that your knowledge on the subject is worth paying for. Then, they’re on the “hook” and will be more interested to work with you 1:1 to coach them through the advice you give and adapt it to their situation and circumstances. 

One of my favorite ways to gather my ideas, knowledge and advise is through a blog. It’s all archived on my website, and easily advertised on social media. 

Pro tip: Instagram stories are also a good idea to drop breadcrumbs of knowledge for your followers. 

Tip 4: Build a website & share on socials to show you’re a coach now 

First thing’s first, tell the world what you do and why you do it. Put it on your website, on all your social channels, and mention it to strangers you meet in the supermarket. You can’t get clients if they don’t know you exist! 

I’d also recommend hosting a coaching “giveaway.” Maybe post on social media asking people to comment + tag a friend for a chance to win a free 30 minute coaching session. Advertise it on social media, gather a list of those that are interested, and choose at random. 

It will help get the word out that you’re coaching, show the social media world that people are interested in working with you, and grow your engagement. All for just 30 minutes of your time and knowledge! 

My last tip here is to be transparent about the amount of coaching spots you have available. Letting your audience know that you only have 10 spots open for coaching establishes a sense of urgency to secure their spot before someone else does.

Tip 5: 15’ discovery call

Now people know what you do, and you have some interested clients… Eeek! Exciting! You’ll want to speak to them “face to face” (online or offline) and ask a couple of questions.

Ask your potential client if they want to get a quick call and send them a calendly or hubspot meeting link to schedule a Google Meets or Zoom call together.

It helps establish a more personal connection and build trust. Plus, it will help you gauge their body luggage and read between the lines, which is important as their mentor. 

Ask them a couple of questions, for example: 

• What are your struggles now? 

• Where do you see yourself going? 

• Why do you need to be coached?

• And lastly: When are we starting? 😉

Let them speak freely and honestly so that you can develop a full picture of where they stand in their business today. Then, ask specific and targeted questions like what their struggles are, what their expectations are, what their short term vs. long term goals are…you get the picture. 

LISTEN MORE THAN YOU TALK. I’d say a good rule of thumb is to listen for 2/3 of the conversation. 

I advise you to take notes as you speak with your clients so you can revisit them in later sessions. Document their answers to your questions, their progress from previous sessions, and anything else that stands out in your conversations. 

Lastly, guide them through what it would look like to work together with you. Guide them through the steps they will be taking together with you, and what the outcome could look like. 

Tip 6: Start coaching

Lastly, it’s your time to shine, baby! 

Really dive deep into the goals, the expectations, and the struggles of your customer. There’s no way that you could cover everything in that 15’ discovery call. Dive deeper to understand them better. That way you’ll serve them even better and be able to meet their expectations. 

When the relationship between need and service are perfectly aligned, you’ll receive positive results with amazing velocity and synergy, almost without effort. 

Coach on what you’re best at. You’ve got this!

Bonus tip: Ask for a review

After a couple of sessions with your ideal customer, do yourself a favor: ask for a review. Social proof is so amazingly valuable for the growth of your new coaching business. Share the review(s) on your website, your social…you get the point 😉 

A fun way to ask for a review: use the freemium tool typeform.