Having a home office is a great reason to start your own business. If you have a family, even better. You get to have your cake and eat it too: fulfilling work, income, and being around to raise your own kids.

I’ve successfully worked from home since my twins were born almost 13 years ago. Overall, I wouldn’t have traded it for anything, no matter how much money I was offered. Now, that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been without its challenges at times.

The trick is to maintain a professional image and get the job done, while tending to your kids at the same time. It’s difficult, but very possible. Here are some tips for managing kids of all ages up to the teen years, with or without a significant other:

0-1 Years Old (Or until they start walking!)

It’s actually easier than you’d think when they are babies. Babies sleep a lot, and you can ease them into a regular feeding routine. I did it with twins! Schedule your calls while they usually nap, and leave yourself extra time before and after they usually eat. Do non-phone work the rest of the time (when you’re not cooing, playing with, or enjoying those little darlings!)

1-8 Years Old

Toddlers are the most difficult. I highly recommend hiring a sitter to come in for 3 hours during the day 3-5 times a week while you’re there (or more), and schedule your calls when the sitter is there. If you have a significant other, You can also schedule calls when he or she around to watch them.

Even better, hire a sitter who’s willing to clean up, do basic cooking, and even do laundry as well as watch the kids. I always included those types of tasks for my sitters, and it helped tremendously. Try posting your job requirements on your local State and community college job boards.

Once they’re in Elementary school, although we miss them, the extra freedom is a huge compensation.

Keep a sitter though, and find someone with a good driving record who’s willing to pick the kids up from school and bring them home, drive them to afternoon appointments (like haircuts) if needed, and have a basic dinner on the table by the time they leave.

During the summer, find a reasonably priced day camp through your local county, city, or YMCA. You can deduct the cost of the camp as child care, and the kids will have a blast!

8-12 Years Old

When your youngest is somewhere around 8 or 9 years old, you probably won’t need a mother’s helper any longer. They are usually self-sufficient enough to get their own snacks and entertain themselves appropriately while you’re on calls. You can check in with them between calls and take care of anything that needs doing then.

Troubleshooting

“It’s so frustrating! My kids keep interrupting me when I’m on the phone, asking about things that could wait until I’m done!”

First of all, you need to train your kids, your sitter and any other family members that live with you from the beginning that your calls are very important and you MUST not be interrupted. Make it a big deal, draw a line in the sand, and set a firm boundary.

My favorite line is: “If you interrupt me, there’d better be blood, and lots of it!”

If your sitter or spouse is watching them, make it that person’s job to make sure you’re not interrupted. If it’s just you and the kids (and they’re over 9 yrs old), check on them before you get on the phone, and put a “do not disturb” note on the door when you’re on calls.

Check on them between calls and address their concerns then. If you put your call on hold and speak to them, it only encourages them to interrupt you more, and is seen as unprofessional to your client.

“My kids get into arguments, and it’s so loud I can’t focus on my call!”

This is the toughest one, at least for me. They say the closer your kids are in age, the more they fight. Well, mine are 2 minutes apart. It’s tough to get any closer than that! I do my best to ignore it, then I address it after the call.

On very rare occasions I’ve had no choice but to put a client on hold to address the situation. As professionally as possible, here’s what I’ve said: “This is becoming a huge distraction for me and you deserve my full attention. Please give me a moment to take care of it, so I can focus completely on you.”

If I did it with twins, you can do it too! And being there between calls is well worth the effort. Enjoy having and eating your cake!

The post Working from Home with a Family appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

If you want to start up or grow a business, there are many different coaches, consultants and experts out there that are more than willing to help you. Typically they fall into three categories:

1. Group mastermind type programs
2. Experts who will “do it for you.”
3. One on one individual help where they will offer their expertise, partnering with you and creating marketing and business plan that incorporates your desires and their knowledge and expertise.

Let’s look at each option:

Mastermind Programs

There are a lot of group mastermind programs out there to help new coaches and entrepreneur’s start-up or grow their business. Typically they educated and teach you what to do, then your job is to go do it.

Advantages

The group offers support and accountability in “doing it,” as well as a forum for individual questions. The advantage is you have the group energy and synergy to support you, and you do learn what needs to be done for your business.

