How to Start a Life Coaching Business

This step-by-step tutorial will show you how to establish a life coaching company.

Consider how much money you may earn from home by assisting others in achieving their goals. What would it be like to have a job that is both lucrative and satisfying? I’ll teach you how to establish a life coaching company and make a difference in the world in this article.

How to Start a Life Coaching Business in 8 Easy Steps

If you’re still reading, you undoubtedly already have a strong desire to work as a life coach. However, you may be having trouble determining how to reach your objective. I’ll put it all out for you in this article.

Please be aware that this is a lengthy essay. As you move through the action stages, please take your time. You can start a profitable life coaching company. You can read our full article for marketing for a coaching business. It does, however, need concentration and dedication.

The stages to starting a life coaching company are as follows:

Choose a specialty.

Learn as much as you can about your ideal customer.

Create your first offer.

Make a strategy for outreach.

Obtain your first paying customer.

Make sure you are legally protected.

Create a strong internet presence

Increase the size of your company.

I’ll go through each of these processes in depth in the remainder of this piece.

1. Decide on a niche

First and first, you must choose the sort of life coaching company you wish to start. Your specialization will direct you in the future. It influences who you work with, what coaching packages you provide, and how you advertise your company.

But don’t worry if you don’t do it right the first time; you can always improve your company afterward. As you begin to assist customers, you will learn more about your coaching approach and the kind of clients you like to work with.

For the time being, choose a beginning point and then confidently go ahead. The following are the stages to choose a coaching niche:

Make a list of at least 20 things in which you excel.

EXAMPLES: Are you a natural mathematician? Are you a well-organized person? Are you good at managing your time? Do you have a college diploma? Are you good with kids? Are you an accomplished public speaker? Do you know the Bible from beginning to end? Do you like writing?

After you’ve completed step 1, circle five skill sets on your list that you most identify with or have the most experience with.

Now make a list of the life events that have had a significant influence on you.

EXAMPLES: Having a baby in the NICU, going through a tumultuous divorce, losing a family member, working in a management or leadership role, having a kid with a learning handicap, and receiving an advanced degree.

Write down the lessons you learned from each of your life situations next to it. Make a note of 3-5 things you gained from each encounter.

EXAMPLES: Did you learn how to choose the finest lawyer if you went through a divorce? Or did you figure out how to deal with the grief of losing someone you cared about?

The exact demography of individuals you are most likely to serve and the main point of your company that will enable you to utilize what you already have may be found at the junction of your present expertise, life experience, and knowledge learned. Create a succinct summary of your coaching specialty.

Allow yourself some time to think about it if it doesn’t occur to you immediately away.

EXAMPLES: Spiritual counseling for persons who are grieving, Executive level managers may benefit from stress management counseling. Stay-at-home mothers may benefit from healthcare coaching, while divorced males can benefit from emotional coaching.

2. Become acquainted with your ideal client

Now that you’ve identified your coaching specialization, you’ll want to learn more about your ideal client.

This is the person you will support and encourage as they face their fears, uncertainties, and challenges. The individual you assist in your company by assisting them in solving challenges and achieving their objectives.

When you choose a specialty, you started to envision the sort of customer you’d want to work with and how you’d aid them. Spend some time now getting to know this individual better. This may be accomplished in a variety of ways…

METHOD 1: RESEARCH ONLINE

You can rapidly obtain a lot of information about your potential customer by doing an internet search. Here are a few locations to start looking:

Examine pertinent discussion boards, internet groups, Q&A sites, and review sites (Amazon, Udemy, etc.).

Examine some of the most popular blog entries in your field. What are the most common inquiries?

Examine the most frequently asked questions by your customers, followers, and subscribers (if you have an existing business).

METHOD 2: CONTACT YOUR PERFECT CLIENTS

This approach is more time-consuming, but it yields more meaningful information. People open up and offer important ideas when you speak with them directly.

Here are some ideas on how to communicate with your ideal clients:

Let’s meet for coffee. Inquire about their experiences and problems.

Make a survey available (you can use Typeform or Survey Monkey).

Online chat with them (email, Facebook messages, etc.)

