Tag Archive for 'coaching business'

Free Segment Of Training For You

Published on January 14, 2010 in Life Coaching and Personal Development. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , .

Sharon has come back from her holidays (sort of) and came into the
office today and spoke with a new group of 37 students. I had a camera
and started recording, because I thought she was going to talk about
something else, and then before I knew it, she was talking about how
she built the most successful coaching school in Australia in no time flat.

Worth checking out, especially the bit where the students join in…

You can see the video here…

Here’s to YOUR success,

Adele

P.S. Let me know if you want more live stuff, and I’ll see what I can do.

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How To Avoid Becoming Business Road-Kill

Published on January 12, 2010 in Business Coaching and Marketing your coaching. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , .

by Sharon Pearson

I sometimes meet business owners who are either doing it tough or have never really got their business up and cranking. They’re frustrated, confused and… well, stubborn.

The stubbornness got them into their own business, but now it’s hurting them. They’re so determined to stay on the ‘carry on no matter what’ train they’re not seeing the twisted tracks they’re trying to run their business along.

Their number one mistake – ‘Individual-itis’.

The business is their baby, they know it inside out, they created it, nurtured it, love it – even though it’s killing them through exhaustion. Because it has their DNA all through it, they’re blind to the rogue genes that are playing havoc – until it’s too late. Either the business runs out of steam, it implodes with a shudder or it continues to limp along, surviving on grit and sweat and other manly and overrated attributes.

Individual-itis is rampant amongst start up businesses. The newly minted business owner sees the freedom, the lifestyle, and… the money.

All they have to do is have enough people realise the uniqueness of their particular skill and they’ll have it all. The free time, no boss and… the money.

“The road-kill of the business world is the person who thinks because they have a skill they have a business.”

So they build it, expecting them (the “I’ve been waiting for you forever and thanks God you’re finally here” customer) to rush to their door, hand them cash and the good times can start. Cue ‘Rocky’ soundtrack here.

When it doesn’t happen quite like that the business owner has a few less stars in their eyes, but comforts themselves with the notion that it ‘will take a little time’. Mistake number two.

So they keep waiting and limping along, thinking that’s the same thing as running a business. What they’re really doing is getting ready to be a statistic.

The road-kill of the business world is the person – often the ex-employee – who thinks because they have a skill they have a business.

Take Jack*, for example. Trained as a coach. Loves helping people. Loves making a difference and contributing and feels great when people get value from what he does. If only someone else could take care of the marketing, he dreams, I’d be able to just get on with what I do best, and that’s coach.

You can cut and paste into ‘coach’ any skilled individual – jeweller, writer, web designer, baker, candle stick maker…

My definition for business is from the dictionary, but it works. A business is a sustainable, profitable sales and marketing machine which knows how to find, entice and keep prospects interested, informed and keen to spend money – repeatedly.

The antidote for Individual-itis – and the path to having a real business – is a dose of Forget-Your-Skill-and-Tell-Me-How You-Sell-It. A double dose would be even better.

“The cure is to put 90% of all business efforts into sales and marketing.”

The cure is easy, but not palatable. Business owners with Individual-itis don’t want to hear about it because they’re too in love with their passion for their talent. In fact, they’ve stopped reading because they didn’t like the definition of business.

The cure is to put 90% of all business efforts into sales and marketing.

If they didn’t turn the page before now, they just did. And muttered something about ‘I already knew that’, as they justified the flick of the wrist.

How to Fast-track Not Being Road-Kill in Business

1. Have a Big Idea.

Have a purpose that is bigger than ‘making lots of money’. A vision that inspires people needs more than simply a profit imperative.

Every business must make money to stay in business – but the business that has a vision bigger than that, that people can believe in, follow, and invest in, will make you more money.

The Big Idea, for example, of ‘to change people’s lives’ is more exciting than ‘make money’ to many people. People want meaning, connection and a sense of belonging. They get it when they get to have a piece of organisations that have a vision aligned with their own.

Think of your buying experience at MacDonald’s, Nike, Coke and Westpac. Good or bad, you have an experience.

