Discover Your Coaching Niche

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You want to know if your chosen coaching niche is viable?

Here are a few of the key indicators:

a) Are they a homogenous group (same type of issues, concerns, problems, outlook etc)

b) Are they reachable – do you know where exactly to go both online and offline to reach them?

c) Is there enough activity in the niche – (money being spent, newsletters, magazines, press coverage, books, seminars, trade shows etc)

d) Are they hungry - do they have a VERY small number of key problems that they really want help with – and do you know what these are?

Remember, to coach them, you do not have to be the world expert in their problems, at least initially! But if you pick your niche wisely, you’ll soon see patterns emerging about their needs, wants, desires and problems.

And the more you interact with them, the clearer these will become. You’ll get to the point where you can predict what their issues will be before you meet them. That’s when you gain a lot of credibility.

Then when you’re able to resolve their problems – or show them how to, you are REALLY adding value.

The key thing initlally is can you get to them – get in front of them – in person and online easily?

If you can, great. If not, or if it will take a great deal of research work just to find them, I’d select a narrower subset of your market, at least to start with.

Alun supplies products and services to coaches to help them with their marketing.  To discover the coaching niche that’s right for you, go to http://www.nichecourse.co.uk for your free course on nicheing.

niche, coaching niche

In our last post, we looked at two common myths about nicheing that are widely held amongst coaches.  We continue the discussion in this post.

Myth 3.  If I’m niched, my income will go down, as I appeal to less people. 

Look at Dentist Coach Chris Barrow, if you believe this.  When he specialised in coaching Dentists, his income went up in significant hikes.  Chris enjoys a 7-figure coaching income and reports that he has 12 weeks holidays a year.

I’ve just got hold of the 2009 Annual Sherpa Coaching Survey.  Here’s a comparison with annual incomes of undifferentiated, un-niched life coaches and coaches with a niche, in this case Executive Coaches.

Life Coaches’ Income

In 2008-9, life coaches with less than 3 years, 3-5 years and more than five year’s experience, earned $ 28,200, $ 35,230 and $ 77,000 respectively.

Executive Coaches’ Income

In 2008-9, executive coaches with less than 3 years, 3-5 years and more than five year’s experience, earned $ 64,000, $ 88,300 and  $ 134,800 respectively.

Which income would you prefer?  So now would you like a niche?

So Why Should Coaches Niche?

It’s profitable, as we can see.  It makes your marketing effort easier, as you get known more quickly in a narrow market.  And the trouble is, if you don’t have a niche, you’re trying to appeal to everyone.  In trying to appeal to everyone, you’ll risk appealing to no-one. 

In the current economic climate, unless you’re appealing specifically to a narrow target market, supplying exactly what your prospects want, you’re less likely to get the business.

niche, coaching niche, discover your coaching niche

Many coaches hold back from specialising in a niche, and as a result, massively restrict their earnings. 

This article explores common coaching niche myths and shows how much money you might be missing out on, due to not having a niche!

There are several myths about having a coaching niche.  They come up again and again.  Here are the most common.

Myth 1.  You lose out on attracting business because you’re niched.

This is supposedly because you lose people who are not in your niche, either because you turn them down, or they are not attracted to you anymore.

Many coaches who have no niche believe this.  No coaches who have a niche believe this, as they all have evidence to the contrary.  When you’re active in a niche, you get known fast, through word of mouth and through other communication channels.  People outside of your niche will get to hear about you, and ask if you can coach them.

Assuming your practice is not completely full, you can coach them, if you choose to!

Myth 2.  It’s best to have a huge amount of coaching experience (100 people?  200 hours?) before you niche.

Being competent as a coach is essential, of course.  But the difference between a dentist with an income of $40K and one of $400K is not in how they fill teeth.  It’s in how they market themselves. 

Coaching skill and marketing skill are not dependent on each other.

If you’re sure there’s a hungry market, and you know you can supply their needs, why wait? 

This article will continue in the next post.

niche, coaching niche, discover your coaching niche

Mistake 5. Not Taking Action

Finally, there are a number of coaches who have come this far only to be paralysed in not taking action. You must, you must take action. It’s the one thing that differentiates the successful from the also-rans.

As you’ve read thorough this report, you’ll have begun to identify what actions you need to take next. Write these down and set a deadline for their completion.

Identify whether your next step is to gather the information you need to complete the action, whether you need access to someone or something to proceed, or whether it’s simply about blocking out the time to do it.

But make sure you plan and are committed to do it. Then just do it.

Summary of the Five Fatal Marketing Mistakes

This report has examined the five fatal marketing mistakes made by 80% of all coaches.

In summary, they are:

Mistake 1. Not Having a Niche

Mistake 2. Not Knowing Their Biggest Problem

Mistake 3. Not Having a Solution to Their Problem

Mistake 4. Not Knowing How to Reach Your Niche

Mistake 5. Not Taking Action

It is very likely that one of these mistakes is seriously impeding your ability to dramatically grow your coaching practice.

Just by identifying this and committing to taking action, you will be ahead of the vast majority of coaches, and on your way to having a successful coaching practice.

