Is Your Sales Strategy Web Friendly?

Many coaches assume that most of their business is likely to come directly as a result of 1:1 coaching and from referrals. Whilst this is always the best form of new business generation, it is worth considering whether your sales strategy is also ‘web-friendly.’

Whatever sector of coaching you may be working in, there is serious money to be made from taking your sales strategy online. For me, it literally transformed my business overnight.

One of my first product promotions resulted in $24,000 of sales, the majority of which were a passive revenue stream for me. I am not alone in my experiences either. There are many coaches out there making impressive revenues by selling their services online.

Steps To Achieving a Web-Friendly Sales Strategy

1. Make Sure Your Website Is Really Delivering For You
The first step to maximising your potential online is to consider your website. This covers everything from overall design and flow of copy to ease of navigation through the site, and SEO. If you’ve not really used your website as a serious lead generation tool before, I would urge you to consider a review of your website and ensure you have the right platform to begin broadcasting your services to the world! Speak to a few different consultants or agencies and try to speak with previous clients or go by trusted referrals before agreeing to any work.

2. What Can You Offer That’s Really Unique?
The next step is to really think about how you can productise your expertise into products that people will buy. Whether that’s, ‘How to stop smoking’ or ‘How to become a great business leader’, the secret is to focus on topics that you are really good at or passionate about, as the material will be stronger and will help you stand out and sell more. The aim is to try and solve that problem that is keeping them awake at night.

3. Turning Your Idea Into Something You Can Sell
Once you are clear about what you want to sell to your audience, you then need to build the programme and find a way to deliver it online in a cost effective and efficient way. There are many different online tools out there to help you get started with developing online coaching content and many offer free trials, so have a look around and see what works for you. I used a couple when I started out and then decided to invest in building my own coaching platform JigsawBox.com.

4. Finding Your Customers
When your product is ready, the next step is to reach your audience! There are a number of ways in which to do this, from utilising social media to direct marketing, PR and partnership marketing.  Warm leads are invariably easier to convert than cold leads, so consider your existing database, previous prospects and clients as well as people who may act as advocates and promote your services to their customers, perhaps in return for a small commission fee.

By Nicola Bird. With an MSc in Occupational Psychology and a diverse range of business experience, mother-of-three Nicola Bird went from earning $0 to over $500,000 online by mastering technology to transform her coaching business. She created JigsawBox as a way for her clients to access her expertise online in a flexible and affordable way, while leaving her free to concentrate on growing her business and spending time with her young children. Nicola is passionate about inspiring women entrepreneurs and helping more people to gain a better work-life balance. For more information visit www.jigsawbox.com.

What do I need to know about Neuroscience as a Coach?

Perhaps the question before this one is actually why as a Coach I need to know about neuroscience at all? Neuroscience can sound a little scary to some people, when in fact it is just the study of the brain that comes with its own set of jargon, which once broken down is as comprehensible as the study of Coaching. We didn’t used to know that much (relatively) about how this incredible organ worked, however in the last 30 years our knowledge of it has increased dramatically. That is one reason it is so exciting to learn about it now as a Coach, because the information now available can dramatically enhance your understanding of how people work. 

Having always been a bit of a ‘science geek’ when I first started studying Coaching I was always asking myself (and my teachers) ‘how does this actually work?’. I was looking for the most fundamental answers. I thought that if I understood at the most basic level what was happening then I would have the most flexibility to work with my clients and tweak tools to ensure I helped them get the best result. Before we dive into look at that most fundamental level it can be useful to consider an overview. 

We can break neuroscience for Coaches down into some clear simple pieces:
1.     The brain is responsible for the results an individual gets in their life.
2.     An individual’s brain is on their side, its main aim is to keep its host alive!
3.     The brain is constantly on alert for any threats or potential rewards.
4.     Physical and social threats and rewards use the same parts (automated neural networks) of the brain. (We didn’t use to think this was the case, and most people still operate as if it isn’t).
5.     Threat responses often impair your client’s performance while reward responses enhance it.
6.     Your responsibility as a Coach is to help facilitate your client’s self-directed neuroplasticity. (Help them adapt their brain to best support them).
7.     Like Coaching, rewiring a brain is a journey. 

The basic neuroscience components that are practically useful to a Coach are:
a.     The anatomical areas of the brain, what they do, how they work optimally and how to work with them when challenged.
b.     The neurochemicals, the little messengers that affect the whole body, what they do and how you can increase or decrease their presence.

Once these fundamentals are mastered then you can then start looking into the way that the brain works to help you more fully understand core Coaching tools and skills.

-       What areas of the brain are used in goal setting? How can we increase the likelihood of a client achieving their goals?
-       How are beliefs really formed? Do the NLP belief change tools work from a brain perspective?
-       Why are habits hard to change? What secrets does the brain share with us to dramatically improve how we approach change?

So is it worth it? Learning the new language, working through the new processes and at times updating some of your beliefs? Absolutely. The field of neuroscience will continue to provide us with more great insights into how people work. Coaches who want to remain at the cutting edge of their field will inevitably equip themselves with this latest research and apply it to best serve their clients. Understanding how to make your client’s brains work even more fully rewards both you and them.  

Amy Brann is the author of ‘Make Your Brain Work’ published by Kogan Page. The popular makeyourbrainwork.com community contains interviews with scientists and business people along with resources mentioned in the book. Through her online program, Neuroscience for Coaches, Amy helps Coaches who want to be leaders in their field understand more about the brain and how to work with it.