Ask open-ended inquiries while conversing with others. Your mission is to uncover their pressing aches and sufferings, as well as their hidden aspirations and desires.

Here are some examples of possible questions:

Could you tell me about the last time you dealt with [the issue you assist with]?

What effect did it have on you?

What is it about [the issue] that keeps you up at night?

What have you done, if anything, to address that issue?

What aspects of the solutions you’ve tried do you like or dislike?

Gather as much information as you can about your prospective customer. Make sure you record everything. Include the terminology that your ideal customer employs. This will be crucial when you create your initial coaching offer in the following phase.

It took me five years to create a company that I like. A company that enables me to work from home and earn money doing what I love.

I’ve learned who I am and how to operate a company along the way. I’ve worked out what I like to do and what skills I possess. Knowing these factors is critical if you want to create the ideal business—one that represents your true self.

3. Create your Initial Offer

It’s time to put together your first coaching offer — one that your ideal customers will find appealing.

If you only remember one thing from this post, make it this…

Coaching is not something that people purchase. They purchase remedies for their issues.

This is critical. That’s why you should begin by identifying the issue you’re assisting your customers with and the exact outcome(s) they may anticipate. 3. Create your Initial Offer 3. Create your Initial Offer

Check out my book Make Money As A Life Coach for more information. This book will teach you how to…

DEFINE THE RESULTS YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE.

Return to the client research notes you made in the previous stage. What is the most significant result you can assist your clients to achieve?

Ascertain that the end outcome is tangible and appealing to your target customer. Is that something you can offer, as well? If not, go back over your research notes and fine-tune your conclusion.

Here are some examples of effective coaching firms’ outcomes:

Earn your first two thousand dollars as a life coach.

Look for Mr. Right.

10-pound weight loss

Create a best-selling book

You construct an enticing coaching package for your target customers by offering specified and desired outcomes.

ESTIMATE THE VALUE OF THE RESULTS

It’s a lot simpler to place a value on an outcome or change if you’re clear on the outcomes you produce.

Begin by seeing yourself as your ideal customer. If your ideal customer is an earlier version of yourself who has an issue that you’ve previously addressed, this may be simple.

Ask yourself, “What is it worth to have this issue solved?” from the viewpoint of your ideal customer, who is eager for the answer you supply.

Write down the first number that comes to mind as an answer. If you’re having trouble deciding on a single price, make a pricing range.

Don’t spend time worrying about what other instructors charge or overthinking this step. Also, don’t worry about the specifics of your bundle (we’ll get to it shortly).

Simply choose a price or a price range that corresponds to the transformation you provide.

IMPROVE THE VALUE YOU PROVIDE

You’ll now seek methods to boost the value of your coaching service.

Consider how you can “improve your game.” How can you deliver your best job to your ideal client? How can you alter what you do and how you do it to get extraordinary results? What extras can you provide to make your client’s experience even better?

Create new pricing (or price range) for your services that represents the additional value you can provide.

offer. Make a note of this new number.

SELECT A COACHING PACKAGE

Finally, think about how much coaching will help your customers achieve the change you’re offering. In your client package, provide the number, duration, and length of sessions.

Some coaches begin with this stage, calculating the number of sessions and the length of those sessions. However, this way of thinking leads to you putting a value on your time. This is something I don’t want you to do.

When you concentrate on the change you provide, you have a far higher influence (value) on the world, and that value is reflected in more money. Don’t put yourself in a bind by exchanging your time for money.

Many rookie coaches are stumped when it comes to creating their first coaching package. They either have no idea what to give or go right in with a shoddy coaching package.

This is a crucial step, so don’t skip it. Check out my book Make Money As A Life Coach for additional information on establishing and pricing your initial coaching package.

4. Make a public relations strategy

Okay, you’ve received a proposal. Let’s get started on finding your first paying customers!

It’s critical to choose an outreach plan and stick to it for at least 30 days. If you don’t get any results, you may alter your approach or try a different outreach technique.

You might locate your initial customers in a variety of methods. Here are five suggestions for new coaches who are putting a new offer to the test:

Exploit your connections.

