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Morning Column
Three Steps to Increase Your Profits by Offering Coaching Services
By Milana Leshinsky
As a business owner, you know how important it is to offer your customers
new products and services that make their life easier. But the fact is that
thinking up new offerings can be expensive, time-consuming, and difficult.
On top of that, you have to spend money advertising the new product or
service, with no guarantee that it'll be a success. It's a high-stakes game
that leaves many business owners unsure of what to do next.
Fortunately, an easy solution exists, and it can double or even triple your
profits with little outlay on your part. It's called coaching, and it
enables business owners in every industry to increase the maximum lifetime
value of their customers.
When most people hear the word "coaching," they think of professional
sports' teams. But realize that everyday people just like your current
customers need coaching on a variety of topics, from parenting to business.
If you're not offering coaching support as an added value to your existing
product or service line, then you're missing a huge profit potential for
your company. Consider these two important facts:
· No matter how good or how comprehensive your products or services are,
your customers will always want implementation support. They'll need someone
to help them step-by-step through the process your product or service
provides.
· If they don't get coaching from you, they'll get it from someone else. If
you don't offer the next step that will allow your customers to successfully
implement or better use your products or services, then they'll find this
support elsewhere. They'll turn to a life or business coach who can be there
for them every step of the way.
In other words, if you don't offer implementation support, you're leaving
thousands of dollars on the table with each customer.
So now the question is, "How do I begin offering coaching services to my
existing customer base?" The following three steps will help lay the
groundwork and get your new coaching service off to a great start.
1. Create a coaching niche.
Even if you offer a variety of products and services, when it comes to
offering coaching to your customers, you need a niche. Not only will
establishing a niche help focus your efforts, but it will also enable you to
better brand yourself and your coaching services. Additionally, having a
niche will increase your chances of getting referrals. After all, if someone
can't describe what your coaching is all about and whom you can help, that
person won't be able to refer others to you.
As you consider your potential niche, ask yourself the following questions:
· What are my most popular products or services?
· How can I better help my customers utilize these popular products or
services?
· What are the most pressing problems my customers have?
· How can I help my customers better solve those problems?
By answering these questions, you should have a list of ideas for your
coaching niche. The key question you then should ask yourself is: "Which of
these specialties and niche markets have the highest potential for my
coaching services?" If you find that you have multiple niches, that's okay.
Eventually you will find that one of the niches you work in is more
enjoyable, profitable, and the easiest to reach.
2. Offer a coaching program.
Every coach needs a program. And while you might be offering a variety of
coaching services and can probably coach all kinds of people on many
different issues, you'll have more success if you offer a core coaching
program. You can offer your coaching program in a group setting or as
one-on-one coaching. Whatever format you choose, make sure your coaching
program has four important elements:
· It must focus on a very specific goal (Example: Better communication with
your employees).
· It must have a specific timeline (12 weeks, 6 months, etc.).
· It must be based on a process you follow (system of steps or concepts).
· It must demonstrate a "tangible" result at the end of it.
Here's an example of how your core coaching program might look: "12 Weeks to
Highly Effective Employee Communication - A three-month, hands-on coaching
program designed to help you better connect with your employees to increase
productivity and morale through behavioral style communication techniques."
To develop your own coaching program, start by asking yourself these
questions:
· What goal would you like your clients to achieve as a result of your
coaching program?
· What steps do your clients need to take to achieve this goal week by week?
· What tools and strategies can you use to help your clients reach their
goal?
If you believe that you can't develop a coaching program and need to
customize your coaching services to each client, then develop a short-term
training program based on an issue very common to your target clients. For
example, "Building a Winning Team" can be relevant to small business owners,
executives, non-profit organizations, etc. Then, as you deliver this
coaching service, you get an opportunity to learn about each client closer,
find out about their needs, and offer more customized long-term coaching
solutions.
3. Use tele-classes to turn customers into coaching clients.
Tele-classes are a fun way to connect with other like-minded people, learn a
new skill, and pick up some useful information. They're also a great way to
announce your coaching services and enroll current customers into your
coaching program.
The most important thing you should have in place before giving a tele-class
is a back-end product-your core coaching program. Next, treat your
tele-class like both a product and a marketing campaign you're conducting to
fill your coaching program. For example, if you're an employment recruiter
and your tele-class is titled "How to Land a New Job in 30 Days or Less,"
your content would discuss the "how-to," but you would leave the hands-on
strategies to the actual coaching program. Finally, name your tele-class. Be
specific. Don't make people guess what your tele-class is about. Your
tele-class title is like the headline in an ad-make it short, punchy and to
the point.
Prepare a handout with the tele-class's outline, case studies, and the link
to your coaching program web page. To get the most participation, send at
least three reminders about your tele-class to your current customer base.
This will also build awareness of your coaching program. It's best to hold
your tele-class three to four weeks before you're scheduled to begin your
coaching program.
During the actual tele-class, stick to the handout and cover the case
studies you prepared. Spend seventy-five percent of your time on content and
twenty-five percent of your time on questions and interaction. Mention your
coaching program about half-way through the tele-class, and then again at
the end. Tie any tools, products, or services you're using with your
customers to help them identify problems, gaps, and areas to work on into
your discussion. At the end, invite participants to take advantage of a
special offer-a discount, a bonus, a resource, etc.-available only if they
enroll in your coaching program by a certain time.
Multiply Your Income Today
Starting your own coaching program is the easiest way to send your profits
through the roof. Remember, people are begging to be told what to do.
They're just waiting for someone with the knowledge and expertise they need
to come along, sit them down, and walk them through it one step at a time.
If you need proof of this, just look at how quickly people jump on trends.
Whether it's the latest fad diets, fashions, new technologies, or new ways
of doing business, people are always ready to "plug in" to the next big
thing. Now's the time to make sure that "next big thing" is you!
About the Author:
Milana Leshinsky is an entrepreneur, author, and business advisor to
independent professionals. Her book, "Coaching Millions," shows how any
expert and entrepreneur can add coaching to their business quickly. Founder
of the Coaching Business Training Institute, she also runs virtual and live
business building events for coaches. For more information on Milana's
training programs, please visit www.milana.com.
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