How to sell coaching … or not
Today I was browsing through some discussion topics in an online group I belong to, and came across a request for input on a new product that a parent coach was creating for her clients. This coach is working on a home study product designed to help parents feel more confident about their parenting.
My radar always goes off when I see a coach who is trying to sell coaching. What I mean by “selling coaching” is that you’re trying to sell the things we coaches are best able to help our clients achieve, like “balance, happiness, fulfillment,” etc. In the words of my own coach and 
mentor, Rhonda Hess, “Coaching doesn’t sell.” This is very scary news to hear when you’re a life coach who has just spent a ton of money to get yourself certified and is out there looking for some clients to work with. But it doesn’t mean you can’t be successful as a coach. It’s all in how you position what you offer to your target audience.
Below is my response to the parent coach who was asking our group for our ideas and suggestions about her product. Read on to see my coaching to her for how to create a product her clients will want to buy.
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So I’m glad you’re doing some “market research” by asking for some feedback here. Often times we create a product or service offering that we think is a good idea, but we don’t check it out with our audience before investing a lot of time, effort and energy into it.
I know that you see a lot of parents out there who are not confident in themselves as parents, and I’m sure that as a parent yourself and a coach, you know the unbelievable value of getting to the other side of that, and know how that confidence makes a huge positive impact on your child.
That said, it’s hard to sell “being more confident.” I’ve been a coach for five years now, and I spent the first two of them trying to sell “life coaching” and all of the things we help our clients achieve like “balance, happiness, fulfillment, etc.” While these are clearly important and valuable, I found it very hard to get people to put a price tag on them and pull out their wallets to pay me for them.
How connected are you with your target audience? Are you engaged with them, talking with them in person and online, coaching them already? What are their top problems and challenges? What are they telling you they need help with? And what are they willing to pay for? I.e. Are they willing to pay in order to be more confident in their lives?
My experience is that although they want this really badly, they can’t justify spending money on it.
Now, that said, you may still have a great product to create. My coaching to you would be to check in with your target audience. Ask them if they “need this” and what they would be willing to pay for it. By having some great conversations with your target audience about their problems, challenges and concerns, you will learn what they are most willing to pay for. As a mom and a coach, you have a wealth of resources you could provide to solve their problems. Make your offerings be solutions to your clients “pains” and they’ll sell.
It’s not a question whether you or your services are valuable–it’s all about how you market what you offer so that your target audience realizes they NEED it.
Let’s help her out: Are you a parent who needs help building your confidence about your parenting? What sort of things would help you with this? And would you be willing to pay for a home study guide to support you? Please leave your feedback below.
Blog Talk Radio Tips for Mompreneurs
I’ve really enjoyed hosting my radio show, The Mom Biz Coach Show, on Blog Talk Radio for the last year or so. I have been approached by many mom entrepreneurs who want me to mentor or coach them on how to start their own shows, so I thought I’d put together a short podcast on one of the hottest topics: how to find and manage guests for your show.
Just click on the link below to hear my advice on the following topics:
How to find guests for your show
How to prep your guests for their appearance on your show
How to engage your guests in conversation during the interview
What to do if you have technical difficulties, or if a guest doesn’t show up
Click below to listen!
Got a Blog Talk Radio Show of your own? Share below your suggestions for newbies or how you handled a particularly challenging interview.
If you are ready to get your show started and would like someone to walk you through it every step of the way, I can help. Just click here to learn about my Podcasting Mentoring Services.
Mompreneurs Need to Own Their Finances to Own Their Lives
This morning I was reading Natalie MacNeil’s fabulous blog, She Takes On The World, and was really struck by this idea of how many outwardly-successful people are privately financially troubled. She is quoting author and financial expert Manisha Thakor.
If the whole world got financially naked – there would be shrieks galore! In our modern, hyper-consumptive society, millions of people present external images to the world that bear limited resemblance to their true, inner financial reality. During my 15 years working in the financial services industry I met countless people earning not only six digit but even SEVEN digit incomes who were living paycheck-to-paycheck. It was this concept – that if we really bared it all financially to each other many things would change – that was the genesis of the book title.
