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Websites for Coaches

One of the great marketing tools for a coach can use to build their client/coach relationship is their website! Below are some marketing tools for effective coach websites:

1. Have an audio or video sample on your website: this allows people from all over the globe to hear you speak, give advice, and start building the relationship with them.

2. Have testimonials on your coach website: this allows for people that worked with you previously to recommend you with glorious praise about how you helped them accomplish their goals. If you can add photos next to the testimonials, that will add authenticity.

3. Have a fun feature, such as 'Take a Moment': this is a "stickiness" aspect, giving visitors the opportunity to stay and experience. Many large companies do this, such as paint companies use their 'virtual painting' in which visitors can paint a room, virtually.

4. Send this Site to a Friend: allow you visitors to recommend your site easily!

5. Constantly add to your site, or have several changing pages: visitors will come back if they know that you write often in your blog or your calender of events is up-to-date.

6. Have a Resources page: visitors that come across your coaching website are interested in the same things you are-help them find more websites, books, or movies within the same genera will make visitors want to come-back often, thus giving coaches more opportunity to market themselves.

These are just a few of the marketing tools we use in our coaching websites. If you want a free 20 minute evaluation on the effectiveness of your coaching website, be sure to contact us: 949.249.4958 or rachel@indrasvoice.com.

Coach Marketing

Coaches have it very different when it comes to Marketing. Here are some unique ways that Coaches can Market themselves to help them get noticed:

1. Offer something for free: a 30 minute coaching session and free articles on your website. Try to be unique, and geared for your niche. Try our Inspirational Wallpapers as a free gift-it's effective, cost efficient, and fun!

2. Niche-Do you have a Niche? Having a niche is like creating a funnel for your prospects: the ones that fit into your funnel will come running to you, but if you don't have a niche-it's like having a net in which you have to run after prospects!

3. Have a video or audio sample on your website. Your website is one way to communicate with your prospects and start building a relationship-and what better why than to have them hear or see you speak!

4. Start a Podcast-look at past Blogs to find out how!

5. Start a Blog! It's easy as long as you schedule in time to do it! Make sure you update it often, though, so your viewers will visit often.

6. Offer a referral program to past clients-many companies do this, and there's a reason why-because it works!

7. Offer a low-cost class at your local library based on your niche-have brochures and CDs or Books available to purchase at the back of the room.

8. Start a support group with MeetUp.com based on your niche.

Here are just a few of the many ways that coaches can market themselves. If you have another suggestion, feel free to leave a comment and offer it to the rest of the readers!

To Your Success!

Being Kind Comes Before Being Right

I'm currently in a year-long coaching program called "Big Fish Nation". One of the 7 principles that we focus on is: "Always have being kind come before being right." It is an awesome principal. I think that as business owners, or even as being coaches, we get caught-up in 'being right'. But, to start a meeting, or to go into a networking event, with that principal has totally changed my outlook. I come from a place of kindness vs. selfishness, and I see and feel people react differently to me; and more importantly, I react differently to them.

So today, Valentine's Day, try walking around with this new thought: "Always have being kind come before being right." Notice what happens in your thoughts, your body, and in your interactions with others. Just imagine if all of us had this thought, and 'wore' it regularly, what a different world this would be.

3 Feet from Gold

This post is for anyone that's ever thought about giving up. Perhaps you lost a potential coaching client, or you're having difficulty finding clients at the moment, or finding clients without the right budget for your business or life coaching expertise. The truth is: all business people, coaches included, have been there. We've all lost potential clients to the competition, we've all had spells when clients seem to have "dried up". When that happens to us, I try to remember the story in Napoleon Hill's book "Think and Grow Rich", of the story of 'The Man Who Quit Too Soon'.

It's a great story about a man who moves out west in search of riches during the gold rush days. He finds some gold, then buys some expensive equipment to dig-up the ore. But, after a few cars, the gold vine seemed to have dried up. They tried for a little longer, but eventually quit and sold the machinery to a junkyard.

The man at the junkyard asked an engineer to look at the mine, and low and behold the other man was only 3 feet away from picking up the gold line again! He would have made millions had he kept at it.

So what does this all mean for us business owners?
First: don't give up.
Second: ask an expert for advice.
Perhaps all you need is for the right push in the correct direction to find all the rewards you've been asking for! You can always contact us, Indra Successful Coach Marketing, for a free 20 minute evaluation or 'brainstorming' session about your business or life coaching company.

It's All About Showing Up!