Taking Action

We said earlier that one of the biggest problems for coaches with their marketing is not taking action. Commit to take action now as a result of reading this report.

What are the three actions you can take this week that will begin to resolve the marketing problems you face? Write these down.

For each of these, what is the very next step you must take? Write these down. Yes, write them down even if they are very straightforward.

Now commit to doing these this week.

© Copyright Alun Richards 2008. All Rights Reserved. You may freely distribute this article providing you do so in its entirety; ensuring the copyright and contact details above are included.

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In the first part of this article, we examined the first two fatal marketing mistakes coaches make.

These were:

Mistake 1. Not Having a Niche
Mistake 2. Not Knowing Their Biggest Problem

We continue with fatal marketing mistake no. 3

Mistake 3. Not Having a Solution to Their Problem

The next biggest mistake is not having a solution to the problems experienced by the members of your niche.

Of course, you may already know a solution to their biggest problem. Or you may not know, and may have to work to create a solution.

Whatever situation you are in, identify the next steps to having a solution for your niche.

If you need to create a solution, consider what resources are available to you.

Here are some ideas:

• Import ready-made solutions from other disciplines.
• Use friends, colleagues or family members for ideas.
• Consider what previous business acquaintances could help you.
• What skills and knowledge from other areas of your life are relevant to the problem?

For other sources of ready-made solutions, consider what other people may have ready-made solutions to the problem. These may be within your niche – in which case you might consider a joint venture.

Or they may be from outside your niche, in which case you could consider adapting the solution to make it more specific to your niche.

Mistake 4. Not Knowing How to Reach Your Niche

You must be able to reach your niche effectively, either online or offline, and preferably both.

Reaching them implies knowing where to go to meet them, online and offline. Offline this means special interest groups, associations, networking groups, trade shows and the like.

Online this means forums, online lists, social media sites, membership sites and discussion groups.

If you don’t know where they meet, it’s research time. Ask other members of the niche where they hang out.

If you do know where they meet, it’s action time for you! Get involved with your niche, and get known!

This article will continue in the next posting.

There are five fatal marketing mistakes that are made by at least 80% of all coaches. Are you strangling your coaching practice by making these mistakes? Read on to find out.

Mistake 1. Not Having a Niche

By far the biggest mistake made by coaches is not having a niche. Admit it, you’ve heard this many times, but you may not have taken action on it yet.

According to my research, 67% of all coaches do not have a niche. Many claim to not want one – “they like the variety.” The fact is that the most profitable coaching practices are those that do have a niche. And the coaching practices that have a niche find it the easiest to market to their target market.

So what is a niche?

A niche is a small, distinct part of a larger market. It’s one that has a definable set of members that are distinct from the mass market. The niche will be homogenous but distinct from the mass market in several important ways. These may be geography, psychographics, demographics, buying and other behaviour and will certainly include their preferences.

This means that understanding the makeup and preferences of your niche is likely to be a profitable activity.

Mistake 2. Not Knowing Their Biggest Problem

Members of a niche have specific needs and wants, and they have a small
number of specific problems that are similar within the niche but
different to the mass market.

You must know – or be able to find out – the problems that are commonly experienced by your niche. Whatever niche you have, there will be common problems experienced by most members of the niche.

If you don’t know the biggest problem (or problems) experienced by your niche, you will not know what they are most willing to pay good money to resolve.

If you do know their biggest problems, you’re half way to a solution. You need to be able to define the problem succinctly and specifically.

As well as asking what the biggest problems are, as why this is a problem. This will get you good quality information that you can use in creating a solution to the problem.

Technorati Tags: coaching marketing, coaching niche, five fatal marketing mistakes

In the first two posts of this article, I explored the pain of not having coaching clients.  Whether the pain is currently mild, moderate or severe, there is a remedy.  The remedy is to know who you are coaching and know what their problems are.

3. Demonstrate you know what they want – Gaining Credibility

If you don’t know what your prospects want, you’ll be just like any other coach who can’t get clients.  These other coaches can’t get clients because they can’t demonstrate credibility in the eyes of their prospects.  Their prospects just can’t see the relevance to them. 

But you will gain credibility when you demonstrate that you understand the issues and problems your prospects are facing.  That’s so fundamental I’m going to repeat it.  You gain credibility when you demonstrate you understand the issues and problems they are facing.

4. But I don’t know the solution to the problems…

By knowing what the problems are, you’re more than half the way there.  The first step on the way to resolving a problem is to define it unambiguously.  With your coaching skills, if you help your prospect to do just that, the likelihood is that the two of you will be able to work towards a resolution.

Conclusion

If you’re a coach, whether you’re suffering mild, moderate or severe pain in getting clients, there’s a remedy. 

This involves you:
1. Being clear on who you are coaching.
2. Knowing what problems they want solved.
3. Demonstrating you know what they want.
4. Working with your new client to solve their problem.

Alun Richards helps coaches find and reach their coaching niche.  Discover yours with Alun’s free mini-course, “Discover Your Coaching Niche”, available from
http://www.nichecourse.co.uk

© Copyright Alun Richards 2007. All Rights Reserved.  You may freely distribute this article providing you do so in its entirety; ensuring the copyright and contact details above are included.