In terms of the meat of the book, it boils down to this. If you want to have a healthy, intimate romantic relationship you need to communicate with your mate about money. Alas, that’s not the message society gives us. Money is a subject that in many respects is more taboo than sex. When you meet that someone special, people will ask if you are physically compatible, spiritually compatible, emotionally compatible, or intellectually compatible. But rarely does anyone ask if you and your honey are financially compatible. That’s too bad because study after study shows financial issues are often the ones that make or break a relationship over the long run. So the goal of this book is to give readers both a language and a roadmap to traverse the often rocky path that is getting to know your mate, financially speaking.
Manisha Thakor is on a mission to teach women how to “own your finances and own your life.” Through her books, articles, television and radio appearances, speeches, and blog –this female personal finance expert inspires women to take charge of their money. Her latest book, co-authored with fellow Harvard MBA Sharon Kedar, is Get Financially Naked. Manisha made time in her busy schedule for an interview with She Takes on the World.
shetakesontheworld.net, Interview with Personal Finance Expert, Manisha Thakor | She Takes on the World, Feb 2010
I highly recommend you read the whole article (and browse around Natalie’s blog–this is just one of the gems you’ll find interesting and helpful to read as a mom entrepreneur).
How honest are you and your spouse or partner being with each other about your finances? Are you achieving the financial results you want in your business? Do you know how your income and expenses impact your family’s financial goals?
Many of the mompreneurs I coach struggle with these issues. They’re scared about “coming clean” with their spouse about how little they’re earning or how much they’re spending for their business. This kind of hiding or secrecy combined with the lack of a solid income is one of the biggest eroding factors in a mompreneur business.
Want some support in re-creating your mom entrepreneur business in a way that is powerful, successful and sustainable for the long haul? Check out my new signature program, The Mom Biz Makeover Program, which launches on March 1st. My mission is to help mompreneurs create businesses that truly support them and their families.
5 Ways to Improve Your Business on a Micro-budget
Guest post by Mike McClure, Partner, Executive Creative Director & Social Media Director for The Yaffe Group
If you’re an entrepreneur or smaller business looking to get more business on a small to miniscule budget, there’s good news and bad news. The good news is that with all the free and low cost tools available in the digital and social media world, you can be quite effective without spending a lot of money. The bad news? To make it work, you do need to invest a lot of time sprinkled with inspiration and innovation. Having a personality helps, too.
More good news: many individuals and companies are finding a lot of productive leads and connections through these channels. More bad news: it’s not a quick fix. It’s something you need to commit to and keep at. That doesn’t mean it will take you a year or two to see any results. But, it does mean you can’t just post a brilliant blog or open a Twitter account and expect the new business to start flooding through your doors.
Here’s 5 ways you can start improving your business without seriously hurting your bottom line:
1. Connect, connect, connect.
Use all the social networking tools available to you. Social networking is a great way to connect with people who may need your product or services. Just make sure you don’t start by broadcasting how great you are or trying to sell something. It’s like a cocktail party. Start with small talk; find out where you have common interests and where you can help them with their needs. It’s a good way to get to know someone you’ve never met before. Once they like and know you, they’ll be much more likely to want to do business with you.
I would suggest starting with LinkedIn if you haven’t gotten into any network. It’s the most business oriented site. Here’s a good post on how one business owner used LinkedIn to get a board of directors seat (http://bit.ly/21gfNB). From there, it’s a matter of preference and what type of business you’re in. You may want to start a Facebook fan page or personal page next. Or you may find the immediacy of Twitter is more to your liking. Here’s a good post by Lara Galloway on how she uses Twitter as one of her main new business tools (http://bit.ly/1wTAFo).
2. Answer Questions on LinkedIn
One the best features on LinkedIn is the Q&A section. Why? It gives you a chance to meet people out of your network, help them with a problem they have and display your expertise. Just go to the sections where questions are being asked on subjects that fit your business offerings and your area of expertise.