 At The Coaching Institute, the Big Idea is “Everyday people making a difference”. Yes, our clients want to make money as coaches, but The Big Idea is something they can become involved in, invest their time in, and see it grow. They can follow the story as it unfolds as we deliver on our Big Idea.

2. Have a Big Promise.

What do you promise to do for your clients that make you stand out from the crowd”? What can you deliver that sets you apart from the pack, drives prospects to you and gives them a sense of certainty that you are the Real Deal?

The Big Promise should be something you promise a prospect that is EXACTLY what they want and will solve their most pressing problem for them.

For example, at The Coaching Institute, our Big Promise is “Earn your entire course fees back before you graduate or your investment is refunded.” It’s very reassuring to a potential client to know that at worst, they will have got all their money back.

3. Focus on lead generation.

The most crucial role of any business leader is to generate quality leads for the business. The more leads, the better. A business that has plenty of leads can forgive many sins in the business. A business with few leads to convert can forgive no sins, feels constant pressure and ultimately, can’t attract the best people for the team.

At a minimum, you should utilise YouTube, blogging and linkedIn. You should also be submitting articles on your industry, your programs and your Big Idea, every week to online article directories such as www.ezinearticles.com

Your website should be a lead magnet – potential clients must want to stay long enough to give you their contact details. I spoke about this in a previous article and its worth repeating – give your potential clients something of real value in return for their contact details. Don’t try to sell to them straight away; instead give them a ‘money magnet’ as a fair exchange for their details. For example, we give away a free mini-ecourse on coaching, DVD’s, information on coaching and access to classes for free.

4. Set goals and KPI everything to do with sales and marketing.

By setting 90 day, 1 month and 1 week goals, you and your team know exactly where they are heading, what needs to be achieved, what needs to be prioritised and what’s expected of them.

The 90 day goals are the bigger outcomes you want you and/or your team member to achieve. For example, ‘Blog is up and running with 20 posts in place and all comments responded to and integrated into the marketing strategy’.

1 month goals are the smaller tasks that assist with the achievement of the bigger outcomes. For example, ‘Blog in place. 5 posts up.’

1 week goals are the immediate tasks that need to be done to achieve the bigger outcomes. For example, week 1 might say ‘Get blog into place.’

It’s said that what you want to see, you have to measure. We have over 30 KPI’s in our business, seven or so for each department. The Key Performance Indicators is our way of gauging how a department is performing from month to month. It tells us with facts, not emotions, how someone is doing in their role.

In marketing, we measure number of leads, sources of leads, cost per lead.

In sales we measure conversion rates, average dollar per sale, number of sales, how long to make the sale.

In repeat sales we measure number of upgrades, dollar amount of upgrades, timeframe for upgrade.

I have a weekly report that is sent to me first thing Monday morning telling me the performance for all of these indicators. It then becomes a matter of seeing where we can improve, where we’re strong, or where we need to retreat.

5. The best businesses have recurring/residual income.

 Too many business owners think that their goal is to make a sale – it is, and it isn’t. The goal is to make one sale after another to the same person, as often as you can.

An ongoing membership program, regular upgrades to existing services or products and new add ons are all part of what you can offer your existing clients to maximise the dollar value of each prospect.

6. Have an ascension model in place.

Following from the previous idea, having the ability to upgrade your clients to more expensive and more helpful programs or products is a key element of the best businesses.

If your prospects and clients love your Big Idea, want your Big Promise and have bought from you, the odds are they will again… and again.

You ‘ascend’ them to more expensive programs that give them more and more access to you, your services, and more importantly, your culture. People love to belong, and will pay to be part of the ‘in’ crowd. The ‘inner circle’ of the elite can be sold at a premium.

“Developing, focusing on and improving our ascension model has added over two million to our annual turnover in the last year alone.”

We have four levels to our ascension model, and the best clients, who get the most value, enjoy what we do the most and get the most results are the clients willing to spend the most on our elite MasterMind Group. It’s application only, and attracts people who are willing to learn and apply systems for their businesses that work.

It’s great for me, because I get to work with people who are like me. It’s a win for them too, because they get access to the behind the scenes keys to business success.

Developing, focusing on and improving our ascension model has added over two million to our annual turnover in the last year alone.