The Tax Man Cometh

Did you know that 75% of adults responding to a recent American Psychological Association survey said they experienced moderate to high levels of stress in the previous month? More than half the respondents claimed their stress had increased over the past year!

Doing the tax dance can produce positive or negative stress. We like the positive and work hard to eliminate, ignore, or deny the negative. But we’re still stressing.

Unlike other forms of coaching, healer coaching does not simply provide temporary relief from stress. Clients learn to untie the mental knots affecting their mind, body, spirit and emotions, releasing themselves from habituated patterns of reaction. By learning to distinguish between the activity/ story and the stress to which they attach, clients transform their relationship to stress. They are more competent to correct and monitor their thoughts, speech and action. Most of us can’t do self- surgery when it comes to changing ourselves. We need someone upon whose guidance and expertise we can rely.

Recognize You’re In Stress:
Identify one area in your life where you’re living with chronic stress. Each time a thought or experience creates agitation or dissonance, you’re stressing. Learn to recognize the difference between ease of mind and agitation. The constant internal chatter of “I like this, I don’t like that” breeds stress.

Make Friends With Your Stress:
Get to know your stress. Be curious about its texture, flavor, focus, and themes. Invite the Stress into your home where all guests are welcome. Sit with your stress on the couch. If you don’t familiarize yourself with your stress, how can you transform it?

When You’re In The Stress:
1. Develop a daily mindfulness practice. Whether you sit for ten minutes or one hour it’s the quality of the practice that counts. John Cabot Zinn materials provide a nourishing place to begin your sitting practice.

2. Time Outs. We assign them to our kids when they’re acting out, why not assign one to yourself

3. Exercise (cardio or yoga). Try both to see which activity fits your need. Regular exercise conditions your body to serve yourself and others. 

4. Find a Way to Release The Pressure: Many of us attach to our stress, re-telling stories in numerous ways so that the story gains more fury. Like a pot of coffee cooking all day on the stove, the stories/secrets we harbor become acidic, leaving us weaker, less powerful to take action. We become victims to our stress. Find a committed listener, who has no personal agenda. Whether you choose a therapist, coach, or mentor, the one requirement is that your listener passes no judgment, provides no feedback unless you ask for it.

5. When in the middle of a storm, do damage control. If you’re getting swept away by your destructive emotions, pull the plug. This step is not always easy to do because when we’re experiencing negative emotions, we enjoy going for the jugular. Stabbing someone we think is hurting us feels good, even when we know it’s not how we want to be. Again, take a time out. Even if the person you’re stabbing is yourself!

6. Acknowledge the event. Apologize to yourself or to others who got caught in the fire. Make amends. Promise not to repeat the pattern for a specific short period of time (hours, not days). Whether you can change your behavior or not, acknowledge that you tried. Forgive and forget. 

7. Sticks and Stones Can Break Your Bones. But names can never harm you. Our egos are big even when we think they’re not. If you say something regrettable, or someone has spoken harshly to you, remember, words alone do not harm us. It is your ego, your pride that’s taking what is said personally. Developing a mindfulness practice will help you roll with life, instead of fighting.

What would it be like to be free of negative emotions causing stress? As April 15th draws close why not look at areas in your life where you are chronically stressed. Then ask if the tips and techniques you’ve tried have alleviated your stress? If you’re settling for temporary relief, call me.

Rhona Post, a master certified coach with the International Coach Federation since 1999, has traversed the landscape of coaching with certifications in ontological, somatic and intuitive energy healing. A mindfulness practitioner, she provides a unique approach that supports clients to be comfortable in their own skin. Rhona hosts a monthly Energy Work & Coaching Community of Practice for ICF coaches. Her current book, Navigating Tomorrow, a self-change manual is available in print and eBook on Amazon.com. She maintains an international individual and group healer coaching practice in Sarasota, Florida, working by phone, Skype and in person. Learn more: www.thehealercoach.com.

Who are you meant to serve? Finding the courage to be true to yourself.

Who are you meant to serve? The process of getting really clear on this can be quite a journey.

Caterina Barregar of Imagine Life Coaching is a perfect example of what happens for many coaches who keep asking, “Who is my ideal client? What am I really meant to do?” A graduate of the Passion Into Profit program, she volunteered to share her story about moving more and more into alignment with her true passion.

Check out this interview by clicking the image below.



Developing your credo isn’t just an exercise – it’s a journey. On your journey, you must find the courage to be true to yourself, to find your passion and your love, and to embrace the entrepreneurial mindset: to say, “How can I turn that passion into profit?” For the sake of sustainability and living a life that you love, you must be true to yourself. Caterina is a great example of that. It's been a journey, but today she is solid about how she wants to make a difference in the world – and she knows how to communicate that to others. That’s what it takes to turn a passion into profit.

Passion Into Profit Coach Challenge: Ask yourself what is my life story? Who am I perfectly designed to serve in this lifetime?

Teresia LaRocque MCC, is the Director of Entrepreneurship and Business Building Mentor for the Erickson Business Center – www.ericksonbusinesscenter.com at Erickson College International www.erickson.edu. Teresia is a pioneer in the booming profession of personal coaching, the first recipient of the International Coach Federation’s Master Coach Credential in Canada and cofounder for the Vancouver International Coach Federation chapter. She is the founder and facilitator of the Passion into Profit Program, a customized business building program for coaches and is committed to supporting coaches to take their talent and passion for coaching and make their entrepreneurial dreams come true.

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