The coaching industry is huge and only growing, predicted to be worth $4.5 billion by 2028. With more and more individuals, brands, and companies seeking expert knowledge from a range of coaches in different niches, the demand is skyrocketing for these types of jobs. That’s why it’s never been a better time to become an online business coach. However, the market is tough, and it takes a lot to stand out from the crowd. The difference between becoming a business coach and an elite business coach is a vast one – it takes a lot of work to become a well-respected coach that individuals and businesses will actively seek out.
Luckily, we’ve got you covered. Here’s everything you need to turn your passion for coaching into a successful online coaching business with a wealth of clients.
A business coach is a professional who helps business owners define and reach their goals. They can do this in many different ways, depending on the business. They help both the business owner and the business grow, implementing strategies to ensure their clients reach their full potential.
Business coaches aren’t just here to give you advice – they use their professional expertise to help business owners and entrepreneurs reach heights they wouldn’t have been able to on their own.
Here are some professional roles a business coach may take on:
There are thousands of different types of businesses out there—thus, there is an endless array of business coach types, too, each one suited for different niches. This allows business coaches to offer more personalized advice that caters to the needs and challenges of different businesses. They’ll have specific information on business goals and industry requirements. For example, a small business may need different advice compared to a large company.
Here’s a quick look into the different types of business coaches.
A business strategy coach will:
A business strategy coach’s client base typically consists of business owners and executives who are looking for professional advice and guidance on strategic planning and execution. The coach encourages the client to think long-term.
Small business coaches will work closely with you to:
This type of business coach will work with small businesses and new startups, making sure they have all the strategies they need in place to grow in the long-term.
Life and business coaches won’t just focus on your business. Here is what you can expect from them:
Life and business coaches will focus not only on their clients’ businesses but also on the clients themselves, identifying areas for growth and improvement. They’re particularly suited to entrepreneurs, CEOs, and other types of coaches.
Looking for the perfect name for your life coaching business? Check out this article.
A business growth coach will:
Small businesses will benefit most from a business growth coach, with 92% of small business owners agreeing that this type of coaching has a positive impact on their growth.
A spiritual business coach has a different approach when it comes to offering guidance. Here are some of the responsibilities.
Spiritual business coaches will work personally with entrepreneurs to define their life goals, align their spirituality with business, and help them envision the future.
Not to be confused with a business growth coach, a business development coach:
This type of business coach is best for entrepreneurs and small business owners looking to build relationships with their customers and market their products or services to them.
A business creative coach takes on a different approach from the other coaches on our list and will help with the following:
A business coach for creatives is perfect for those seeking creative careers, such as artists and illustrations, novelists, screenwriters, designers, or even educators.
An ADHD business coach will operate in a way that supports neurodiverse clients. Here are some of their roles and jobs:
ADHD is actually more common in entrepreneurs than in the general public, and neurodiverse people will benefit the most from an ADHD business coach.
A woman’s business coach will offer these specific services just for women in business:
Women in business, such as entrepreneurs, CEOs of small businesses, freelancers, and creatives will benefit from working with a women’s business coach.
These types of business coaches can help with the following:
Entrepreneurs, small businesses and CEOs who are developing a business online should seek out the help of an experienced eCommerce business coach.
Technically, there is no requirement for you to obtain a business coach certification or formal training before becoming an online business coach. However, professional training and credentials will make you more trustworthy to potential clients, validate your knowledge, and help you improve your skillset so you offer your client the most value possible. Coaching is a growing industry, with a whopping 54% increase in coaches from 2019 to now. It’s important to stand out.
Taking degrees in specific subjects, such as business, psychology, or even communication can put you a world above your competition. If college or university isn’t for you, there are a range of well-respected online courses you can take to complete your business coach training. Consider joining the ICF (International Coaching Federation) and taking trusted courses they recommend.
The following certification bodies and programs are recognized and trusted in the coaching industry.
The certification process will vary from program to program. Some things you can expect include courses and training hours from certified coaches, mentorship, and client feedback. In terms of assessment, accreditation processes may offer online exams and assessments or performance evaluations where aspiring business coaches will have to showcase their skills.
Choosing the right accreditation for you depends on your learning style and the type of assessment you’d prefer.
A business coach has various responsibilities when helping clients with their business. Although roles can vary widely depending on the coach’s specialized area and the client’s business goals, here are some common responsibilities they all share:
The aim of a business coach is to provide customized and strategic planning for each individual business. There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Every business’s goals and objectives will be different, depending on the size of the business, the niche, the customer base, and even the individual entrepreneur. The idea is to create progress and enhance overall business performance.
Here is a deeper dive into the responsibilities of a business coach.
Business coaches work with their clients to set goals based on an individual basis. Example goals include cutting costs, improving productivity, hiring high-potential employees, increasing profitability, and more. These goals should be actionable, with clear steps to achieve them.
There are many different strategies business coaches can implement to ensure their clients meet their goals:
Good business coaches will look at existing strategies and offer advice or refinement. They will aid in the development of long-term business strategies. They can also help small businesses or new startups come up with business strategies that align with their long-term goals, whether that’s to increase profitability, earn new customers or clients, or introduce new products. They will offer advice to help businesses realistically reach their goals and advise them if they’re being too ambitious.