Disadvantages

The disadvantage is just because you learn what you need to do, doesn’t always mean you can do it, or do it well. Writing marketing copy, creating a business plan, or designing packages isn’t always as easy as it looks.

In addition, most people don’t realize how important one on one help is to their specific situation until they find themselves in a program that doesn’t offer enough of it. Then they become frustrated because they aren’t getting enough one on one attention to help them accomplish what they want to do in their individual business.

I hear this lot from clients who come to me from other group programs: “It just wasn’t what I needed. They just kept throwing information at me and I kept thinking it would be useful in the future. Or I couldn’t take that information and do anything useful with it.”

“Done for You” Experts

Experts who will “do it for you” sound like a very attractive option.

Advantages

You don’t have to worry about anything; they’ll do all the writing, the marketing or set your business systems up for you. The advantage is obvious: you can relax and it gets done in a timely manner.

Disadvantages

The disadvantages are, if someone else writes it or markets for you, it may not sound like you or be exactly what you want. Plus, that personal touch from you is often what draws your ideal clients in. Without it, you may not get the business you’re hoping for.

If someone else sets your business systems up for you, you may find that those systems don’t fit your personal style or way of doing things, so you’ll end up not using them. Then the money you’ve spent has gone down the drain, and you still don’t have working systems.

One-On-One Individual Expert Help

One on one individual help combines the best of both worlds.

Advantages

You get to have it just the way you want, so it sounds like you, has that personal touch that appeals to your ideal clients, and yet still sounds professional and utilizes all the knowledge and expertise of a professional in the creation.

Disadvantages

The disadvantage to one on one is not having the group synergy. In addition, many experts charge such astronomical amounts for this type of help that it’s completely out of the budget for some coaches or entrepreneurs.

So what’s best for you? Some things to take into consideration are: Are you an introvert or an extrovert? Introverts tend to do much better with one-on-one.

The Bottom Line

What stage is your business at? If you still need to create your marketing, copy and systems, one on one might be your best choice.

If you have your business and marketing plan and everything is set up, the group synergy might be your best choice for accountability and support moving forward.

Some programs try to combine both the group and individual aspects, which may sound ideal, but you’ll want to examine the personal one on one time that’s offered very, very carefully.

Often it’s not enough for you to truly get what you need, and the majority of what you’re getting is group time.

Also, take note if the coach or individual who is offering the program is the one who will be coaching you or giving the one on one time. If it’s not, you may not receive the quality of support or expertise you expect.

I personally specialize in offering one-on-one expertise and support, at an investment that reflects the quality of the results but doesn’t break the bank. I truly love working in partnership with others on that level.

Whatever type of support is best for you, remember, your business is likely to be more successful, more quickly, with expert help!

The post Mastermind or One-on-One? Which help is best for YOUR business? appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

The choices on where to focus your marketing efforts to promote your business can be overwhelming.  The “Internet Marketing” gurus claim that’s the only way to go. Other marketing experts are strong believers in local networking and speaking.

If you try to do it all, you won’t be effective at anything. Your best strategy is to choose your best options and work with them for a while. Then look at the results, and do more of what works and less of what doesn’t.

There are many options both online and offline. So how do you choose? For starters, it helps to understand how internet marketing and local marketing each work.

Internet marketing is similar to your kitchen crockpot. You put dinner in the pot in the morning, then it cooks very slowly, and by the evening you have a yummy meal. So if you can wait, it’s worth it.

The problem is if you’re hungry in the morning and have no food to tide you over, you’ll starve waiting for your crockpot to produce.

Local, face-to-face marketing is like your kitchen microwave. You put the food in and it cooks in minutes, so if you’re hungry, you can eat almost immediately.

In other words if you need business now, relying solely on internet marketing is likely to feel discouraging and not bring results as quickly as you need them. It’s a slow build.

On the other hand, face-to-face marketing is the fastest way to get clients immediately. It’s all about the “like, know, trust” factor. It takes a lot longer to build that on the internet, whereas you can build it in a half hour flat with a good local speaking engagement.