Robbie Motter, national speaker, coach and author recently bought one of our customizable wallpapers. She wanted to remind her friends, family and clients that "It's All About Showing Up!" I love the colors she chose. I personally have it as my own wallpaper, because so often I have "Shown Up" and something amazing happens: I meet people that can help in so many ways. The truth is, coaches, if you show up the laws of attraction can work-but if your not there, how can it? The law of attraction is very powerful-but we also have to do a little work as well. So, it's there every time I look at my computer-helping me remember that with just a little effort, so many wonderful things can happen!

Calling all Business and Life Coaches: Inspire yourself! Market yourself! Advertise yourself! Show-up to that networking meeting you've been neglecting, show-up to that party you were thinking of skipping, and download Robbie's wallpaper on her website: http://www.rmotter.com/html/wallpaper.htm!

Our First Video Series

Business Coaches, Life Coaches, Relationship Coaches: Our video classes are up! Please visit them often as we will be updating them regularly. Our next series will be on Internet Marketing for Life Coaches: the basics.

This week we have "How to download and use our Free Wallpaper" series, as well as "How to download, use and send your Customized Inspirational Wallpaper".

Do you have a technology question that you need help with? Leave a comment on what video class you would like to see!

International Coaching Week

February 5th-10th is the International Coaching Week. To see what is happening in your area, ask your local ICF chapter. This is a great opportunity to meet other coaching professionals, as well has create a support system of successful coaches. Our local ICF chapter, ICF of Orange County, is holding a day long series today (February 7th, 2007 from 9:00am-4:30pm) of seminars at Chapman University about becoming a coach.

Not sure who the International Coaching Federation is? The picture to the left is of Kay Cannon, the 2007 President of the International Coaching Federation (ICF).

The International Coach Federation is the leading global organization dedicated to advancing the coaching profession by setting high standards, providing independent certification, and building a worldwide network of credentialed coaches.

If you are a coach, but don't know much about the ICF, I would highly recommend you checking out their site, and your local chapter. Their membership is currently over 11,000 members in 82 countries, and they have accredited schools that teach coaching, which helps create standards for the coaching industry.

Funky to Fabulous

As someone that visits the local library every Friday, and then Barnes & Noble every Sunday, I tend to read a lot. I read many "self-help" books so that I'm up-to-date with the latest life and business coaching trends, as well as continual learning. Many of the books that I'm currently reading, are, well...a little dry. Sure, they're full of information, but they don't deliver in a fun and personal way that Eli Davidson's book, Funky to Fabulous does. When I brought the bright pink, blue, yellow and green book home, my husband automatically thought it was another "Take time for yourself and have more fun!" books. And, true, in a way it is, but Eli actually gives us ways to do that. She helps us to find out who we are, teaches us how to listen to our body, and does it in a full-on, fun experience. So, if you are a coach, speaker, or seminar leader, and you feel you have a book inside you, I highly recommend going to www.funkytofabulous.com and buying her book. Notice she doesn't drag-on with how to do certain techniques, that she sprinkles the book with her own experiences, and that her chapters are quick and easy to read, understand and do.

I also had the wonderful opportunity to see her speak in person at the eWomen Network meeting in Irvine. She was engaging, and had us up and out of our seats actually doing some of the practices so that we felt that we had a coaching session by the end of her "talk" instead of just being talked at. So, if you want to be a life or business coach that's know as a great speaker, then go to her calender and see when she's coming to your town, take notes, then market yourself as an engaging speaker that has the ability to turn a speech into a coaching session!

Start Your Own Podcast

So, there are some basics to creating your own Podcast, and you've done a few already, such as becoming a consumer of Podcasts, and downloading software to create podcasts (Audio Acrobat). Now lets look at the basics for developing your Podcast.

First, Plan your Podcast: how long is your Podcast? How much "post-production" do you plan to do? I think the most important question to ask yourself is: Who is your audience? Will they be expecting a show similar to a morning radio show, or are they expecting expert advice and industry news? There should be some basic formate, so that your listeners will know what to expect, yet don't be too predictable, as that can lose listeners. To learn more about how to develop your Target Market, listen to Indra's Voice on Target Marketing.

Second, Record your Podcast: use Audio Acrobat, a land-line telephone, and have fun. If you're planning on having interviews on the Podcast, arrange a time to record the conference call through Audio Acrobat.

Third, Post-Production: depending on your audience, this could take little time, or take three times more time than it did to record. Basic Post-Production: bumper music (a little music before the show and at the end-Indra's Voice uses bumper music), sound effects, editing "hick-ups" of an interview, edit in a monologue, and much more.

Forth, Distribute: Audio Acrobat helps a little with distribution, but you should also cruise the PodCasting distributors and send-in your RSS feed.

To learn more about Podcasting, I recommend the book: Absolute Beginner's Guide to Podcasting. Have fun!