2020 and 2021 were tough for all of us, but an undeniable benefit of our year in lockdown is reflected in the online business world. Online coaching is just one of the industries that saw immense growth over the past year and is now expected to exceed $5.5 billion in revenue by 2029.
With statistics like this, it's no wonder so many former corporate workers are turning to the internet to launch their own, highly profitable business as an online business coach. The fact is, the world is thirsty for online services that offer opportunities to learn, develop, and grow–especially when it comes to business.
If you've been playing with the idea of leaving your day job to become an online business coach, you've come to the right place. Follow along to discover the distinct benefits of launching your online coaching business today and the key steps you need to get started.
What Is an Online Business Coach?
In simplest terms, an online business coach is an individual that utilises their unique knowledge and understanding of business to help other businesses grow and thrive. Whether their knowledge comes from work experience or formal education, business coaching is designed to share the wealth of information through training, mentoring, and analytics.
The perk of being an online business coach is that you can then offer your services to business owners anywhere in the world. This opens up your client base to millions of brands and makes it easier than ever for you to build a name and start earning a respectable income.
By delving into the areas of business you are most passionate about, you'll be able to help business owners navigate the intimidating world of business to get their message out there and make a difference.
The Benefits of Online Coaching
So what's the benefit of coaching vs working as a business manager or consultant for a corporation? Beyond the sheer perks of owning your own business, you'll experience the following advantages:
Flexibility
Because your work is online and you make your schedule, you'll be able to enjoy the freedom of working from anywhere in the world. As long as you have internet access, you can log on and speak to clients from wherever your heart may lead you.
This flexible work schedule is perfect for anyone who enjoys the luxuries of an outstanding work-life balance. What's more, is that by becoming your own boss, you'll be able to place more emphasis on your mental health to establish a sustainable career for years to come.
Earning Potential
Another key benefit of becoming an online business coach is the unlimited earning potential. While it can take some time and patience to get your business off the ground, once you've established yourself as a must-have coach, the sky is the limit.
By designing your program to be scalable and automated, you can not only take on high-paying clients, but you can earn money while you sleep.
Passive income strategies such as building an online course ensure that you always have the potential to earn, providing you with financial security and job stability like never before.
Job Fulfillment
And finally, beyond money and time, you'll be able to sink your teeth into something that really matters.
By partnering with businesses that you believe in, you can help support the dreams of another while fulfilling your own. When it comes down to it, enabling a small business owner to see success is gratifying. You'll have the chance to do this every day while making an income to boot!
How to Launch Your New Business
Alright, you get it. Online coaching is well worth the investment, so how do you get started?
Like any other business, you'll need to invest some time and capital into developing your online coaching strategy. So here is a quick guide to outlining your next steps.
Select Your Niche
While 'online business coach' sounds like a pretty solid niche already, there's actually a lot of variety within the business world. To truly establish yourself as an expert, you'll need to narrow down exactly what you offer.
While 'narrowing' sounds counterintuitive to making an income, the more specific your services are, the more marketable they become. As they say, a jack of all trades is a master of none.
Here are a few options within the business coach umbrella to consider:
- Team coaching
- Executive coaching
- Performance coaching
- Leadership coaching
- Brand coaching
As you can see, each of these areas tackles a different business obstacle. The key is to figure out what problems businesses are having that you can help them tackle.
Beyond this, there may be some business types that are more suitable for your advice. This will come down to your interests and what types of businesses you want to support. For example, maybe you'd like to help local health services make an impact or perhaps your love of coffee will drive you to help cafe owners expand.
Get Qualified
Next, you'll need to sort out your qualification for giving this business advice.
Technically speaking, the online coaching world is pretty unregulated. This means anyone can create a website and begin to market themselves as a business expert. The problem with this is that it's made genuine consumers pretty sceptical of the service.
At the end of the day, this means you'll need some experience or formal qualifications that back up your claim to fame with business knowledge.
If you don't have any experience or education in this field, you'll need to invest in some education for yourself first. Even if you are a 'natural business head', you won't be able to give reputable advice without some evidence-based training.
This qualification will then need to be easily accessible on your website. If you've got examples of past work or evidence of successful strategies, this is even better!
Get to Know Your Ideal Client
Next, you'll need to get a handle on your target audience by really getting to know your ideal client. Our favourite way to do this is to develop a buyer persona.
This persona is not just a demographic. This tool is used to get a feel for who these clients are and what they stand for. By understanding their interests, mission, and of course, their business struggles, you'll be able to develop a program that is perfect for their needs.
In addition, this buyer persona will go a long way when you're ready to market your services and reach the right people.
Define Your Strategy
Now that you know what you're doing and who you're doing it for, you can begin to flush out your business strategy.
What will your offer look like? Is your main component an online course, or do you prefer to work one-on-one with clients in a mentoring type setup?
Some purpose-driven research may help you determine which business models are typically the most successful for your chosen niche. Of course, your strategy is ultimately up to you. Whether you want to try something new or you'd like to utilise other coach's experiences to see success, we highly recommend touching base with a coach advisor to streamline your approach.
Build Your Website
Next up, it's time to put it all into action with an online coaching website.
You'll want to ensure your website depicts what you offer while drawing clients in with compelling copy. The key to a successful website is not only your ability to sell but your overall user experience.
Your site will need to be set up to support your unique needs. This may include incorporating a booking system or payment provider to streamline your business processes and make your services more accessible.
And, of course, a good healthy dose of SEO is essential to boost your online visibility. With the right website design, your clients will come streaming in.
Master Your Marketing
Speaking of SEO, the final step in launching your business is a great marketing strategy.
By combining the many aspects of digital marketing, you can target the exact right audience and build a reputable online business. Your digital presence through content marketing, social media, SEM, and more will help you make a name in this growing industry to earn your client's trust and establish absolute authority.
After all, your business is nothing without a well-developed marketing plan to draw in customers and skyrocket conversions.
Your Online Coaching Career
From choosing your niche to building your webpage, we can't wait to see you set your online business coach dreams into action. With this step by step guide, you have everything you need to launch your research, develop your strategy, and draw in your clients with ease.
Need a little help getting your coaching business off the ground? Contact us today for support in your online business coaching venture. From strategy support to integrated website development, we're here to help you leave that 9-to-5 corporate job behind in pursuit of an online coaching career.