Now if you really want to have a fabulous marketing blueprint, then combine the two!   Here are 5 steps to strategically combine both types of marketing:

1. Set up a quick and effective internet presence that allows you to build an email list of prospects without breaking the bank or taking up too much of your time. Now you’re ready for phase 2.
2. Begin local face-to-face networking and speaking to get clients quickly, and leverage your efforts by also getting the people you come into contact with locally onto your email list. This will get your internet marketing “crockpot” going.
3. As time allows, do more low-key internet marketing activities to fill your crockpot, and while it simmers continue your local in-person activities.
4. When you’re ready and time allows, do a major internet “launch” of a product or service, getting clients and building your list even more.
5. Wash, Rinse, Repeat.

As you engage in marketing activities, whether online or off, be sure to carefully measure and evaluate their effectiveness.

If it’s producing results, do more of it. If it’s not, take it off your list. Your goal is to find the right combination of working “funnels” to get clients and build the business of your dreams!

The post Internet Marketing vs. Local Marketing: Which is Best for your Business? appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

Do you believe it’s possible to use the law of attraction to help build your business?

More to the point, does what you believe matter? I think it does.

Why? Because regardless of the stand you’ve taken on it, there are simply too many people, gurus and next door neighbors alike, who claim it’s worked for them.

If you are truly committed to a thriving, successful business, can you really afford to ignore something that so many people and doctrines claim is a universal law, as pervasive as gravity? Even if you don’t understand how it works?

I remember once when I was a teenager, I got on a ride that was similar to a very fast Ferris wheel, except instead of the seats there were individual cages that spun madly around and around as the large wheel turned.

Once the ride began my cage spun and spun crazily all over the place: upside down, sideways, round and round, and all I could do was hang on for dear life and spin with it. I was terrified. It certainly wasn’t the fun experience I was hoping for.

Then when the ride was over and I got off (walking like a drunken sailor because I was so dizzy), I discovered there had actually been a lever inside the cage I could have used to control the ride somewhat. Arrrrrrgggghhhh!!!

It would still have been a ride, but because I was ignorant of the lever, that ride was a lot wilder than it needed to be.

Ignoring the law of attraction is like me ignoring that lever in the ride. It’s still there; you’re just not using it. And the “ride” (read: your business) can be a lot more crazy without guidance from you.

Now, that doesn’t mean you can just sit on the couch and eat bon bons while imagining money or clients flowing to you. You have to actually take action to get that money or clients, because that action activates the law as much as your thoughts do, if not more.

It demonstrates your intention to attract money and clients, even more than just saying you want it inside your head. It’s when everything is in alignment: your actions, your thoughts, and your beliefs, that the law is most powerful.

In my personal experience, the most effective way to use it is to build your business is to clarify exactly who your ideal client is, actively market to that ideal client, and state an affirmation daily to attract your ideal clients to you.

When that is all in place, you’ll suddenly find yourself interacting with people that are an amazing “fit” for you. You’ll regularly get clients that seem as though they were meant to work with you, on many levels even beyond the obvious. All I can say is it’s loads of fun, try it! It’s worked for me. Want details?

Here are five strategies that have consistently worked for me to utilize the law of attraction and create a thriving business:

1. Get very clear on who your exact market is and what you do for them. When you project confusion and lack of clarity, your results reflect it. Likewise, true clarity on a specific niche and market, and your intention to work with them, will get you powerful results.
   .
2. Create a habit of saying an affirmation (Statement) to attract your ideal client once a day, every day, and then truly feeling, experiencing and imagining it working for you. Here’s my favorite, which I borrowed from Esther Hicks:
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   “I, (your first and last name here), see and draw to me through divine love, those beings who seek enlightenment through my process, and the sharing will elevate us both, now.”
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3. Imagine money flowing to you daily. By attracting money in general, whatever the source, you’ll be less stressed about your business and you’ll be able to invest in it, which again, demonstrates your commitment to the results you desire.
   .
4. Take action! Demonstrate your commitment by doing whatever you need to do to move forward, despite perceived blocks and barriers.
   .
5. Once you’ve done all of this, relax and have faith it will happen. This is a critical part of the process. Don’t continue to “worry” about whether it will or not, that will push it away from you. Just know that it will happen.