One of the big responsibilities of a business coach is to provide accountability, something they can’t do if they’re not monitoring the performance of their client’s businesses. To monitor performance, a good business coach will:
Once the business coach has analyzed the business’s performance, they’ll want to optimise certain areas, especially those that are underperforming, to help their clients reach their goals. They will identify resources, tools, and techniques that will improve underperforming areas of the business. For example, if businesses are failing to draw organic traffic to their website, business coaches might suggest starting a blog.
Good business coaches will continue to analyze data to see whether the new strategies are working.
Both business consultants and business coaches aim to help businesses reach their full potential, but their approaches and methods may differ, giving their clients a different overall experience.
Business consultants address short-term needs. They typically engage with companies on a project basis, with a clearly defined timeline. Moreover, they typically have specialized knowledge in specific areas, such as systems implementation or process optimization. This can help companies address immediate problems that might be hindering growth or slowing down a project. They’ll identify the issue and fix it.
In comparison, a business coach will work long term to develop skills and build the confidence of entrepreneurs. Rather than dealing with immediate problems, they focus on long-terms goals. Because of this, they form longer-term relationships with their clients. They may not even have an endpoint, as the goal is to enhance overall development and sustain business growth.
As touched upon above, business consultants have specialized expertise in specific areas. They can quickly solve problems relating to that area and get businesses back on track. This is why they’re often brought in to help with certain projects.
To contrast, business coaches take a more holistic approach, developing broad, long-term strategies and focusing on their clients’ personal development—not just their business.
According to salary.com, the average business coach salary in the US ranges from $76,536 to $110,736. This will vary depending on the state or region. Furthermore, factors such as the niche, the business coach’s experience, and the area they’re based in can all have an affect on potential earnings.
More and more individuals and companies are recognizing the value of coaching when it comes to reaching goals and achieving success. Because of this, there is a growing demand for business coaches in various business niches.
To become a successful business coach, you have to market yourself. What makes you stand out from the crowd? Consider your professional experience, skills, and successes you may have had in business. How can you transform these into coaching services?
By defining the value you can bring to potential clients, you can strengthen your appeal.
To become an elite online business coach, your niche should align with your experience and expert knowledge. For example, if you’re a yoga teacher who designed, taught, and grew your own class, you may be able to coach businesses in the fitness industry. Or, if you have a background in retail management, consider coaching retail business owners.
Even if your coaching business is fresh and new, gathering testimonials is still possible. Collect them from former employers or colleagues. You can also create case studies of successful projects to illustrate your skills and build trust between yourself and potential clients. Make sure to display them on your website.
Outline specific strategies you have implemented in the past. Include context on how and why they worked and how you can use that knowledge and expertise to coach businesses. Again, this will help build trust between you and potential clients. As you develop your coaching business, highlight more and more success stories.
To attract the right clients, you must outline the coaching services you plan to offer. Play to your strengths. For example, leadership and skills development would be a great service if you’ve previously worked in a leadership role.
Highlight your coaching process and the expected outcome so your clients can see how you work.
Research the going industry rates for a business coach in your area and niche. Set competitive pricing tiers based on what services you’re planning to offer. Try not to undersell yourself, as this may warn clients off. Charging too much for too little experience will also hinder you.
A good and trustworthy business coach will have a website that’s clean and easy to navigate. The website should clearly outline your services, contact information, and testimonials to build trust. Websites must be mistake-free in terms of grammar, typos, and design – errors can make you look unprofessional and scare potential clients off.
Furthermore, build and maintain an active social media presence on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn. Curate content that will offer value and help you build a community around your business. Publishing a blog is also a great way to establish authority in your niche and draw organic traffic to your website.
Even if your business is strictly based online, it’s still important to network. Attend conferences related to your industry, participate in online forums, and join professional coaching associations and groups. This will help you make connections which can eventually lead you to clients.
When it comes to scaling your business, you can start offering courses, group coaching sessions, or even workshops and mastermind groups. Using a community platform like Teach.io to host this will help you create a thriving community, turn your passion into profit, and scale your business coaching brand.
Teach has everything you need to get started in one place – schedule and host live events, build courses, use gamification strategies to encourage engagement, and chat with clients one-to-one.
Try Teach’s 14-day free trial now.
Part of being an elite online business coach is expanding your skills. Stay updated with the latest business trends, theories, and coaching techniques. Attend workshops, subscribe to coaching and business publications, and brush up your skills by taking advanced courses and pursuing certifications. This will ensure you stay ahead of others in the industry, standing out in a competitive market and attracting a wealth of clients.
Becoming an elite business coach doesn’t just happen overnight. Aspiring business coaches need to have a thorough understanding of the industry and their niche, outline their products and services, market themselves, and commit to offering unparalleled service.
Once your coaching business is off the ground and your client list is growing, you can start using platforms like Teach.io to scale, taking your career to new heights and offering your expert knowledge to more people.
