If you’re thinking of taking your coaching business online, 2022 couldn’t be a better year to leap. If you’re still undecided if this would be a good move for you and your business, here are 7 compelling reasons to be brave, inhale, and jump.
In 2020 I moved my business online to survive. Covid had put our city into lockdown. Confined to our home I could no longer visit my clients in person.
At this time Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet weren’t known by many.
As lockdowns happened during 2020 and 2021 these platforms were transformed into household names. Almost overnight we saw schools, businesses, groups, and churches, using them to stay connected.
According to a report created by the BBC Zoom’s sales in the last three months of 2020 were up 370% compared to the same period in 2019, hitting $882.5m
As individuals we quickly jumped on YouTube to learn how we could use the free versions of these platforms to connect with loved ones.
Roll on to 2022 and Zoom, Teams and Google Meet are now an integral part of our lives which is an absolute blessing to anyone wanting to take their coaching business online.
In this post I want to share with you the best reasons why you should go for it and take your coaching business online.
Topics I cover in this post:
- Joining an online coaching session is easy and free
- You can work from home - or anywhere
- Teach anyone, anywhere
- Reduce expenses
- Health and safety
- Online coaching vs online courses
- Build your business (and confidence)
1. Joining an online coaching session is easy and free
- Online is now an integral part of our lives. As I mentioned above, online meeting platforms are now household names, and for most the fear of joining an online meeting is a thing of the past.
- Free plans. Free options are available within Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. If you keep within the free version limits you have a wonderful free tool to kick-start your online coaching business.
2. You can work from home – or anywhere
- Work from home. Whether you’re a Business coach, Online fitness coach or Personal weight loss trainer, you can easily move from in person coaching to online right out of your home.
This does require a dedicated space, away from the day-to-day interruptions and noise (if possible).
However, some interruptions can be out of your control, like your neighbour mowing their lawn, but I’ve found that the people I coach really don’t mind the sound of my dog snoring or the cute little song my washing machine makes when its finished. To be fair, they are dealing with the same issues their end too!
Thankfully, there are ways to control noise, like investing in the noise control app Krisp or using the noise cancelling settings in Microsoft Teams. - Work from anywhere. You can take your work with you. Coaching has never been more portable. If you have an Internet connection and good lighting, you’re on! BTW, it’s amazing how you can improvise using blurred or false backgrounds and a torch for light.
3. Teach anyone, anywhere
- Reach more people. Coaching online allows you to reach more people. Your reach is more than just your local area. In fact, you can go global which is just so fantastic.
- More people have access to you. Coaching online also means more people all over the world have access to you, not just what is available to them locally.
4. Reduce Expenses
- Low running expenses. Unlike a brick-and-mortar business, when you create a business from home you can enjoy the freedom of not having to rent space. In fact, home office running costs in a lot of countries are tax deductible.
You may need to invest in a decent web cam, headset and microphone but investing in these are super cheap setup costs.
If you are going to be coaching groups of people for over an hour you may need the Pro version of Zoom or the paid version of Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. - No travel, parking costs, or wasted travel time. If you add up the cost of these 3 things, travelling to meet clients in person can really cut into your profits. Instead, you will find yourself saving!
- Onsite delivery costs can become non-existent. Say goodbye to printing costs and stationery costs. Sending a workbook as a file or PDF before your online coaching session will significantly cut your printing costs and save trees! It also allows anyone you coach to print the workbook in format that is suitable for them.
- Save on wardrobe costs. Some online coaches only need to be seen from the waist up. This doesn’t mean you don’t have to wear pants; it just means you can get away with a less professional bottom half.
I’ve found I’ve only invested in nice tops. Most of the time the bottom half of me is styled with jeans and bare feet. An online fitness coach would be a little different though. - You can start slowly. No need to give up family time or other sources of income. Instead start running sessions outside of your busiest times and enjoy earning when it suits you.
5. Health And Safety
- No need for Vaccination passes. Coaching online allows you to include everyone, not just the vaccinated. In a world where inclusivity is so important, currently I find this one point one of the most significant and important.
- You don’t have to coach through a mask. Wow, this is a difficult one. Teaching through a mask makes communication a little tricky for sure.
- No onsite visit required. Because you’re not visiting onsite in person your online coaching will fit perfectly for many people and organisations who currently have ‘No Onsite Visitors’ policies in place.
6. Online Coaching Vs Online Courses
- Online Coaching is specific to the individual. Courses are normally based on a general objective, for example, my Excel Essential Skills online course is specifically geared to helping people get started using Excel. Even though online courses are fantastic, they aren’t as specifically tailored to the individual’s needs, like an online coaching session.
- Your content can’t be plagiarised. This is a big concern for many Coaches. I’ve heard horror stories from many of my fellow online content creators where their entire course has been ripped off and sold. Thankfully, live online coaching makes plagiarism extremely difficult.
- You don’t need to recreate material. Making a mistake or missing a key point in a recorded video can be very costly. Recreating a video takes a lot of time. Sometimes up to an entire day! Coaching is far more flexible than pre-recorded video.
7. Build Your Business (And Confidence)
- Test your content then turn it into a course. As you coach your learners will identify for you the best, most useful parts of your content. From this your best ideas, workflows and materials can be turned into a profitable online course!
- Become confident with tech. If tech is a bit scary for you coaching online is a great way to start out BEFORE jumping into creating a full online course. Build your confidence one step at a time.
- Build repeat business. With no borders you can make your services available to a much larger market. Now is the time to get started building an epic client base with recurring business.
To Sum up
These aren’t the only reasons to fast-track you online coaching business. But I believe these are a fantastic start.
Once you take the leap you will start experiencing so much freedom.
You will be generating and income with low running costs. How great is that?!
AND with no travel time required you will have more ‘you’ time (which normally means less stress).
So, take the leap today!