The post The Law of Attraction: Does it Really Work in Your Business? appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

Do you consult with your partner whenever there are big decisions to be made? Most people do. That’s part of being in a relationship. You’re partners in life, so life decisions are made together, because they affect both of you.

If you are employed by someone else, do you consult with your partner on big decisions you need to make at work, about work?

You might, or you might not. It probably depends on the nature of the decision. If it’s one you have the luxury of contemplating for a while, you might discuss it at home with your partner, using him or her as a sounding board. Then you’ll make your decision and implement it.

The point is, there’s a big difference between a life decision, and a work decision.

With a work decision, you are the one with the knowledge and expertise, and you are the one who is responsible for creating a successful outcome from your decision. So even though you may use your partner as a sounding board, you retain the power to make the ultimate decision on what you’re going to do.

When you own your own business, a business decision is exactly the same as a work decision. One of the biggest mistakes I see newer self-employed experts or coaches make is to confuse which type of decision they’re making when it comes to their business, particularly when it comes to investing in their business.

This confusion shows up the most when interacting with their partner. They often will treat a business decision as though it were a life decision.

It’s understandable. In order to invest in a business before it becomes self-sustaining, or even sometimes when it is self-sustaining, it’s necessary to use funds from another source. It’s that challenge which often creates the confusion.

Because using money from another source is usually considered a life decision, and affects your partner. But creating a successful business is like making a decision at work. You are the one who understands your business, your expertise, and what needs to happen in order for you to be successful.

You are the one who understands that a business, unlike working for someone else, needs to be invested in to succeed. And you are the one who is following your heart, doing what fulfills you, and taking a stand for your dream. And you carry the responsibility for creating a successful outcome from your decisions.

It’s tricky, isn’t it?

What stand do you take? Do you give your partner the power to veto your decisions? What if it’s about investing? Do you give your partner equal power based on the fact that it’s his or her money too?

Or do you retain the power and respectfully take the stand that although you would like his or her blessing, this is your business, you understand what is needed to succeed, and you know you need to do it?

If your partner is “on board,” it’s not going to matter. But sometimes he (or she) isn’t on board. He doesn’t understand the concept of investing, and looks at it as an expense.

Or, she wants to see your business make money first, before investing more in it.

This one is really tough, because there are often two important investments that need to be made for a successful business: the investment in your expertise itself (for example, learning how to coach), and the investment in your business (learning how to create a successful business).

A partner who doesn’t understand the difference will often take the “make money first” stand, when it comes time to invest in the business part. That’s like telling someone because they have a hammer now, they should be able to build a house.

In the end, only you can decide how you are going to approach your business decisions. But consider this: if your business is your path to your heart’s desire, how would it benefit your relationship for you to achieve that heart’s desire?

And how might it affect your relationship if you don’t?

The post Is it a business decision or a life decision? appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

 
The key to success is not new. You’ve heard it before. It’s persistence.
 
I saw the following Calvin Coolidge quote when I was a teen. Little did I know how it would shape my entire life:
 

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence.
Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”

 
Persistence is Key to having a successful business. To show you persistence in action, I’m sharing four major business and personal challenges with you today, to show you how persistence got me through each of them.
 
As you read through them, think about your own challenges and how persistence might get you through those, especially with regard to starting up and running your own business.
 
I’ve owned 3 successful businesses in my lifetime (4 if you count the booming babysitting business I created as a teenager). Only one of them was easy.
 
Only one of them launched and went smoothly, growing as expected and becoming successful. The others? No way. Each one was so hard that most people would have thrown in the towel and given up.
 
Challenge #1: Network marketing.
 
The first was my network marketing business. I began doing home parties for Princess House Crystal to put myself through college. I begged, borrowed, bullied and cajoled my friends to have parties for me.
 
I went through 5 parties, and I bombed, big time. No more parties. For months. But I didn’t quit. I kept going to meetings, learning, going to other people’s parties to see how they did it, and talking to everyone I could about having a party for me.
 
After six months, I finally convinced someone to have a party, and three people booked parties from there. My business took off after that, and I began winning awards, prizes, trips, and earning more money than I’d ever seen up to that point.
 