Next Steps

If you’ve spent too much time until now organising, designing products and anything else that isn’t sales, it’s not too late – study whoever is focused on sales and marketing and learn – as fast as you can. Be as skilled and excited about sales and marketing as you are about your widget or talent.

Sharon Pearson is founder and CEO of The Coaching Institute, author, speaker and entrepreneur. For more information on How To Run a Successful Business or to receive a CD “How To Succeed in Business When You Know Nothing” for free email timetoact@smallbusinessmastermindgroup.com.au or call 1800 094 927

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The Money Isn’t In The Widget

Published on January 12, 2010 in Business Coaching and Marketing your coaching. 1 Comment Tags: , .

By Sharon Pearson

Old thinking says the money is in the products we sell. But if no one knows you have a widget to sell them, there’s no money in it. So where is the money to be made? It has to be in the marketing of what you sell. Sharon Pearson, founder and CEO of The Coaching Institute and the Small Business Entrepreneurs Group, shares her top seven tips for business success.

The financial success came when I learned that the money isn’t made in the talent or the product, it’s making sure “the talent” is getting in front of enough people who can spend money on it. I’ve invested a fortune in my education, both formal training and in the mistakes I’ve made, to learn this lesson.

Marketing is not part of your business – it is your business. You either have people inquiring about you and your “widget” or your dead in the water. Here are the top seven strategies I’ve learned and applied that have taken our organisation from “talented” to multi-million dollar business in three years.

Seven Keys to Business Success:

1. Marketing is everything to a business – especially in the tough times. When the going gets tough, no matter what, you keep making sure the leads are coming in so you have someone to get in front of and sell to.

I remember when we didn’t get this, and a good month would have been one hundredth of what we do today. Same market, same opportunities, we were just relying on our talent to do the job!

2. Be unique, not the best – being the best is a claim that is overused and difficult to substantiate. But being unique speaks for itself. If you can be the “only” you will appear to be a much bigger fish on the pond than those who are also-rans and one-of-many.

We used to claim we were the best, but how is this measured? Then we made sure we were unique, with huge points of difference that other coaching schools couldn’t match. Our focus became on marketing skills for coaches. Anyone can claim to be the best coaching training, but few can back up the claim that they’re the only school that will guarantee you’ll work with paying clients or your money back.

3. Don’t try to make the sale straight up – it’s much better to build a relationship first so your prospect can build trust for you and what you do. In the beginning there is low trust and low knowledge of you and what you can do for them. You need to build their trust through educating them for free, before you ask for money to change hands.

When we used to go straight for the sale, without educating our prospects, they were flying blind about whether we could do the job. I wonder how anyone managed to join! Now we educate and provide outstanding value before they have to do anything for us.

Monopolise Your Marketplace is a website that give free stuff away, and taught me about the “educational spectrum” where you educate in the beginning, and slowly build the right to ask for something in return.

4. Move the free line – this is one of the most powerful strategies we have ever used, and it’s made us, literally, millions. You give away valuable, highly prized information that people would expect to pay for, and you give it willingly. The more you give, the more the Law of Free will kick in and the more trust will be built.

I used to find it difficult to justify giving away much stuff, because it cost money. I look back on that now and cringe. We give away thousands of dollars of stuff before anyone has to do anything for us. We run regular meetings on what else we can give away.

The best place I learned about this concept was “Predictably Irrational” by Dan Ariely.

5. The dollars are in the list – you need to build a database of potential and actual buyers. No matter how small the purchase, no matter how insignificant the twitch of interest, you must get their details, because as they build confidence in you they will become more inclined to buy. We have people joining our programs years after their first inquiry.

Russell Brunson teaches this really well. He gives away free stuff in return for your contact details, and then he builds trust through giving away free stuff.

6. Guarantee your stuff, or don’t offer the stuff – and by guarantee, I mean be prepared to give the money back if the buyer doesn’t get what they wanted. Internet marketers do this brilliantly. They offer a complete money back guarantee even if you don’t like the look of the box. You don’t need to go that far, but you need to come up with a guarantee that will make your hair stand on end.