Here’s just one example of how that’s worked for me. I saw a question from a guy writing a book on social media. He was looking for examples of social media success stories. I told him about a campaign we’d done for one of our clients that had worked well. He liked it, we linked together and over the next 6 months had several conversations through LinkedIn messaging. This fall he was looking for judges for a big Blog Off competition his company was having. I volunteered and became part of an international “Dream Team” panel (http://bit.ly/6xs3XH) Besides the publicity of the contest itself, I will be listed in an upcoming book as one of the world’s top social media people, will be talked about on a Blog Talk Radio show that reaches millions and in video shows by one of Europe’s top providers of online content. Not bad for a small business owner in Detroit.
3. Use Blog Talk Radio
This is a free, easy way to create podcasts for your own enterprise. There are two ways you can use Blog Talk Radio to help your business. One is to sign up at blogtalkradio.com and host your own show. This way you can have your own radio talk show. You can invite guests who will speak on subject matters relevant to your audience or you can invite guests who represent companies you want to do business with. Or you can sometimes just speak on subjects you’re knowledgeable about and make those podcasts available to your potential clients. For an example of doing your own show, you can look at the Mom Biz Coach show. (http://www.blogtalkradio.com/mombizcoach)
The second, and easier, way to use Blog Talk Radio is to volunteer your expertise to someone who has a show. Our head of Yaffe Direct, Michael Morin, went on the Chuck Talks Business show and had an hour long interview. It went well and, with Chuck’s permission, we downloaded the podcast and posted it on our Yaffe Tidbits site (http://www.yaffetidbits.com/podcasts/radio/morin_marketing.html). We then edited a 2-minute teaser of some of the best parts of the interview. We emailed the two minute version to a list of prospects along with a link to the full podcast. Within a few weeks we got several inquiries from potential clients who we never would have gotten to talk to otherwise.
4. Buy a Flip Camcorder
You can get a really nice Flip Camcorder for around $125; I’d also pop for the small tripod that’s about $20-25. The Flip is an extremely easy way to shoot, edit and post videos to your site, blog, Facebook fan page, YouTube channel or wherever you can add video to your online presence. Video is a way to really put a face on your business. You can simply set it up on the tripod, point it at yourself and record a video blog. You can also record and post client testimonials. (http://bit.ly/8UXVZ8) It’s also small and portable that you can carry it with you when you go to a conference, meeting, seminar, tweetup or wherever. At these events you can ask people’s opinions on whatever issues you’d like to cover for your clients/potential clients. It takes nothing to plug the Flip into your computer and use the included edit system to string together the comments you like and post that video to one of your sites. All this adds to both your content and your credibility.
5. Blog about potential clients
If you have a blog for your business (if you don’t, start one now), you can meet potential clients simply by asking them if you can interview them for an upcoming blog post. It’s a great way to meet and get to know someone in a non-sales environment (important note: don’t try and sell yourself or company during the interview). Who doesn’t like the idea of someone wanting to interview them for their expert opinion? More often than not, you’ll be able to find someone willing to talk about their business for the free publicity for both their company and themselves.
Even if you don’t get an interview, do research on the company and write a blog post about what they’re doing right as a company. Here’s an example of a post I wrote about Biggby Coffee. (http://bit.ly/6Hferc) After creating it, send the post to them. Even if it doesn’t peak their interest in you, they may link the post to their own site or blog. We still get traffic to our blog from companies that have linked to a post about them from many months ago.
There you have it. Five ideas that should get your business some attention without spending an arm and a leg. I’d say good luck, but it really is just a matter of good hard work.
To learn more about Mike McClure, The Yaffe Group and the great marketing work he does for his clients, visit his site and be sure to follow him on Twitter!
10 Ways Twitter Changed My Business
In celebration of my one year anniversary of using Twitter this month, I took some time to consider the impact this fabulous tool has had on my business.
You can listen to my Audio Blog by clicking here!
How has Twitter changed your approach to your business? Are you using it for some things that I didn’t mention here? I’d love to hear your ideas, so leave a comment below.
The Right Way to Respond to Media Queries
Today I’m sharing with you a guest post from a fellow member of www.savorthesuccess.com. If you’ve been preparing yourself for publicity, you’d be wise to follow Jennifer’s advice about the right way to give a reporter the exact info they need in exactly the format they can use. (And if you’re not already a member of SavorTheSuccess.com, I highly recommend it. One of the best ways to be successful is to surround yourself with people you respect and admire who are doing the same thing you are, but who may be a bit further down the road. You’ll find some incredible high-achievers at Savor who are also down-to-earth enough to talk with you and share their wisdom. Leave a comment, shoot me an email to lara at mombizcoach dot com, or tweet me at @mombizcoach and I’ll give you a referral to join the group!)