Over 7 years I built that business up to be hugely successful.
 
Until the day I collapsed on the floor right before a Rally I was producing, and I couldn’t get up. At all. Seriously.
 
Challenge #2: Serious illness.
 
I was sick, in bed 90% of the time for 10 years. No, that’s not a misprint. 10 years. I had severe mercury poisoning and chronic fatigue immune dysfunction syndrome. Other people who were as sick as I was gave up. They succumbed permanently to hopelessness, depression and worse.
 
There’s a high suicide rate among people with CFS. But once again, persistence made the difference. I kept going to different doctors, trying different things, until finally, one day, I found a doctor who could help me.
 
Within 6 months I was on my feet again and starting another business. That business was the easy one (well, everyone deserves a break, don’t you think?), so we’ll skip that one.
 
Challenge #3: Coaching
 
Let’s fast forward to my coaching business. First I spent 10 years as a Life Coach, doing things the hard way, struggling to hit 6 figures and never getting there, while raising my young boys.
 
Then I got fed up and began investing big-time in marketing coaches, doing programs, and training so I could have the business I wanted.
 
I’ll bet you think it was easy from then on. Nope.
 
First I spent $5000 on a website for a niche that wasn’t viable at all, so I had to let go of that (and no, it’s not any easier for me to let go of 5k than it would be for you!).
 
Then I spent a year and a half on a niche that had a little success, but ultimately wasn’t going anywhere.
 
Finally, once I found the right niche for me (3rd try is the charm, right?), it still didn’t take off the way I would have liked.
 
And my husband, the major breadwinner, was laid off from his job, his field collapsed and he couldn’t find a job for literally years.
 
My business built slowly but steadily over two years, before it could support my family. In the meantime I went through my life savings. Most people would have quit and gotten a nine to five J-O-B.
 
Not me. I remembered Calvin Coolidge.
 
Challenge #4: Starting a family.
 
By the way, after I recovered from my illness, starting a family wasn’t easy either. That also took years of persistence before I succeeded.
 
So you see, just about every success I’ve ever had in life required my sticking it out for longer than the average Jane. So please don’t ever look at my success and think I have something you just don’t have. It’s not true.
 
I have only ONE true thing that makes me a success, and you can have it too.
 
Persistence. It’s omnipotent.

The post My #1 Key to Success: If I Can Do It, So Can You! appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

When you’re starting a new business or re-branding an existing one, there’s always the question of which marketing techniques you put your energy into first. Because you are offering something new, you need to begin to fill your pipeline right away.

There are many effective ways to do this, but some are a slower build than others, for example on-line marketing. On-line marketing is a great way to build a large business long term, as well as to take advantage of the world market.

But it’s not great for getting clients right away. Here’s why: your ideal clients will only hire you once they feel as though they like you, know you, and trust you. It’s actually called “the like/know/trust factor” in the marketing world.

It takes a while using on-line marketing techniques to build that like/know/trust factor enough to get clients. When you want clients right away, you need to use marketing strategies that build it as quickly as possible.

That’s where speaking comes in. There is absolutely nothing that builds the LKT factor more quickly than meeting your ideal clients face-to-face. And beyond that, it builds even faster when you have the opportunity to offer value and showcase your expertise for 30-60 minutes, as in a speaking opportunity.

In other words, face-to-face networking is great, but speaking is better!

Many people have a fear of speaking in front of others. In fact, it’s been proven to be the #1 fear in the world. Dying is the #2 fear. Which means people would rather die than speak in front of a group!

Here’s the 3-part formula to overcoming that fear: courage, preparation and practice: Have the courage to do it in spite of your fear, be 100% prepared for your talk, and then just do it . . . and keep doing it.

If you follow that formula, your fear will gradually subside and then almost complete disappear after a number of speaking engagements.

Here’s another comforting thought: many speaking opportunities are in front of groups of about 10-30 people. You don’t have to start in front of a large group. You can work your way up as you gain confidence and master your fear.

If you feel as though you need an “in-between” strategy to break through your fear, try Toastmasters. Just a word of caution about Toastmasters: Their focus is on speaking well, not on speaking to sell your services.

