“Marketing” tends to be a major buzzword amongst online business owners and coaches, but it can sometimes be hard to decipher what that entails and where to even start.
I mean, we have Facebook ads, Instagram, email marketing, Google ratings, SEO, podcasts, blogs, etc., etc., etc.
It’s a lot, and you want to make sure that the hard work you’re doing is actually going to move the needle.
This is why, today, I am going to share with you 5 marketing tips every coach needs.
The following are 5 marketing tips are things I actively use in my own online coaching business.
1. Know Why Your Ideal Clients Should Work with You
The first thing you need is a reason why your ideal client should work with you.
Why are you the best person to lead them to success?
This in particular is called a Unique Selling Proposition, also known as “USP”.
Your USP should cover not only why someone should work with you, but also what makes your offer unique.
So you need a Unique Selling Proposition for yourself as well as for your offer.
Another way to think of this is, why are you the best person to lead them to success?
You have to figure out what makes your specific personality the best for your specific ideal client?
You also have to figure out what’s their specific problem and why are you specifically uniquely qualified to help them solve that problem?
An example for me is the majority of my clients tend to be introverts or identify as introverts.
So, even though they might sometimes be outgoing and don’t mind social situations, they need to recharge.
Oftentimes, putting themselves online can be intimidating.
The reason that I’m uniquely qualified to help my ideal client with a marketing process is that I know what it’s like to be an introvert.
I created marketing processes to work with my introverted nature, as opposed to against it.
2. Get Super Clear on Your Specific Client
Who do you want to work with?
You have to not only know your ideal client, but you have to know who that person is that gets the best results.
An “ideal client” is not just a demographic, nor just a personality trait.
It’s not just women age 25 to 45 who are high achievers.
You have to get a lot more specific than that.
It’s important to create an ideal client profile.
There’s a reason I work with coaches who are either pre-revenue or who are essentially just starting their business.
Nobody else wants to work with beginners, but I don’t work with “beginner beginners”.
I work with people who have experience in what they do, but they might just be a beginner to coaching.
The reason I do this is because I know they’re going to get the best results with me.
I know they can do 10X or even more than what they’re pulling in revenue right now because I believe all they may have to do is implement this 4-Step Client Gaining Marketing System.
I’m confident once they have their system in place they’ll take off, but usually only if they’re in their beginning stage of their coaching business.
You’ve got to take some time to write out who that person is:
- What is their job title or field that they work in?
- Are they business owners?
- Where do they live?
- How old are they?
- Do they have children?
- List some specific personality traits.
By the time you’re done, you should have a clear outline of your ideal client.
3. Know Your “How”
This is how you plan to help your ideal client.
It’s your offer.
Now that you know who your ideal client is and how to speak to them, your offer should be a perfect match for them.
Think about the lock and key model as taught by a copywriter name, Colin Theriot.
The “lock” is their problem they have. You’re simply describing it to them.
The “key” is an offer you create that is in alignment with your ideal client’s lock.
You must know how to describe the specific struggles and frustrations they have, and how to match your outcome with all the benefits they would want.
When they see it, they need to feel relieved that it exist.
They should feel like, “this is everything I’ve been looking for.”
You also want to package it so it’s clearly defined with outcomes and what they get.
4. Have a Marketing Funnel
My fourth tip is the always have a marketing funnel.
This is my favorite part, but you MUST complete tips 1-3 before you can build a marketing funnel.
Without knowing who you’re specifically talking to, how to speak to them, and how you’re going to help them — a marketing funnel won’t work for your business.
The good news is implementing the marketing funnel is the easy part.
A marketing funnel is a online “journey” that ideal client takes on the way to getting to know, like, and trust you.
How Do I Get to Know You?
- Can we meet in person?
- Will you be hosting a workshop or live stream?
- Are you posting in Facebook groups?
- Am I being introduced to you by someone that I know already?
- Did I find you on YouTube?
What Makes Me Like You?
This is where they enter into a relationship with you by exchanging their email address or their phone number for something that you’ll give them.
This one is a tough step because people protect their email addresses like crazy these days.
They protect their phone numbers like crazy, too.
If they’re going to give you that information, that’s almost the same thing as them giving you money.
It’s an energetic exchange.
You want to treat this relationship with a lot of care and respect because first impressions are everything.
They’re not going to like you if you give them some bottom-barrel content.
You want to show them your best work and give them a reason to keep investing in the relationship.
Think of it like dating.
Give them a reason to want to go on a second date with you.
What Makes Me Trust You?
If you want someone to trust you, you’ve got to be able to relate to them.
As a coach you know you can help clients get results but it’s not about showering them with your accolades.
It’s more about saying, “Hey, I understand where you’re coming from.
I’ve been there, or my clients have been there.
This is what we’ve been able to do.
If this is something that you’d like to get taken care of, please contact me.”
Talking about their frustrations, pain points, and providing a solution is what helps build that trust factor.
When you can explain someone’s problem to them better than they feel like they even understand it themselves, that’s when they will trust you.
5. Learn How to Close Sales
The final tip for my 5 marketing tips every coach needs is you have to be able to close sales.
You have to be able to get clients on the phone.
These are often called discovery calls, strategy sessions, complimentary calls, clarity calls, or whatever you want to call them — they’re just free calls with potential clients.
For discovery calls to work for you, you have to qualify the client.
You can qualify them on an application or inside of your Webinar or live stream.
In those beginning relationship-building opportunities, you clearly state who you help, how you help them, and why you’re the perfect fit for them.
By the time they get on the call, they should already know that they want to work with you.
Getting on the phone with your potential clients can be the most intimidating part of the whole process, but if you’ve already done steps 1-4 it should actually be the easiest.
You Can’t Be “Too Clear” with Your Potential Clients
My biggest advice would be that you can’t be too clear your potential clients.
Tell them exactly why you’re the right fit, why you’re the person they’ve been waiting for, and how working with you will change their lives.
That’s what closing the sell is about.
If you’re believable, and if they trust your solution is the key to their problem, you’ll be able to close the sale.
There you have it!
My 5 marketing tips every coach needs!