Guest post by:
Jennifer Tuma-Young
Inspirista - Founder
Ocean Township, NJ
http://www.inspirista.net/
I wanted to blog about this topic because I think so many of you ladies ARE INCREDIBLE, and deserve to be used as an expert source or have your product/service featured in a magazine. Since I am on both sides of the pitching fence (as a “Source” and as a Radio Host/Writer), I wanted to share some tips on how to get national media exposure based on your response to a query.
Where can you find queries? Here’s my top 3 list:
- Savor the Success (for Premium Members)
- HARO
By answering queries on the above listed and through years of trial and BIG error, I finally figured out ways to respond that have led to things like appearances on nationally syndicated shows, such as Rachael Ray, guest-hosting shows for Dish Network, being quoted as a source for many magazines and blogs, including Woman’s World as one of “America’s Ultimate Experts”. I also have responded for my clients and they have been quoted as a source, or products used, etc. (no- I’m not a publicist just a firm believer that if you’re passionate about what you do, the world needs to know about it, and I believe in every single one of my clients, so I like to help them spread their word, too!!).
And, now, on the other side of the fence, I have posted queries on HARO looking for guests for my Girls Night Out Radio Show, and each time I post I literally get HUNDREDS of responses. My radio inbox is flooded, and to be honest, unfortunately I don’t have the time to thoroughly read through all of these pitches. Imagine a reporter looking for a source for an article- they need a couple of lines, a few tips, and they get hundreds or even thousands of replies? Responses need to be formatted in a receiver-friendly way, or else they end up in the “deleted” bin.
So, the BIG question- how does one respond to a query effectively enough to get chosen? Now, of course, every editor/producer/journalist/writer/etc. has his or her own style, and it’s impossible to know exactly what catches his/her eye in a response, right? But, I think there are a couple of things that can increase your chances of staying in their inbox so you’ll be used as a “Source”.
1. Read the Query and Give Them Exactly What They Want
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve posted a query asking for specific things, and I get an inbox flooded with generic press releases about pitches off-topic. Maybe they’ll start with one unique sentence, and then it goes right into their generic press release. I am telling you, I know press releases can be expensive, and you want to use them, but if a query is asking for something specific, give it to them!! Nine out of ten times, a press release isn’t going to answer a specific question.
For example, sometimes a query says to include specific personal details, like where you are from. They may be trying to get a mix of responses from experts around the country- so, if you forget to include your city, you may be instantly deleted!!
Tip: Copy and paste the query into your email response. This way, as you are writing your response, you can answer with exactly what the person is asking for. Make sure to proof-read and delete the pasted query before responding!
2. Tips Help a Ton
When the query includes the storyline or topic, if you respond with fantastic tips on the subject, you are putting yourself way ahead of the rest!! Articles usually are short, and while pitching should involve using your personal story, a journalist really just wants to include your tips, and one-line bio that connects you to their audience. If you send them a full length novel to read about who you are before getting into what you have to offer the reader/audience, they may never get to it! I used to make this mistake all of the time, and then I learned: send them tips to help them give great “take-away” to reach/relate to their audience.
Tip: Give them your tips! I usually include 3 solid, unique “tips” with every response. They should stand out as “tips” and be specific to the query you are responding to. So, in other words, don’t hide your tip into a paragraph or a lot of verbiage.
3. Do Your Research- Google is a Girl’s Best Friend
Know who you’re pitching, and let them know you know your stuff! It’s kind of like a job interview. Remember, this is not about flattery- it’s about “fit”. So, if you’re responding to a national media outlet, you can save the buttering up. I’m sure those guys are inundated with “I love the show” type of lead-ins!
Make your lead-in count, so if you’re not sure of the media outlet you are responding to, take a minute to research it!! I’ve made this mistake in the past, and I’ve learned if you know the media outlet or specific writer’s style, you will be so much more effective when responding!
