Demand Is High… So Why Aren’t You Getting Clients?

There’s never been more demand for coaching.

Life coaching.
 Business coaching.
 Wellness coaching.

People are actively looking for help.

So why are so many coaches still struggling to sign even 2–3 consistent clients?

In this episode, I’m breaking down the 3 real reasons coaches aren’t getting clients — and I promise at least one of these is going to hit home.

Because the problem isn’t the market.

The problem is how you’re showing up in it.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why coaching demand is NOT the issue
 • The difference between coaching vs marketing
 • Why leading with “process” is costing you clients
 • The biggest mistake coaches make on discovery calls
 • Why avoiding sales is hurting your business
 • How to make a clear, confident offer without being pushy
 • What actually helps people say YES to working with you

🎁 Resources Mentioned

👉 Six-Figure Niche & Avatar Builder
http://6figurenichebuilder.com

👉 Book a Strategy Call
 http://coachwithclients.com/strategycall

Meet Your Host: 

Hey, I’m Michelle — The coaches’ coach.

I'm a Business and Visibility marketing Coach who helps female life coaches build a coaching biz, get seen at all the right places, and attract paying clients.

I believe your coaching business should feel beautiful and profitable — without sacrificing your sanity, your weekends, or your personality.

Using my 7-Step Client Enrollment Method, I help you build a coaching business that clients can’t help but say, “OMG, that’s who I need!”

More clarity, more clients, more champagne moments. 🥂

Because building your dream business shouldn’t be a nightmare — it should feel like coming home.

 
🐦 SOCIAL STUFF:

Instagram ➔   / elevatelifecoach
Facebook ➔   / coachmichellekuei
Linkedin ➔   / michellekuei
Website ➔ http://elevatelifecoaching.org