Speaking to get clients is a whole different ballgame, so be sure and learn how to deliver a speech that will actually get you clients. I’ve included several tips on that below.

Ok. You’ve mustered your courage, you’re committed to practicing, now: how do you prepare? Here are 5 tips to help you be ready to stand up and speak your way to success:

1. Decide exactly what action you want your audience to take at the end of your speech (e.g. your “upsell”), and then reverse engineer your speech so it creates a desire in them to take that action.
2. “Seed” your talk throughout with the benefits of taking that action.
3. Don’t write your speech word for word and memorize it. If you forget where you are, it’s very difficult to recover. Instead, create an outline with notes on index cards that “prompt” you to speak around a topic. Memorize the topic, then simply speak about it in whatever words come to you.
4. Practice your speech over and over again in front of your dog, your mirror, or an empty room, until you feel comfortable delivering it. Time it each time. Make sure it fits into the time frame you’ve been given for the talk.
5. Have the following ready for your contact person ahead of time: A speaking bio, a headshot of you, and promotional copy for your speech so they can promote it effectively.

Also, many groups request that you bring a question around your topic for their group to discuss before your presentation, so be sure and have that prepared as well.

These tips will get you well on your way to getting those ideal clients, quickly. If you have your market, niche and branding well defined, you’ll know exactly where to find them. In addition, a good place to start is www.meetup.com

Good luck with your speaking, and remember to have fun too!

The post Want to Get Clients Right Away? “Speak” Your Way to Success! appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

If you missed part one of this two-part series, which ran in the last newsletter, you can read it here.  Today we’re going to dive right into the last 5 terrific “Must-Have” Strategies! A Coaching Site that Works . . .

6. Is easy to update for the coach. 

As a cost-conscious new coach, it’s vital to your success to have a site that’s easy to manage.

WordPress is not “easy.” It was made for developers and designers.

However, it’s still your best choice. With a patient “trail-guide,” then every coach can surely get up to speed fast.

You’ll want to be able to do the following things at the very least:

• add / remove a page
• change copy
• add images
• update your menu
• email your list
• add an article (blog)
• manage comments on your blog
• update email messages
• edit testimonials

Forget trying to change design structure (like moving menu from top to the left) or changing wording that’s embedded in images (like taglines). Let your designer do that.

7. Is easy to enhance for the designer

As your business grows, your site will evolve. And your web designer will need to change things up to suit your needs.

Things like adding an ebook, or adding time scheduling software, or even a membership type of service will require you to make some site adjustments.

That’s NICE, if the platform (the behind-the-scenes technology) upon which your site is built is flexible, current and supported well to handle your needs – quickly and easily.

My recommendation would be to use WordPress and keep your site simple. Get the features that you “need” and dodge the “fun ideas” that can make things complicated fast.

8. Is great for search engines

No doubt, searching is huge.

Do people search for coaches?

Great question. Yes and no.

The answer is No, in that people generally don’t know they are searching for a coach unless they are familiar with the coaching profession. But, yes, as the field grows, my stat research indicates increased search volume on phrases including the word “coach”.

The answer is Yes, in that people are seeking “help”. They are seeking solutions to challenges on health, business, relationships, etc. So, if you can get ranked high on search engines around the solutions to challenges people face, then you can get clients from searches.

So, you’ll want to think strategically about your phrases and what your market is likely searching on.

9. Looks great on various browsers and devices

A quick look at my statistics showed me the following browser data mainly for laptop computers and desktop computers. (note: browsers are the programs that you use to surf the Web.)

• 30% of visits to my site are using the Chrome browser by Google.
• 26% are using FireFox
• 24% are using Safari
• 16% are using Internet Explorer
• 4% other

My stats also say that when it comes to operating systems here is the breakdown:

• 55% are on Windows (mainly laptops and desktops)
• 31% are on Macs (mainly laptops and desktops)
• 9% are on iOS (iPhones, iPads)
• 3% are on Android (Nexus phones and tablets

Not all websites look good or function properly across these various environments. And, the environments continually change (requiring attention be paid).

