Discover Your Coaching Niche

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.

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