Tip: Add a statistic and research information to your response. For example, if a writer is looking for information on self-esteem, adding a quick one-liner like “According to a recent study conducted by Unilever, 4 out of 5 women are unhappy with their appearance. Here are 3 tips…” You will surely show them that you are a reliable source who knows her stuff!
4. Compelling Details Need to Be In the Body of the E-mail
Don’t send attachments or links if you think that’s what’s compelling about your response. I can’t tell you how many responses I get that say, “I’d be a perfect fit for your show. Check out my website.” Or “I’ve attached my full bio and press kit.” While I love looking at websites, and I’m sure there’s great information in press kits, that’s another step that adds time. Remember, there are hundreds/thousands of responses, so instead, put compelling details directly into the body of the email. Some of these guys are reading your responses on a blackberry, so get them at “hello”!!
Tip: Make sure you have a one or two-line bio statement that really says who you are. Make it more than “author of” or “creator of”. Include a personal detail and change it up depending on what you are responding to.
5. Rethink the Link
Choose your links wisely! Often we use a link that goes to directly to our homepage, but if the homepage of our site doesn’t resonate with the specific query, what value does the link add? I find that if I use a link in the body of the email, I choose one that works specifically with the query. For example, I may link directly to my online press kit (after I’ve given a quick bio and tips), or I may link to a specific video, a specific piece of press, a specific service, a specific appearance, etc. The easier you make it, the better!
Tip: Have a standard email signature. If you are going to reference a web link in the body of the e-mail, make sure it adds specific value, and it’s different than the one that’s in your signature.
I hope these tips help and you have learned from some of my mistakes, but most importantly, I want you to KNOW YOUR WORTH!! You and your authentic self are so valuable to any editor/producer/journalist/writer/host/etc. Without you, there would be no articles, segments, or stories that resonate with real women. When you’re pitching, realize the value that you add, the knowledge and passion that you bring to whatever media you are going for, and don’t ever get discouraged! Keep believing in what you have to offer the world, and I am certain you will get your message out there!
10 Time Management Tips for Mompreneurs
If you feel like you’re constantly juggling motherhood and running a business, it’s time to take a hard look at how you spend your time. And in the interest of brevity, I’m making this post just a list of bullet points. If you’d like to hear a little more detail on my suggestions, you can tune into my Audio Blog on the Mom Biz Coach Radio Show by clicking here.
10 Time Management Tips for Mompreneurs
- Create a schedule for Monday through Friday.
- Create blocks or “chunks” of time in each day.
- Make appointments for yourself in your calendar (such as Google calendar) just as you would schedule meetings you have with other people.
- Buy a kitchen timer—Set it for a specific amount of time to accomplish a certain task. Stop doing the task when your time is up and move to the next task in your schedule.
- Consider when you feel most energized, and when you need to slow down or take breaks. Create your schedule for the day accordingly.
- Do HPAs (High Pay-off Actions–the ones that give you the most bang for your buck) in the morning.
- Alternate between mental focus and physical movement.
- Include your household tasks as part of your day—laundry, grocery shopping, meal planning and prep, signing papers, doing homework with children.
- Develop a routine with your children so they know what to expect and are prepared for it each day.
- Get the hard stuff out of the way, and then give yourself a reward (take a healthy snack break, take a walk, do a yoga class, read a magazine, call a friend to chat. If you enjoy reading email, surfing the web, browsing around twitter and facebook but feel these things take up too much of your time, give yourself 15 minutes of one of these as a reward after doing your tough tasks/HPAs a couple times per day)
Got some tips of your own to share? Please leave a comment!
Twitter is My Office
There’s some debate going on about how and whether to use Social Media tools like Twitter and Facebook for business. My seven-year-old had some insight into how I use it. One day, while peering over my laptop and seeing me posting onto Twitter, he asked: “Mom, is Twitter your office?” My answer? “Well, um, yes it is.”
Twitter is so completely my office: I connect with my friends, colleagues, and general tweeple each time I sign on, much in the same way I used to say hello to my office mates when I arrived at work before I had kids. We exchange pleasantries and catch up on each other’s lives. We create, build and strengthen our relationships through regular contact, just like I used to do in my cubicle office.