This one was a big one for me to get my head around. Then I realised that what it actually guaranteed was that we would have to provide a phenomenally good program.

7. Give three to ten times more value than you charge – if you’re going to ask for someone’ s money, the easiest way to tip them to a yes is to give them so much value for their yes that it seems completely insane to say no.

We give three to ten times more value for each of our programs, or we don’t offer it.

For your free CD (value $79) “The Top Seven Mistakes New Small Business Owners Make and How to Avoid Them” call 1800 094 927 today (quote code TCI098)

Sharon Pearson is founder and CEO of The Coaching Institute and the Small Business Entrepreneurs Group, author of “How to Coach Yourself to Success” and the “Business Blueprint” Program for small business owners. www.thecoachinginstitute.com.au Ph: 1800 094 927 Email: info@thecoachinginstitute.com.au

Summary table of tips

Seven Keys to Business Success:

  1. Marketing is everything to a business – especially in the tough times.
  2. Be unique, not the best – being the best is a claim that is overused and difficult to substantiate. But being unique speaks for itself.
  3. Don’t try to make the sale straight up – it’s much better to build a relationship first so your prospect can build trust for you and what you do.
  4. Move the free line – you give away valuable, highly prized information that people would expect to pay for, and you give it willingly. The more you give, the more the Law of Free will kick in and the more trust will be built.
  5. The dollars are in the list – you need to build a database of potential and actual buyers.
  6. Guarantee your stuff, or don’t offer it – and by guarantee, I mean give the money back if the buyer doesn’t get what they wanted.
  7. Give ten times more value than you charge – if you’re going to ask for someone’ s money, the easiest way to tip them to a yes is to give them so much value for their yes that it seems completely insane to say no. You want to make it a “no brainer” offer.
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5 Keys to Successful Coaching Business!

Published on January 5, 2010 in Life Coaching and Marketing your coaching. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

Key 1: Make your Business Card Stand Out and Work for You
Rather than have a business card with only your contact details and qualifications, design it so that it stands out and works for you.
When you hand out your ‘card’ what is it you really want people and prospective clients to do with it? File it, store it, give you theirs in return or act on it and make contact with you in the near future?

Create a Call to Action
On one side of your business card have you name, logo or other details you want to give out. Here’s the key, on the other side create a call to action to encourage a prospective client to give you their details willingly and gives you an opportunity to show case what you have to offer in a subtle way.
It’s a win – win to all, you build your data base and they receive information and tools of interest to them.

Tips:
• Link a ‘1800’ number to a land line and add a 24hour answering service to it. People feel more comfortable when they know they can leave their details to receive something without being sold to.
• Script may go something like this: “HI, thanks for your call or email. To receive your free report, ““How to build a successful Coaching Business”, valued at $197 please leave your name, address, phone number and email and we’ll send it out to you today. Please speak clearly and slowing. Thank you for your call.
• If you are not keen on a ‘1800’ number an email address can be used.
• Do not say your number is an 1800 Free Call number unless it actually is.
• The report or document you send out must contain high quality information – You only have one change to make a great impression.

Key 2: Utilise Every Opportunity to Communicate with Your Prospective or Current Clients
Whenever a product is sent out, include an introductory cover letter what includes a bio and professional photo of you. The more ways you can connect with prospective clients the greater level of rapport you are able to build.
The inclusion of a photo is a powerful tool that is often overlooked. When you correspond with prospective clients that have not met you, whether it’s by letter, email or phone they will have a clear picture of your face and therefore have a greater level of rapport with you. It’s even been said that when clients and coaches have finally meet face to face, the client has responded as though they were old friends.

Things to include in your letter…
 Thank them for contacting you initially
 A brief introduction and bio (and brief is the key). Do not make it all about you
 A professional photo
 Provide bullet points of the benefits the product will give them
 A Call to Action at the bottom of the page in the form of a ‘P.S’ that offers them an opportunity to gain more information, tips and tools.
 Integrity, honesty and a little bit of you – be natural

Key 3: Network – Network – Network
Being a member of a networking group is an effective method of growing your business. However, as with everything else the degree of effectiveness can vary depending on how well you network! Here are some tips for any first time networkers and a check list for some seasoned travellers
Before the event prepare some neutral questions that act as conversation starters. For example,
 “How do you know the host/company?”
 “What made you decide to come to this event?”
 “Have you been to one of these events?”
 “What other organizations in the industry do you belong to?”
Then, focus on neutral topics – business, local places of interest, movies, books, art, or sport. It’s best to avoid topics surrounding politics, religion, gender, weight or age.

