If you are a coach because you enjoy helping people, the last thing you want to do is bombard them with marketing hype.
And yet, most marketing programs do just that. Here's one that doesn't and it won't cost you a cent, because it's free on this site.
We use it and we love it. Maybe you will too. But don't take our word for it. Use it because it's right for your business.
5 Reasons why inbound marketing is right for your business:
1. Inbound Marketing is based on relationship building and mutual respect. This is the foundation of any effective coaching relationship and you simply can't have it if your marketing is based on annoying or manipulating people. So if you've been put off by marketing up until now, your intuition has been steering your right!
2. Inbound Marketing is all about listening first. As an advanced communicator, you know that listening is the first step in any transformational conversation. How can your attract your ideal clients if you're not listening to them first?
3. Inbound Marketing is not about you. Great coaching is always all about the client, so how can you market your coaching if you make it all about you? Learn to attract clients by making it all about them from the very beginning.
4. Inbound Marketing leverages your natural generosity. Great coaches are creative and love to give. If that's you, then inbound marketing is the perfect way to leverage your creativity and generosity. What could be more fun?
5. Inbound Marketing works. Don't let any 'marketing maven' tell you that you have to do things that make you cringe in order to be successful. Inbound marketing works better than traditional marketing, because your clients hate be treated like 'Joe Customer'. They love be treated with respect, generosity and listening. And quite frankly, they love it when you make it all about them!
If you really want to succeed as a coach, use marketing that reflects your own values. For most coaches, that's going to be inbound marketing. I've put together a page for you of some of my favorite inbound marketing tools. Enjoy them all for free!
Visit the Inbound Marketing Hub here.
At the start of 2009, I joined the Compass Coaching Team as an "Affiliate Partner".
Compass had an unique business model, at least for coaching. It's a multi-level marketing company (Think: Mary Kay for Life Coaching). When I first learned about it, I thought multi-level marketing was a terrible idea for coaching. But a lot of good coaches were involved and at least one, who is a client of mine, was having a ball building her business with Compass, so I became intrigued that Compass might serve as a 'missing link', if you will, that some coaches may need in order to learn about business, marketing and sales. It also gives clients who may not be ready for a one-on-one coaching commitment a chance to dabble with coaching and experience what a life changer it can be - and then trade up to the 'real thing' when they're ready.
In short, I decided to get involved and because I have a large 'reach' (data base + social media), I joined for free.
Compass Coaching was pitched to me as a 'super affiliate' opportunity, which said to me, 'leverage your reach and integrate with your current marketing (mostly online)', but otherwise make Compass Coaching a low impact, relatively passive source of income.
Win-win-win, right? Share it with coaches who can benefit by building their businesses, change more clients' lives, and increase my own income.
Well, I have to admit, I'm a bit disappointed.
But, if you're waiting for me to drop a bomb or share a big scandal about Compass Coaching, there really isn't one. Over time, I found that Compass just didn't inspire me. Worse yet, my monthly checks hadn't grown in an entire year, even though I helped bring in quite a few new clients, coaches and reps. It wasn't worth my time and I have other projects that are much more fun and interesting.
Just to be clear, I'm not saying that life coaches shouldn't join Compass. It's a reputable company and I'm not sorry I experimented with it. If you don't experiment, you don't learn. If you're interested in group coaching and learning how to build your business via seminars and live networking, Compass Coaching may be a fit for you.
However, I believe most people go into life coaching in order to do one-to-one coaching, which isn't what Compass is about. The Coach 100 approach is actually much more effective, simpler and less time consuming than Compass and it's easier to make more money faster with it - and do it on your own terms. Coaching businesses need solid income to survive and thrive and most coaches want to start making money sooner, rather then later.
So call me biased, but Coach 100 is still the best way for most life and business coaches to building a full coaching practice, usually in under a year. Learn more about Coach 100 by downloading the free ebook, below.
