Phase 3 Innovation

Coaches have a big challenge when seeking clients. They are selling the unknown.

By unknown, I mean that most people who can benefit from coaching, whether it be business coaching or personal coaching, either never heard of it or don’t really understand how it works.

When people work with a coach for the first time, there usually comes a point when they say “a ha!” and are better able understand the value they can get.

So trying to get clients can seem like a catch-22. In order to hire you, they need a strong sense of what you do. But to get that sense they need to work with you first!

It’s because of this hurdle that direct selling or direct response methods like cold calling or placing ads don’t work. Those channels don’t get you clients directly.

Dealing with this challenge can be frustrating for many new coaches. They really want to help their clients succeed in their business or in their life, but getting the prospect to sign on the dotted line doesn’t happen as often as they would like.

So how can coaches deal with selling the unknown? Make it known and use your web site to do it!

Here are 3 ways:

1 – Write web site copy in terms of “what they do know.”

Prospective clients can relate to their pains and troubles. Their pains and troubles might include not having enough time in a day, trouble sleeping at night, or not making enough money.

They can also relate to where they want to be in the future. Some examples could be having lots of income, having peace of mind and having a happier life.
So when you are writing about your services, be sure to start with things your prospect already knows about, such as their pains and their desires.

Additionally, case studies and testimonials of others you have helped would further your prospect’s understanding of what you do. These examples are most effective if they are written in terms of initial problems and end results.

By explaining what you do in terms they know directly, you better communicate what you do. When prospects clearly see what they can get from working with you they are more excited and more interested in working with you.

2 – Give away free information.

Compile an article or report that is helpful to your target prospects. Choose a topic that is directly related to their problems or situations. Then make that report available on your web site for download.

This strategy has a lot of value:
•    Everyone likes free helpful stuff, so they will take action to get it.
•    Once created, giving it out takes almost no time to do.
•    It tells the the prospect that you know their about their business, thus making you a good choice for helping them.
•    Sending people to your web site creates another relationship building “touch.”
•    People can refer this report to other people, increasing your visibility.

3 – Give away a free online assessment.

Create a series of questions on your web site. Then invite your visitor to answer them in return for a score and an interpretation of that score. This gives them helpful information about themselves and gives them a sample of what you do.

This technique has a lot of value similar to the report idea. It’s free, doesn’t take a lot of time or money to implement, it is automated, it gives value, and it can be referred to others.

Additionally, you can determine which prospects have stronger needs based on their responses. With that information, you can target your sales efforts towards them and increase your closing rate.

In conclusion, use your web site as a tool for educating your prospects. Doing this will gain more trust and grow the relationship until they eventually become your paying client.

Huge Mistake #1: Creating a Website with Flash — Did you know in a recent study, top internet marketers discovered that having a website created with Flash, actually decreased the response from prospects and customers by as much as 370 percent?

Here’s why: Your prospects and customers are most likely visiting your website using all types of different computers, connection speeds and internet configuration settings…

What may look great to one visitor may not even appear for another! You could very easily have shelled out hundreds or even thousands of dollars to have a website created using the Flash technology, only to find out that some of your visitors will never see it! (Not to mention the loading times can cause your visitor to close your site, never to return again.)

Huge Mistake #2: The “Internet Catalog” Approach — You see this everywhere. Good, honest and hardworking businessmen and women get online to sell their products or services, and have a site created for them that contains a link to just about everything they offer on one page. Their thinking goes along the lines of, “…well, I don’t want to leave anyone out. If they come to my site, I want to make sure I have what they’re looking for…” — This way of thinking could not be further from the truth.

Here’s why: There’s an ancient rule that goes back to the very beginning of direct-marketing on the internet, taught by the richest, most legendary and well-respected internet marketers of all time…

“When you give your prospects too many choices, they become confused and aren’t sure what to do next. Confused people never buy anything.”

Huge Mistake #3: Optimizing Your Sales Site for the Search Engines — You’ll see this taught in nearly every “internet marketing” course, manual or eBook out there… “You must optimize every page of your website for the search engines!” — In fact, this false teaching is accepted as ‘gospel truth’ so often that most web designers will offer to do this for you at no, or little extra cost…

What they don’t understand is that certain words and phrases must be either re-worded (to make it “keyword rich”) or taken out completely, just to be looked upon highly by the mighty search engines — and this could kill your sales, literally overnight.

Here’s why: When you or a hired web designer optimize your sales page (i.e. any web page designed to sell your products and services) to get a higher listing in the search engines, you’re going to have to sacrifice the pulling-power of your sales copy (i.e. written sales material) just to get those higher listings. Sure, this can bring you more traffic — but what good is all the traffic in the world, if your visitors arrive at your website and aren’t compelled enough to read why they should order your product?

For years, it has been taught that you should always try to find a “balance” of SEO (Search-Engine-Optimization) mixed with promotional copy designed to sell your products and services…

Wrong Again! — The truth is that you should never optimize your sales page for the Search Engines. Instead, you should create tiny “entry pages” for each keyword related to your product or service, (highly optimized for the Search Engines) and have them link to your main sales site! (We can show you exactly how to do this quickly and easily and get *massive* targeted traffic from the Search Engines – without ever *touching* your sales site!)

Huge Mistake #4: Having a “Graphics-Based” Website — Sure, graphics can certainly help us to visualize a particular situation or circumstance, product or service… But did you know that having a graphically-driven website can actually distract your visitor away from your sales message?

After all, your sales message (or “web copy”) is The #-1 most important factor in a website that makes money. If your visitors are paying more attention to your “professional graphics” than your sales message… you’ve just lost another sale.

Here’s why: You’ve got approximately seven seconds from the time your visitor arrives at your site, to the time they decide whether to buy your product, get more information or leave. If you’ve got a graphically-intensive website, your website will most likely still be loading past your seven-second time limit.

That’s a “customer-killer” in and of itself – however, the real reason lies within the fact that the bigger, brighter and more beautiful your graphics are, the more they will distract your visitor from your sales message. And if your visitor is distracted even for one second, it could mean the difference between getting a sale, and losing a customer.

Huge Mistake #5: Designing a Website with Zero Marketing Experience — Most web designers have no idea how to make money on the internet, with anything other than their design services. It’s not their fault – they simply have no or very little marketing and sales experience. After all, they’re just website designers…

However, having your website designed by someone with Zero internet marketing experience is like buying a street-car without an engine… it won’t go anywhere, and it’ll just waste your time and money!