My first product was an accident. I didn’t know about internet marketing, I didn’t know about products, I didn’t know that that’s what I really needed. I was just a coach… just a coach. I gave a speech to a conference and the speech turned out really well and I’ve had the presence of mind to ensure that I had the rights to the recording. I didn’t really mind that they had the rights to the recording as well, that I made sure that I have the rights to use it however I want it and the speech happened to turn out really well and I thought, we’ll maybe I can sell this thing so I set a price of $39 which hasn’t changed in, oh my goodness, eight years now. It was August of 2002 and it’s firstfiftyclients.com and I sold it as… it wasn’t even a download; you could just listen to it online for three months and then eventually I made it a download and eventually I made it a CD but that’s how I stumbled upon it. We’re going to be more deliberate about how you create your product and this is a going to be a lot simpler than getting to speak at an international conference, you don’t need that.
The following is an excerpt from the CoachStart Manual.
Coaching Sessions
The base coaching is 3 sessions (one per week), and then a rest on the fourth week. (Feel free to send me your self coaching form in this rest week, or simply rest!). Sessions are 25 minutes long. Your support in finishing on time is appreciated. If you are on a reduced plan, you may receive two or even one session every four weeks.
Client Bonuses
Extra Time: I’m available! You may call me between our session times if you need coaching on an issue, or can’t wait to tell me about something great. I do have time between our regular sessions to speak with you, if needed, and enjoy providing this extra level of service. I do not bill for this additional time, but I do ask that you keep any extra calls brief (e.g. 5 minutes).
E-coach: Feel free to e-mail me during the week to a) share a win, b) clarify a point, c) have me review something, or request coaching on a particular issue. It’s up to you how much you use me this way.
Friends: If you have a friend, family member or colleague who would like “one-off” coaching on a particular issue, I am happy to spend 15 minutes with them. I can usually move someone forward in a specific area of his or her life in one session. There is no charge for this.
The following is a transcription taken from Explode Your Practice.
This takes time – at least 3 months. So you want to do this sooner rather than later. Once you are in the related to anything you want to sell. Then at overture find out which ones are getting searched on. Get your top 5 key words. If you go to Google ads you want to go for all the keywords. But the ones your programmers will put in the Meta tags will be the top 5. You might also, in your excel spreadsheet, say what the product is like, general coaching mission stuff. It’s more complex. But this is the top 3 keywords for this product.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Michael O. Cooper in 10 Super Coaches.
What top three methods, in order, did you use to get your clients in the first 2 years?
Sample Sessions: I find that offering sample sessions is the best way for people to experience my coaching ability and style. I offered coaching sessions to people in networking meetings, at the Chamber of Commerce, associations I frequented, friends, family members, colleagues, etc. I mastered the Complimentary/Sample Session with the help of Michael Charest and Michelle Schubnel in their “Coach and Grow Rich” program. I still find this the easiest and most effective way of landing new one-on-one coaching clients.
Networking: I prefer to network with people I already know frequently and have generated dozens of referrals this way. In the early phase of my business, I spent 5-8 hours a week at networking meetings, and I have to say I was horrible at it! Or at least horrible at attracting clients this way. I did generate some interest, but my “elevator speech” wasn’t strong enough to attract clients because I was too generic (prior to establishing my niches). I took networking classes and now rarely attend general networking events, because I personally do not find it as effective as other methods of attracting clients, although I know dozens of coaches who are experts at it!
Internet: I built my website very early on in my business growth cycle. I believe I hid behind it for a while, but many other coaches and clients know me because of that website – many coaches copied much of the material from it. It took over 18 months to attract a client just from the website alone.
The following is an excerpt from the CoachStart Manual.
Please take the time to read this agreement so that you can get the most out of our relationship, and so that we are in alignment. These items form part of our coaching agreement. This document is intended to have legal significance (particularly the ‘Liability’ section) and as such, I recommend you consult with your legal advisor.
To continue with our coaching arrangement, please send the full agreement back to me, AFTER FILLING IN THE AGREEMENT SECTION at the bottom.
The following is an excerpt from the CoachStart Manual.
There’s nothing wrong with coaching, or attempting to coach everyone. OK – spouses, lovers, and family are generally accepted “no-coach zones”, but don’t let the fact that it’s challenging daunt you. If your “client” is truly willing to be coachable, and you will suspend your opinions, judgments and agendas, it doesn’t matter who you are. One of my amazing UK clients, Sarah, coached both her mother and her father, and they both paid her! Her father is progressing in leaps and bounds and his colleagues keep remarking on the difference in him.
To make a difference to your confidence, however, it helps if you gain some clarity around types of people you would like to make a difference to. For example, I found that I love helping women realize that it’s OK to want more in a relationship and helping them to get it.