In the last post we suggested that the pain of having no clients can be mild, moderate or severe.  We explored mild and moderate pain means.  But what if you have severe pain?

Third Degree – Severe Pain

You’re finding prospects have no apparent interest.  In fact, just getting in front of prospects who might be interested in your coaching is hard.  Where are they all?  Even when you get hold of a prospect, the conversation falters after you mention you’re a coach.  It wasn’t supposed to be like this.  What can you do?

The Treatment

I said there was treatment available for even the most severe case.  So what’s the prescription?

1. Be clear on who you are coaching

Who are you coaching exactly?  Just stop and think for a minute.  Now start to define precisely who wants your coaching – or could want your coaching.  The narrower the field, the better.  And no, the answer “anyone” is no good.  No good at all.  “Anyone” is the reason why many coaches have no clients at all.

Focus!  You must have a niche.  Begin to use a rifle, not a blunderbuss.  So who could you coach – who might want your combination of background, experience and knowledge? 

Which groups would value your set of skills?  Start making a list.  Which ones appeal most?  Which ones are most relevant to your background prior to you becoming a coach?  Start to narrow the list down.

2. What do they want?

Now you have some possible targets, what do these people want?  What do you mean, you don’t know?  Find them and ask them! 

Discover what their biggest problems are.  What is it that keeps them up at night?  What would make their life so much easier, if it were to be resolved?  Whisper it quietly: this is market research.  Do you have to do this?  Yes, yes you do – now get out and just do it.

This article will continue in the next post.

“The purpose of marketing is to get and keep a customer.”
Theodore Levitt

“But how on earth do I do that?”
A Coach

The Problem

You’re a coach, and you’re not getting clients.  It’s not a matter of your coaching skills – you know that.  Anyone who has had a coaching session with you compliments you on the insights your coaching brings.  Many of your clients have achieved significant changes in their lives, even if you do say so yourself.

So what is the problem, exactly?

The Three Degrees of Pain

The sad news is that this situation is only too common amongst coaches.  And it can come in three degrees of pain – Mild, Moderate and Severe.  Luckily, for even the most severe case, there is treatment available.  Read on to establish how much pain you’re suffering right now, and what to do about it.

First Degree – Mild Pain

Do you recognise this description?  You’re meeting plenty of prospects, and you’re generating some interest in your coaching.  Some prospects sign up for a complimentary coaching session with you.  You get few or no conversions to paying clients, however.

Second Degree – Moderate Pain

Or perhaps it’s worse?  You do get in front of prospects from time to time, but it often seems to be the same old crowd.  You feel your initial energy and excitement in your coaching services beginning to wane.  Is it showing?  You’re a great coach.  You’ve coached loads of people during your training.  Why is it so hard to get clients?

This article continues in the next post.

This is a continuation of our article. In the first two posts we listed six of the top mistakes made by coaches when networking.

They are:
1. Not Taking Your Business Card
2. Not Having a Concise Answer to “So what do you do?”
3. Networking with Other Coaches
4. Not Being Clear on Who Your Target Market Are
5. Premature Selling
6. Not Making Notes

So let’s continue with number 7. This one is more common than you would ever imagine.

7. Not Following Up

If you’re not following up, why on earth are you networking? You need to make time to systematically call your prospects in the days after the networking event.

This requires thinking about your prospect, your interaction and what you’re going to say when you call.

8. Not Getting Trained

You got trained in coaching skills, didn’t you? You most likely invested time and effort in learning how to coach. Networking, for the vast majority of coaches, does not come naturally – it’s something you need to learn.

So take a course. I can strongly recommend Will Kintish’s networking courses – more details via http://www.kintish.co.uk .

9. Not Being Consistent

As with all marketing strategies, you can’t just go to one networking event and think “That’s it”. Networking – both attendance and follow-up – is something you must do consistently.

You should be looking to attend relevant networking events at least fortnightly. Make this a part of your working life.

10. Getting Drunk

There are often opportunities for drinking at networking events. If you do drink, do so in moderation. This is business, not pleasure. No-one is particularly attractive when drunk, and it’s easy to underestimate how much drink will affect you.

Bonus Tip: Be Innovative – Consider Using CDs

One variation on handing out business cards worth mentioning is a professional who gives out recordings of a presentation he’s given on CDs. It’s now quite possible to record – cost-effectively – a presentation, teleclass or briefing you’ve given, and give it away, in place of a business card.

Just be sure it’s relevant to your target market, it’s produced to a high standard and has all your contact details included.

Conclusion

In this article I’ve discussed the most common mistakes that coaches make when using networking to build their business. Which ones are you now aware of that you can avoid? And what actions are you going to take as a result of reading this article?

Alun Richards helps coaches find and reach their coaching niche. Discover yours with Alun’s free mini-course, “Discover Your Coaching Niche“, available from http://www.brandingyou.org/ecoursesales.html

© Copyright Alun Richards 2007. All Rights Reserved. You may freely distribute this article providing you do so in its entirety; ensuring the copyright and contact details above are included.

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