How to Grow A Coaching Business: 5 Tips for Success

Growing a coaching business starts with a strong foundation

Many of us started a coaching business because we wanted freedom. We wanted to free ourselves from the corporate shackles, the desk job, the 9-5.

And we start our coaching businesses to give us that sense of freedom we’ve been craving.

• We want to take clients when we want them.
• Set our own work hours.
• Take as much vacation time as we want.

Surprisingly, so many coaches tend to leave corporate life only to end up working 40+ hours a week, nights and weekends, on our businesses.

• We pack our schedules trying to learn all the things.
• We’re on every social media platform trying to get clients.
• We take as many coaching clients as possible, leaving little breathing room.

Doesn’t really sound like freedom, does it?

That’s because in order to experience the growth and freedom you want in your business, you must create the structure to support it.

How coaches stand in the way of their own growth

The other challenge I see facing many coaches and healers that many of us rebel against business structure. 

Let me know if this sounds like you:

• You don’t want to think about a daily schedule, you just want to work when you want to.
  
• You don’t want to commit to consistently marketing your business; you just show up when you feel like it.
  
• You don’t want to set up policies and procedures because it feels “too corporate” or you don’t want to invest the time and money necessary to start a business.
  

Yet, you want your coaching business to support you financially, to grow with time, allowing you the freedom you so desire.

How structure supports growing your coaching business

The thing we need to realize is that structure supports growth. 

And, in fact, when we don’t have the structure, it actually holds us back from experiencing the growth — and freedom — we desire.

Here’s what I mean:

• If you want to make 6 figures in your business, you have to have systems in place to streamline your onboarding process.
• If you want to serve 10 clients, you need be adept at managing your time in your business.
  
• If want to grow quickly, you’re going to need to define your coaching niche.

If this is you, take a deep breath and pause for a moment. 

Realize how the lack of structure may contribute to you staying where you are.

And also realize that you can grow a coaching business faster by building a strong foundation now.

A strong foundation creates the structure to grow

When you create the structure, you are saying to the universe,

“Yes, I’m ready! I can serve these clients. I can take these payments. I’m ready to grow my business!”

Plus, you free up your own time to focus on important work, like coaching your clients.

When you have the foundation, you don’t have to stress about every day activities. You can focus on the activities that help you attract coaching clients.

5 tips to grow your coaching business

So if you’re ready to take the steps to create the structure to support the flow and growth of your coaching business, check out the following tips.

Tip #1: Define what type of coach you are and what you do for people.

It may sound counterintuitive, but the narrower the niche, the easier it is to get known and get clients. You must also have a message that attracts your niche.

“I’m a transformational life coach,” is not specific enough.

“I’m a health coach and I work with women who were recently diagnosed with autoimmune conditions and who want to find healthy ways to support themselves so they can have more energy and achieve their goals” is much more clear and tangible core message.

If you’re not sure what type of coach you are and who you serve, check out this post on finding your niche.

Tip #2: Validate your coaching packages *before* you start marketing them.

If you’re just starting your business, you might not have a suite of services yet, and that’s OK!

Even having one compelling coaching package on your website that’s tailored to the needs and desires of your prospective clients is all it takes. But you must take the steps to validate this offer before you put it out for clients to buy.

This means you need to do the legwork to understand what your ideal clients are looking for and what they’ll pay for, so that you can create offers they want to buy.

This is where market research comes into play. (And psssst… you should be doing this anytime you create a new coaching package!)

Tip #3: Systematize the business and marketing tasks you do repeatedly.

You want to have systems for things you’ll do repeatedly, such as client onboarding, client offboarding, email marketing, blogging, podcasting, or anything else.

This is where online tools and apps can help. Whether you have a VA, a team, or you’re going it alone, you’ll want to automate what you can in your business once you have proven processes in place.

Administrative tasks are not something you want to spend your time and energy on when you are growing your coaching business. Systems will make things easier as you grow.

Not sure which tools and apps to use? Check out this list.

Tip #4: Identify your priorities and schedule them into your week.

Knowing your priorities is essential when you are focused on growth. Each week, take the time to map out your biggest priorities and time block your calendar for when you’ll work on those activities.

This is where effective time management comes in. As the CEO of your business, you’ll need to decide what gets your attention and what doesn’t. Do your big picture planning on a quarterly and monthly basis, and then each week, sit down to identify your top 3 priorities for that week.

Practice these time management tips for coaches, so you can make sure the most important things get done.

Tip #5: Solidify your client onboarding process.

Client onboarding is not just about scheduling or signing a client agreement. Your onboarding process sets the stage for new clients to work with you, so you want to take care to put together a thoughtful, client-centric onboarding process.

This process should include everything from an initial welcome email, client intake form, a coaching agreement, payment methods, and process for scheduling sessions, as well as instructions on how to best communicate with you in between sessions.

A clear onboarding process communicates the next steps, providing your clients a structure, which helps foster trust.

If you are looking for an all-in-one platform that can help you manage your contracts, invoices, and scheduling, check out Paperbell.

Growing your coaching business starts with you

Growing your coaching business requires building a structure that supports you, your clients, and the growth of your business. 

So even if it doesn’t seem fun or exciting, realize that this solid foundation will create the framework from which everything else flows. 

The good news is, when you take the time to build this foundation, you can  move on to the more exciting activities of your business — coaching your clients!

Structure supports growth. It supports freedom. And it can support you, as long as you let it.