If that isn’t enough to worry about, you’ve got to ensure that your emails (auto-responders? promotions?) view properly too.

And when it comes to reading email, not only do we need to think about browser and operating systems, but also email software like Gmail, Yahoo Mail, and Outlook (Yes, feel free to step outside for fresh air).

A coaching site that works will require continual attention and updating to ensure it presents well everywhere.

10. Is worth the investment

If you spent 1 dollar on your website and it did nothing for you, that’s a wasted dollar.

If you spent $5,000 on your website, and it helps you get to a full coaching business in a year’s time and you get to leave a job you hated, that’s very well spent money.

Estimate what you might budget for your site by:

• Determining your goals of your business, especially income
• Determining your commitment to reach that
• Determining your marketing efforts to bring in $$

A high commitment to reach a high income, say 100k, in the next year and for coming years, may be worth investing 20k in your website, marketing, and training, etc.

A coaching site that works is one that works within your budgets, your marketing plans, and your intended outcomes. Get as clear and specific as you can on these things.

In a nutshell: Have a clear (as you can get) purpose for your site – both for serving your visitor and for delivering results for your business.

The post 10 Must-Have Strategies for a Coaching Site that Works! Part 2 appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

When you create a website, what do you want to accomplish? Usually the bottom line is to get clients, right? That’s exactly what my website designer friend, Kenn Schroeder, helps coaches do with their websites. In fact, the name of his business is “Coaching Sites That Work.”

I invited Kenn to offer us some of his 12 years’ worth of website savvy in a juicy two part series that will help any entrepreneur get clients, not just coaches. But if you’re a coach looking to get more clients, this is definitely a “must-read!”

1.  Focus on your visitor

Remember that your site is for your visitor FIRST, then for you. Organize your content to engage and serve them – which essentially means helping them towards their goals.

As they use your website, invite them to take small steps that lead them closer to becoming a client.

To be clear, an “action” on your website is a physical, completable step they can take like:

• clicking to an article and reading it
• commenting on an article (like your blog)
• clicking to follow you on twitter (if you’re a big tweet)
• filling out your contact form to talk to you about coaching
• responding to an email you send that has a question
• filling out an assessment

For newer coaches seeking clients, the ultimate action is to call or email you to discuss coaching (which leads possibly to them becoming your paying client).

2.  Build your credibility

Clients love to work with experts – especially the well-behaved clients who want results faster, are willing to work hard, and are eager to invest (time, money, energy).

Articles, videos, or other web tools that serve (educate, inspire, help) your market, naturally create this, “wow, you’re a guru!” kind of image for you.

A coaching website that builds you up nice and high (in their eyes) is what you want. It brings all sorts of opportunities to you.

3.  Create visual appeal

Visually appealing doesn’t mean “work of art”. It means that it looks clean, crisp, professional, and easy on the eyes. It can look amazing with graphics, but that often requires a larger-than-needed effort.
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The things visitors will care most about are that the visuals make sense (e.g. nature visuals and rounded shapes for health coaches, or stronger colors and edges for business coaches), the layout that is easy to understand (e.g. one simple menu) and the content is easy to access (easy-to-read fonts for articles, videos that run fast and are clear and audible).
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When thinking visually, think beyond pretty and think usable. A coaching website that’s visually appealing easy to use in is stellar!

4.  Use interactive marketing tools

For many newer coaches looking to create a steady stream of clients that pay enough to be coaching full time, core tools include:

• An email list from which you can grow tighter trusting bonds with prospects, and get clients from to keep your practice full.

• A blog that showcases your expert voice.
• An invitation to speak with you about coaching them.
• A freebie that new people can download to both learn about you and learn about themselves (ideas to help them).

These interactive tools form a basis of engaging people in what you do. It gives you tools to communicate via the Web and email.
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I know the idea of “becoming a blogger” or “blogging” can scare people, but try to think of it more as “a way to share your ideas” which can be done by writing or doing videos, or sharing your opinion on other material – or even recorded phone calls with other experts, book reviews, etc.
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Find a way to communicate with your market that floats both their boat and yours. Keeping things fun for you will keep you doing it and keep it interesting for them – people love getting materials from people who are enjoying their work.
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So, to ensure your coaching website is interactive, be sure to get the tools that help you interact with your tribe (think network or market, but more family-like).