When it’s time to get down to real work, twitter is where I go to research, learn, market myself, follow up with prospects, provide accountability for my mompreneur coaching clients who request it, and the main venue for scheduling and confirming appointments with prospects and collaborators.
Twitter is the source and the venue of all my marketing, sales, business operations. My virtual assistants and I communicate through quick tweets back and forth to keep projects moving along. I market my coaching services, programs and products through simple Twitter campaigns, and I’m fortunate enough to have an amazing group of supporters and influencers who follow me and recommend the work I do to other people I have never met. I’ve traded the board room and conference rooms of Corporate America for a virtual meeting room I can attend anytime I like, wearing what’s comfortable for me to wear.
Then, at the end of a long day, I have a glass of wine and browse around the Twitter profiles of my friends and colleagues to see what they’re up to. It’s my virtual water cooler and Happy Hour, all from the comfort of wherever I happen to be.
Wanna hear the crazy twist to all this business productivity on Twitter? I only spend about 15-30 minutes a day in my “Twitter office.”
How do you use Twitter for business? I’d love to see your comments below. And if you’d like some ideas about new, fun, effective ways to use Twitter and Facebook for business, tun into my free teleseminar tomorrow with Christine Gallagher of CommunicateValue.com on my BlogTalkRadio Show. Click here for call-in (as well as podcast) information.
Want Your Mom Biz Question Answered?
I can honestly say that I never planned on being a radio show host, but it was only a matter of time that a person who loves to talk as much as I do could avoid it.
Back in March I signed up for an account with BlogTalkRadio and clicked a button that created my own show. A day later, I produced my first episode that was (and still is) available all over the internet. I couldn’t believe how simple it was, and I had no idea how much I’d enjoy doing it.
There is no shortage of “content” for my show–in fact, I tend to create my Audio Blogs around conversations, questions and problems that come up in my coaching sessions with my mompreneur clients. They love hearing their topics addressed on the show.
Do you have a question about your business that you’d like to hear featured on my show? Are you trying to figure out how to market what you sell, or why you can’t close a sale, or why everyone seems to love what you offer but they won’t pay for it? Or are you fed up with being the “only one” who can handle things in your life or your household, and really wish you could get some help? Tired of feeling angry, guilty or tense around the kids during the day since you know you have a week’s worth of work to get done–while being the fulltime caretaker of your children?
I understand all these feelings. I’ve been in most of these situations myself. So have nearly all of the mompreneurs I work with. And sometimes you just need to know that you’re not the only one experiencing these things or feeling this way (which I assure you–you’re not!). If you have a topic you’d like to hear or know more about, either leave a comment here or email me (lara at mombizcoach dot com), and I’ll respond to you immediately. I’ll do my best to feature all questions/comments in an upcoming Audio Blog on the Mom Biz Coach Show.
Want to know if I’ve already covered something of interest to you? You can browse the mom entrepreneur podcast archives here.
WAHMs: Is it time to give up on balance?
I’ve been having some great conversations with mompreneurs and work at home moms on the topic of “balance” lately, and specifically how it relates to the goal of work/life balance.
Seems like we’ve spent the last decade or so trying to achieve this balance thing, but it may be a concept whose time has past. Many think it’s unachievable, or at the very least, that it can be achieved but not sustained. Is balance what we really want? Do we want to spend equal time with work and equal time with family?
I know that certain words are “trigger words” or hot buttons for some people, but I think the idea of balance is basically a good one. I think that the more we’ve been working towards it, though, the more we are learning that there are other ways to define how we want our lives as moms and business owners to look.
When I think of words that capture how I want my life as a mom entrepreneur coach to look, these are some of the words that come to mind:
INTEGRATION
FLEXIBILITY
FULFILLMENT
RHYTHMS
SEASONS
I make my work a fully-integrated part of my life. That doesn’t mean I don’t set boundaries around it, just that I include it as part of who I am and what I love to do. How much and when I work varies from time to time, based on priorities, energy levels, moods, seasons… But my commitment to my work and my family stays the same.
What about you? Is there a phrase or concept you’re striving for that is more descriptive than “work/life balance”? How do you see your roles as mom and business owner? Are they one in the same or separate somehow? Please leave a comment below.
Connect With Me!