Book a strategy call with Michelle ➔ http://coachwithclients.com/strategycall

Transcript

Why Demand Still Does Not Convert

Michelle Kuei 0:00

Today I'm going to break down the three top reasons why coaches are not getting any clients even when the demand is at all time high. And I promise you, one of these reasons is going to hit home. Hey coach, welcome to Make It Visible Podcast. I'm Michelle Quay, your visibility marketing coach, and I help coaches to get seen in all the right places, attract happy paying clients, and build a coaching business that actually feels good to run. Even if you are still trying to figure things out. Each week I'm giving you visibility tips, simple marketing strategies, and showing you how to create the kind of content that connects with your audience so that you can stand out, build your authority, and attract clients who's already feeling like a yes before they jump onto your discovery call. So grab a notebook, pour yourself a favorite drink, and that's make your coaching business visible. Uncertainty demands certainty. Demand for the coaching is at all-time high. Life coaching, business coaching, wellness coaching, all of it. People are actively searching for someone to help them to figure things out. And yet, most coaches are struggling to even just sign in two to three consistent clients. The problem was never the market. The market is ready. The problem is that most coaches were never taught how to be found, how to talk about what they do, and how to convert a casual conversation into a paying client. Because you were trained to be a coach, you're not trained to be a salesperson. When there's a time of uncertainty, a lot of coaches just assume that people are less likely to sign up or to buy coaching. You may find people hopping on a call and you can hear, I can't afford this, or I need to think about this. For some, yes, it may be true. But those who buy never stop from investing. So in other words, it's not the market, it's how you position yourself in the market. That's what's wrong. Reasons why coaches are struggling to get clients when there's clearly a demand in this uncertain time. Reason number one is you're coaching them instead of helping them. A coach gets onto a discovery call or they write in their caption or they're at a networking event and someone asks, What should I do about this problem that I have? Coaches will go into this full coach mode. They start by asking powerful questions, they're reflecting things back, they're creating the space, and the person on the other hand thinks that that was interesting anyway and walks away. Coaching is a process, it is what happens inside a container after someone who says yes. But marketing is about outcome. People don't bite the process, they bite the result they believe that they're going to have. So when you're leading with I help you explore your limiting belief and creating breakthrough, you're just describing the how. Nobody is waking up at 2 a.m. and thinking, I really need someone to help me to explore my limiting beliefs. They're thinking, why do I keep ending up in the same situation? Why can't I make a decision and stick with it? Or I've worked so hard and I still feel stuck. What is wrong with me? They're not asking to explore their limiting beliefs. Coaching them would sound like I help you uncover what's holding you back so you can step into your full potential. Helping them sounds something like this. I work with women who are done making decisions out of fear. We get clear on what they actually want and build a plan to get there. Now, the key thing here is building a plan to actually get there. So the takeaway is your marketing is not to demonstrate your coaching skill. Your marketing job is to make the right person feel seen that hiring you feels like the obvious next step. You can save coaching when they become your client. Reason number two of why coaches are struggling when the demand is at all-time high because you're too afraid to sell. Nobody wakes up in the morning and gets into coaching because they wanted to be in sales. I know, I get it. Most coaches got into coaching business because they want to help people, they care about people, they want to help, they want to make a difference, and somewhere along the way, they picked up the story that selling is pushy, manipulative, and somehow it is below them. They don't want to do it. So, what do you do instead? You hint, you post, you inspire, you say something like, reach out if you're interested, and then wondering why nobody does. Sometimes avoid asking doesn't protect people from pressure, it leaves people who actually need your help without a clear next step. Think about that for a second. Someone is struggling, they've been following you, they resonate everything you said, and they're this close to asking for help, and you never make that offer. So they stay stuck. And that's not kind, that's actually doing them a disservice. So I'm going to invite you to consider selling is not something that you do to someone, it's something that you do for someone who is ready and needs what you have. When you believe in your offer, making the ask is just an act of service. And that changes things from being aggressive to being more clear. Here's what I see happening for you, and here's what become possible. Here's how we can work together. Are you ready for this? And that's it. Just one clear, confident invitation. So if you're waiting there for a client to just figure it out and come to you, you're just going to be waiting for a very long time. People need to be led, not pushed, but led. Making that offer, making it clear, make it often. The coaches who get clients consistently are the ones who are showing up and asking for it. Reason why coaches are struggling, especially during the uncertain time, is that you're so focused on getting client that you stop listening and being a coach. You get onto Discovery Call, you're prepared, you know your package inside out, and you know your talking point, you're ready. You probably even have a printed script somewhere in front of you that you're going through line by line as a checklist. And then the person starts talking. And instead of really listening to them, your brain is already running to the background. Okay, I really want this to work and I want this client. I want this to be a yes. So you're mentally stopped being a coach and you're becoming a salesperson, running through that checklist, and people can feel that. They feel when someone is half listening, they feel when the conversation has a script, they feel when you're waiting for your turn to pitch instead of actually being helpful and being present with them. And that moment they feel this, trusts start to leak out from the conversation. The way that you want to do this is you want to make it an active listening during your discovery call. It is about asking follow-up questions based on the specific things that they have just said. It is about reflecting the exact word and getting it back to them. It is about sitting in the discomfort for their problem long enough to really understand it. So it goes something like this: You mentioned that you tried this before and it didn't work. Tell me more about that. Once they feel heard, that's when you start walking them through how your package is addressing exactly what they have just described. So it may sound something like this: based on what you have just told me, here's what I think is happening, and here's how we work through this together. It is specific, it is personal, and it is responsive. So your offer is only there as compelling as your ability to connect it to what your prospect's actual problem. You can have the best package in the world, but if you're not listening closely enough to know which part of it matter most to the person in front of you, you're losing them every single time. So there it is, the three reasons why coaches are struggling to get clients while the demand is right there in front of them. You're leading with process instead of outcome. You're running through your offer checklist or your script instead of actually listening and hearing the person in front of you. And you're waiting for clients to come to you instead of making that clear, confident as, here's what I see, here's how we can work together. Are you ready? The coaching industry is incredible at teaching you how to be a coach, but it is not so great in teaching you how to actually build a coaching business. That's what I'm here for. So if you're ready to get clear on your niche, your messaging, and how to enroll clients with confidence, I want to invite you to check out the links in the show notes. Whether it is my six-figure niche and avatar builder to get clear on who you help and what to say, or picking a strategy call to work through together, the next step is right there waiting for you. Your certification is only a piece of paper unless you have clients to back it up in your business. Now that's just make sure that the right person will actually find you. See you next week. Thank you for listening to Make It Visible Podcast. If you love this episode and want deeper support for your coaching business, head over to elevate lifecoaching.org and see how we can partner together to turn your passion into a profitable business. I help female coaches launch and scale their coaching business faster than ever without wasted time and money, filling the gaps in your marketing strategies, creating a simple and easy to follow system so you can accelerate on the path of coaching business that you love to wake up to. Head over to elevatelifecoaching.org and grab a free strategy out of today.