5.  Is easy to read

I’ve been doing website reviews for almost a year now on LinkedIn, and one of the biggie goofups is making a site that’s hard to read. People won’t read painfully presented copy.

It’s easy to find how good fonts, colors, backgrounds look. Just look at Google, LinkedIn, or any of your fave blogger sites. See how their copy is presented. Basically:

• White background or near white

• Dark text, just a shade lighter than black, like a dark grey

• Font size can vary depending on font, but 12-14 point is about right today

• Headings, sub headings, to break up sections
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• Not too much bolding, colors, italicizing, underlining, other craziness

Big NO-NOs:

• Bolding everything

• Making everything insanely large
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• Using too many colors, fonts, sizes

Be sure and stay tuned for Kenn’s next 5 “must-have strategies” in my next newsletter!

The post 10 Must-Have Strategies for a Coaching Site that Works appeared first on Kellie deRuyter, PCC.

We’d like to think it will never happen, but the truth is no matter how good we are at what we do, sooner or later a conflict with a client is bound to come up.

It’s quite possible it has nothing to do with us at all. It might be entirely the client’s issue. However, as the business owner and coach, we still need to handle the situation with grace and integrity. That can be tough if our own buttons are being pushed, or if we feel put on the defensive.

Your clients look up to you for inspiration and to set an example. It’s important to maintain that trust, and the way to stay in integrity with them is not by being the perfect coach they may imagine you to be. It’s by demonstrating how to turn an unexpected upset or conflict into an opportunity for positive growth.

For example, let’s take a situation that might push the buttons of a lot of coaches. Just the fear of it can be triggering: a client who feels they are getting no value out of your coaching, perhaps even wanting their money back.

It’s perfectly normal for your first knee-jerk reaction to be fear, anger or other defensiveness of some kind. The best way you can serve your client and yourself is to recognize that and set it aside for the moment, in order to handle the situation appropriately.

Whatever you have to do, whether it’s take a few deep breaths, take a 15 minute break from the session or even a 24 hour break (tell them you need to reflect so you can respond thoughtfully if needed), do NOT engage in a conversation with your client when you’re in “reactive mode.”

Your reactive mode may include behaviors such as apologizing, offering to return their money, or overextending in some way to please. It might be anger, indignation and defensiveness.

In order to be the high integrity coach you want to be, your response needs to come from your core values and your “higher coach,” not your fear or desire to please.

Once you are out of reactive mode and in reflective mode, here are 7 steps to resolving any conflict:

1. Look carefully to see if you have kept your word and delivered everything you’ve promised that is in your power to deliver. Have you kept your end of the bargain?
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2. Was there a miscommunication somewhere along the line? In what way might you have unknowing creating a situation where the client had unrealistic expectations? What boundaries do either of you have that weren’t communicated or clarified?
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3. Remember that your client is 100% responsible for their own experience and expectations. What have they done to handle the situation on their end? What more could they have done to handle it? In the case of the example above, what have they done to create value for themselves?
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4. What part of the situation can you own, and what can you do to find a win-win solution to the current situation, without compromising the boundaries you have previously set with your client?
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5. What policies, procedures, expectations and back-up plans can you put into place going forward that will prevent similar upsets in the future with this client or any others?
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6. If you’re taking a break, check with someone you trust who can be unbiased and ask if the solution you intend to propose is fair, equitable and in integrity.
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7. Communicate with the client and begin by owning whatever is reasonable for you to own. If your client isn’t taking any responsibility for their part, remind him or her without judgment of their responsibility in the matter. Then propose a win-win solution moving forward.

It’s important to remember that “win-win solution” does NOT necessarily mean your client gets what they want. It only means that after careful reflection you feel that the solution is fair and equitable under the circumstances. If you agree to any of their requests or demands, be certain you are not compromising yourself.

When you handle conflicts in this way, you are being the kind of coach your clients respect: Someone who walks their talk and sets the example of honoring their principles and values.

Best of all, you are being the kind of coach YOU respect, and that’s the most important benefit of all.

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