Apart from discussing relevant topics, is it also important to listen well. If you have trouble listening some suggestions include,
 Avoid doing anything else – remain attentive to the discussion as the person deserves your full attention
 When in person, make eye contact and face your body towards the person
 Concentrate on the other person’s agenda not only your own.
During the conversation you’re aim is be to build rapport and create an opportunity to follow up and then take the discussion to a deeper level. If others are nearby, draw and include them into the conversion. The conversion ideally lasts for three to five minutes, a maximum of eight.
When the conversation is drawing to an end, rather than wait for an uncomfortable silence, smile and thank the person for the time they have spent with you. Such as, “It was a pleasure taking with you, thank you for your card and look forward to continuing our conversation in the next couple of days. Enjoy the event.”
If you want to follow up with someone you have met be sure to exchange business cards – and then be sure to follow up in 24-48 hours. It is amazing the number of outstanding opportunities that go by the way side simply because someone simply did not follow up (or bother turning up)!

More Tips
 Aim to attend 1-2 networking events/groups per week.
 Contact the organiser/ host and offer to be a sponsor for the event and add to their ‘goodie-bag’.
 Give a goodie-bag gift that is something useful for both you and the recipient, something more that a flyer or brochure. Ask yourself what will stand out from all the other pieces of paper that will fill the bag?
Possible Networking Events/Groups
 Local BNI groups
 Industry Associations and Governing Bodies of your particular niche area
 Local community groups
 Local government groups and councils

Key 4: Run Free Workshop and Seminars
Running a workshop or seminar allows you to meet and share your knowledge/ services with more that one person at time.
A workshop is generally an event that will include an opportunity to do a practical activity of some sort. On the other hand, a seminar is more so a sit down information giving event. It is important that you let people know what to expect both in the form of content and structure of the session.
You can vary the size of your group to match the feel of the event. A larger group may create more atmosphere and excitement, or a smaller group tends to be more intimate and allows you to gain more individual connections with attendees.

Tips:
 Have a clear goal of how you want you session to run, and plan it accordingly. E.G: size of group and what is your intension for running the seminar/workshop
 Offer VIP tickets to your clients and give them a bonus ticket to invite a friend.
 On your tickets/initiations, while it is a free event, place a value on the ticket. It may be free however it is useful for people to know just how generous you really are and how much if would have cost them if they did have to pay for a ticket.
 Record the session. You are then able to sell or give copies of the recording, plus have it transcribed (there’s another product). You can also make an MP3 recording that can be given out.
 Invite a colleague to speak at your event and you can do the same for them. This is a huge value add – especially if they are going to keep coming in until.

Key 5: Run Free/Probono Coaching Sessions
Experience is not something you can buy – it is a gift given to us over time.
As a generalist coach, book in 4-6 probono clients and run 6 sessions for them. This allows you the opportunity to practise your skills and assist someone with key areas of their live. After your 6 sessions together, the client may choose to continue with you, they may give you a referral or at the very least you should ask them for a testimonial that you can use in your marketing.
Be sure to give your clients’ guidelines for the duration of the sessions, number of sessions and they are run no more than 10 days.
Another useful area to take on ‘probono’ clients is when identify your Niche (remembering that the Riches are in the Niches), it will not only develop your skills a coach, you will now take your coaching to the next level.
For Corporate or Executive clients, probono sessions, offers them an opportunity to work with you, and gives you an opportunity to show case your talents and develop stronger relationships with prospective clients. You may offer 1, 3 or 6 months; the duration is up to you, as well as your intended level of success or progress for your time together. An outline must be established. Some coaches do not specify a time/date of the probono time together and are then left hanging.
It goes without saying, even though these are free sessions, conduct yourself as though they are $100 sessions and your clients will treat them that way too.

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