Join a networking organization, such as BNI or the Chamber of Commerce in your area.

Become well-known in internet communities

Organize a Meetup group.

Form a Facebook Group.

The majority of my students locate their initial customers by scouring their current network. If you’re unsure, I recommend starting here. People who already know and trust you make up your network. They’re more likely to purchase from you or suggest you to someone else who may benefit from your guidance.

Reaching out to individuals and asking, “Who do you know who needs assistance with [the issue you coach around]?” is all it takes.

In this article, I’ll show you how to locate your first customer by reaching out to your network.

Your brain may now be telling you that you don’t want to attend that networking event or write that next outreach email. This is very normal. Fear is, in reality, a sign that you’re on the correct route.

Remember that to develop something new, you must expand your horizons and take risks. Feel the fear and go ahead and do it anyhow. You’ve got this.

5. Get Your First Money-Making Client (Discovery Calls)

Coaching is a personal experience, and a good client-coach relationship requires trust. This simply implies that others must get to know you before selecting whether or not to collaborate with you.

Offering gratis exploration calls is a quick approach to create trust – but only if you do it correctly.

Coaching is a considerable financial, time, and emotional commitment. Your prospective customers will have a variety of reservations about paying for coaching with you. And that’s OK.

Invite someone to a free exploration call as soon as they express interest in coaching with you.

Some coaches use discovery conversations as brief sales calls, using tried-and-true sales techniques to persuade prospects to spend. My approach is unique.

During the discovery call, I urge that you provide genuine outcomes. To put it another way, show off your coaching skills rather than your sales skills.

When the proper individual gets a taste of what coaching with you entails, they’ll be more than happy to pay for it.

This method of doing the discovery call also seems to be less “sales.” Negative persuasion strategies such as showcasing your customers’ anxieties or stressing scarcity aren’t necessary.

In other words, you spend the majority of the discovery conversation mentoring and providing value to the potential customer. Then, at the end of the conversation, you extend an invitation to continue coaching with you.

Check out this article for additional information on ways to scale a life coaching business.

6. Make Sure You’re Legally Protected

Once you’ve decided that coaching is right for you, you’ll want to register your company.

Please don’t be discouraged by this phase. Yes, there is some red tape to deal with. However, it isn’t that tough. This is something that millions of small company owners and trainers all around the globe have found out. You can do it, too.

NOTE: This advice is only applicable to the United States. I’m also not a lawyer! Always get legal guidance from a local legal expert.

There are four stages to follow:

Choose a name for your company.

Create a legal entity.

Including legal terms on your website is a good idea.

Make a liability waiver.

CHOOSE A BUSINESS NAME

Spend some time considering your company’s name. However, don’t spend too much time at this stage. Choose a name that seems wonderful to you and keep going forward.

Make a list of possible names for your company. Don’t be afraid to speak your mind. Everything that occurs in the mind should be written down.

Take a day or two off after your initial thinking session. Allow time for your subconscious to examine your thoughts and generate new ones. Then, if you have any new ideas, add them to your list. Remove any that don’t interest you.

Finally, repeat each name aloud and mark the 2-3 names that make you feel the most awestruck.

The next step is to see whether the domains for your favorite names are still available. The domain is the name that appears in the URL of a website. For example, my website’s domain name is sallyannmiller.com.

If your first pick is already taken, try your second. Continue to go through your list. If all of your alternatives have been taken, go back to the beginning of your brainstorming and start again.

But don’t get trapped when it comes to naming your company. Keep moving until you find one that feels nice.

FORM YOUR LEGAL ORGANIZATION

You must first decide on the kind of legal entity you wish to form. I started as a single proprietor and then converted to an LLC. Make the best decision for your present position. You can always alter your mind afterward.

The following are the most popular options:

For single-owner enterprises, the sole proprietorship is the default business structure. A sole proprietorship is a business that is not distinct from the owner and requires no activity on their part. It’s the most popular company form and it’s quite simple to set up. However, as a single owner, you are not protected from liabilities. This implies that if your company is sued, your assets might be put at risk.

