Struggling To Sell Life Coaching? – Here's Why
- Jan 31, 2023
- 4 min read
Written by: Pamella Pritchard, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Do you sometimes wonder if your attempts to sell life coaching is like speaking, passionately, but to a brick wall? You know you can help people, and you are ready to accept clients, except, no one is biting at your marketing. Here is why. Nobody buys life coaching. It's not like a massage, where people literally want the massage. They are buying the impact of the result of life coaching. Read that part again. It’s not even just the result, it’s the IMPACT. Read on to find out exactly what that means.
STOP trying to sell coaching.
The only people who buy coaching are coaches, because they value coaching in and of itself.
But EVEN then, coaches are highly unlikely to continue to purchase the same coaching if they aren't clear on what the result is at the end of it. Have you ever had an incredible coaching session then a week later you can't really say what happened but you know it was good?
Well, this is the challenge that most coaches face when it comes to selling life coaching. Because every day that you are not getting clear on what your client gets out of coaching with you, the more you are leaving money on the table.
Now imagine how people who think coaching is for football teams and presidents and maybe someone like Sheryl Sandberg. They don't understand what life coaching is, or how it helps them. So selling life coaching or just the results isn't enough.
Your clients need to know the impact of life coaching. Without communicating the impact of coaching, the result of coaching sounds like empty, fluffy words.
So many coaches sell the following:
Confidence
Happiness
Feeling better
No longer feeling like an imposter at work
A career change
Thriving in a life transition
Better parenting
Conscious relationships
Feeling enough
Belief in themselves
Life purpose discovery
etc. etc
So why doesn't this work?
Every single hour of the day, we are bombarded with car adverts, magazines, social media, and advertisements that promote 'emotional experiences'. Have you ever become teary-eyed after a commercial, only to discover it was a promotion for Mcdonald's at the end of it?
Most life coaches don't have the budget or time as they build their business around the 9to5, to create emotional advertisements that impact the way the big conglomerates do.
The use of emotional psychology in modern advertising has resulted in us ironically being de-sensitized to what these words actually mean. So when they see your offer talking about things like 'purpose' or 'confidence', it simply doesn't land as powerfully as you know it could.
Here's what to do instead:
When you are communicating your offer you need to both state what they get out of coaching and explain clearly why that matters and how that will impact them.
It's not enough to say, 'create boundaries and finally feel better about yourself'. Your audience will skim past, because even though they desperately need to create boundaries to feel better about themselves, they need to understand what that actually looks like.
Let me share some tangible reframes for you in common niches so you can see exactly how this plays out:
In business mindset coaching, it isn't just building your business around the 9to5 with confidence, clarity and simplicity, it's LITERALLY :
When you get home shattered from a busy day in the 9to5 and you want to work on coaching but it feels overwhelming AF when you think about creating clients you end up on social media for 2 hours instead and then giving up only to do something similar tomorrow. Then I can help you with that. (Literally ‒ find out more here.)
Notice how my marketing regularly speaks to BOTH. So can yours...
In confidence coaching, it isn't just helping people find their inner confidence so they can feel more vibrant in life. It's LITERALLY
Learn how to not get frazzled when you deliver that presentation on Wednesday and finally get noticed by the boss (even though you've worked there for 3 years) and put yourself forward for that promotion you know you can do it with your eyes closed. Drop me a dm and let's discuss how I can help you achieve this in your career.
In parenthood, it isn't just conscious parenthood for the spiritual single mother, it's LITERALLY:
Learn how to stay grounded, patient and connected when you feel overwhelmed at 4am when your baby is screaming, you haven't slept and you find yourself wondering how you'll do it all. Schedule your free discovery call so I can help you.
I could go on...
Do you feel the difference?
Put yourself in your client's shoes. Feel into their challenges. See how they are dealing with it NOW, without your help. Lay out how it will feel after they have worked with you and then describe it.
Give them practical tips and examples that they can implement TODAY so they can build the TRUST that you really 'get' what they are going through and demonstrate that you can help them.
Help them ahead of time. Before they even think about paying you.
Invite them in closer, one step at a time.
Maybe that's your freebie, your consult call, to pay you, or whatever the next natural step is for you...
Make it so they trust in you to give them help. Give it abundantly. In your copy, in your videos, in your face to face meetings. Make it so that paying you becomes a no-brainer.
If you find yourself procrastinating on this then check out this article on How to beat procrastination in your coaching business.
Was this helpful? Drop me a dm on Instagram @coachingwithpamella and let me know.
Your next step: get on my email list for more practical tips like this to start and grow your soul-led coaching business around the 9 to 5 – click here.
Pamella Pritchard, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Pamella Pritchard, is a certified business mindset and life coach to coaches who are building their soul-led coaching business around their 9to5. Bridging the gap between corporate and purpose-driven entrepreneurship, Pamella helps professionals navigate the transition from employee to CEO in mindset, energetics and strategy. Her signature program THRIVE helps coaches make this transition with simplicity, confidence and clarity, you can schedule a free consult here. Pamella has now left her own corporate London career to travel, and is currently based in tropical North Queensland in Australia.