Limited Liability Business (LLC) – This stands for a company with limited liability. Members are the owners of an LLC, and an LLC may have one or many members. They are constituted at the state level and are based on state legislation. One of the most common reasons individuals form LLCs is to insulate themselves from responsibility. When you create an LLC, you’re forming a distinct legal entity from yourself (or other owners).

You’ll need to complete all of the proper paperwork if you decide to incorporate an LLC. You may also hire someone to do it for you. Andrea Vetter’s LLC Setup service was very helpful.

If you want to operate as a single proprietor, you will not need to take any further measures to get your firm up and running. However, you should think about performing the following:

Create a DBA – DBA stands for “doing business as” and is an acronym for “doing business with.” If you want to call your company “Dream Life Coaching,” for example, you’ll need to register a DBA to do so. Depending on where your firm is situated, you may register your DBA with either your county clerk’s office or the state government. You don’t need a DBA if you’re operating under your name.

To avoid having to use your Social Security number for your company, apply for an EIN. Applying for an EIN online is simple.

INCLUDE LEGAL CONDITIONS ON YOUR WEBSITE

If you haven’t yet created a website for your coaching firm, you may skip this step and return to it later. However, if you do have a website, make sure it has some legal terms.

Your terms and conditions are unique to your company and the services you provide, but you should include a few essentials.

Limit Liability – Because your website may sometimes include faults, you’ll want a statement that protects you from any inaccuracies in the material you supply. If you enable readers to leave comments, provide a disclaimer that releases you from obligation if someone posts anything objectionable.

Copyright — To safeguard your material, include a copyright notice.

Privacy Policy – You will most likely gather information from visitors to your website to add them to your email list. If you do, you’ll need a privacy policy statement to explain how you’ll be using the data.

You may need the assistance of an attorney in certain circumstances, but a simple Google search for a “terms and conditions generator” yields a plethora of possibilities to get you started (and many of them are free).

WRITE YOUR DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY

Although your clients may not realize it, coaching is neither therapy nor medical treatment. You don’t make medical diagnoses or treat patients. As a result, providing a formal disclosure to ensure that your customers are on the same page as you may be in your best interests.

You should also draw up a service agreement depending on the tutoring package your customer has selected. Payment conditions, refund procedures, and what happens if a customer is late or skips an appointment should all be specified.

This will save you time and money in the future if one of your customers fails to pay or shows up for an appointment.

Regardless of the body you choose, you should check to see if any municipal permissions or licenses are required.

7. Establish a strong online presence

Okay, you’ve made your coaching offer and are about to sign your first paying customer (s). It’s time to consider broadening your horizons.

You must get your name out there. Although saying that may make you feel uneasy, as a coach, you must become used to being present online.

Technically, you are not obligated to create a website right away. The majority of new coaches I’ve dealt with found their initial customers via personal networks and in-person networking. They didn’t require a website since they employed their outreach method to sign customers. This is a good time to recommend checking out what we wrote about the best apps for life coaches.

However, in today’s digital environment, if you want to grow your company, you’ll need to have an online presence at some point.

Websites provide a platform for prospective customers to explore around and get to know you without feeling rushed. They can attach a face to a name. They get a sense of what it’s like to collaborate with you.

MAKE A WEBSITE

Set up a website for your coaching company by following the steps outlined in this blog article.

Make sure your website has the following pages:

The home page is one of the most significant pages on your website since it is the first page that your visitors see. You want people to stay and learn more about you and your offerings, therefore you need to persuade them to do so. This may be done using self-portraits, testimonials, and a bold color scheme. Assist prospective customers in visualizing their impending development.

This is the page where you may show off your personality. It’s all about you and your clientele on your about page. Tell us about yourself. Also, discuss who your customers are. Describe the benefits they get from working with you.

The Services Page is a page that highlights the services you provide. It acts as a sales page for you. This is the page where all of your messages come together to market the transformation service you provide. You must go deeply into your ideal client’s environment and utilize language that demonstrates you not only understand where they are stopped and why, but also that you can assist them in overcoming their obstacles.

Contact Page – This is a page that tells prospective customers how to contact you.

CONSTRUCT AN EMAIL LIST

An email list is an important part of the customer acquisition puzzle. People who are willing to provide you with their email addresses and read your emails are more likely to pay for your services.

On a blog or social media, you may post a lot of stuff, yet it may never be seen. You’re far more likely to get your message in front of people’s eyes if you send it out by email to your list.

People, on the other hand, seldom give their email address out for free. You must motivate them by providing something of value (a freebie). When you give your ideal customer anything that helps her overcome a challenge, you’re giving her a taste of what it’s like to work with you.

To build a freebie and set up the technical parts of your email list, follow the procedures in these two blog entries.

How to Make a Canva Freebie to Grow Your Email List

How to Grow Your Email List Using ConvertKit

Check out Make Money As A Life Coach for additional ideas on how to advertise your company and increase your coaching revenue. This book will teach you how to start your own coaching company without spending a lot of time.

8. Expand Your Company

You’ve identified your target market, developed your first offer and established an internet presence (a website). Your outreach campaign may have even led to the acquisition of your first paying client(s).

You’ll need to plan how to grow your company at some time. There are two phases to this process:

Make a marketing approach that will last.

Extend your services.

YOUR CURRENT MARKETING PLAN

You should have most of the pieces of the jigsaw in place if you’ve been following the action steps in this article.

Now we’ll bring everything together and make sure you have a consistent marketing plan in place so you can expand your customer base (and income).

Choose the marketing channels that are perfect for you and your target customers. Here are a few of the most successful coach marketing strategies:

This tutorial will show you how to mine your network.

Connect with your potential clientele on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and other social media platforms.

Guest writing or participating in podcasts may help you reach out to other people’s audiences.

Local marketing collaboration — collaborating with individuals that offer a comparable audience to you (networking groups, local Meetup, speaking)

SEO (blog articles, podcasts, etc.) — further information on SEO may be found here.

Paid advertisements, such as those seen on Facebook or Google

Also, have a look at this article on how to get new coaching clients.

Choose at least two tactics to which you are willing to devote yourself for the next two to three months. This might be the same approach you’ve been using as part of your outreach campaign. Keep doing what you’re doing if it’s working for you.

However, keep in mind that the purpose of your first outreach was to evaluate your coaching offer and sign your first few paying customers. Once you’ve decided on an offer that people will pay for, you’ll want to choose marketing channels that you can stick with for the long haul.

EXPAND YOUR PRODUCTIVITY

You may expand your tutoring company in two ways…

You have two options: raise your fees or expand the number of customers you have.

All of my pupils are advised to begin by raising their coaching costs every three to ten clients. The change you give your customers will develop in tandem with your expertise and reputation. This rise in worth should be reflected in the price you charge.

You’ll eventually reach a pricing point where your target market won’t pay any more. If your revenue is sufficient, you may continue working with one-on-one customers.

However, if you want to maintain growing your company, you’ll need to extend your products. This may be done in a variety of ways, including:

A group program, often known as a mastermind, is when you work with small groups of people. These are usually expensive packages that may be purchased as a one-time payment or as a series of regular payments.

Online course(s) – This is one way to work with a larger number of consumers at a cheaper cost. These are usually one-time payments that need less effort on your part after the course has been developed.

Working with a larger number of consumers at a cheaper ticket price is referred to as members. You generate regular money, but unlike with online courses, you often give more continuing assistance.

You may, of course, mix and combine or even come up with your unique product. Be willing to try new things to discover the perfect match for you and your potential clientele.

Start Your Own Life Coaching Company

This page contains a great deal of information. I went through everything you’ll need to get started as a life coach.

Don’t feel obligated to rush through the steps. This is your journey, and you must stick to it. But make sure you keep moving forward. Start by understanding which life coach certification is best for you.

You may never be able to start your ideal coaching company if you wait too long or quit up too soon. Take these steps and see where you end up. The next few months have the potential to completely transform your life.

You may also start collecting names and email addresses on your website to start building your email list but we strongly recommend also looking at some of the best mobile apps for coaches as a supporting tool.