Raise your hand if you love working crazy hours and not making crazy-good money, pouring your heart out on social media and not getting inquiries (or getting inquires from not-so-dreamy clients), or feeling almost invisible in your niche, despite being well-educated?
Anybody?
Trust us, we get it. As a coach, there’s literally nothing more rewarding than helping your clients reach their goals and fulfill their dreams (although watching your biz savings stack up and getting to skip town on a random Wednesday is also very rewarding, if we’re being honest.)
So when you can’t seem to attract the right kind of clientele to help with your skills? It’s soul-crushing.
That’s why in today’s blog post, we’re exploring the top mistakes most coaches make that might be repelling–rather than attracting–your ideal clients.
Below, you’ll find 7 reasons even the smartest, savviest coaches sometimes struggle to hook their dream clients. Do you recognize yourself and your biz in any of them?
1) You’re Not Effectively Communicating Your Value
The number one reason coaches struggle to attract ideal clients is because their marketing is generic or vague. They not only are afraid to get specific in the pain points and desires of their ideal clients, they’re also afraid to get detailed about their own talents, skills and knowledge.
On the flip side, coaches who truly make bank know their true value–and how to communicate it. You need to get clear on what makes you & your coaching business wildly unique first, and then make sure that this message is communicated loud and clear everywhere you show up online.
So, tell us: Who are you? How do you uniquely help others? What swirl of special talents, skills and expertise do only you have? What can you offer that other coaches can’t?
(Pro tip: If you’re struggling, start by researching your competition. What are they doing that’s working–or not? What could you do differently? Be sure to write it down so you’re super clear about your unique selling points. Then, refer back to it when creating marketing materials or talking to prospective clients for an instant and well-deserved confident boost. Boom.)
Let’s be real: There are a lot of coaches out there vying for attention online. And no matter how incredible you are (and we have no doubt you very much are), if you want to attract dream clients, you need to make sure you’ve pinpointed what makes you stand out first & foremost.
Then–and only then–will you start attracting dream clients who are a perfect match for you and your business. And you can quote us on that.
2) You’re Not Clear on Your Ideal Client – or What They Struggle with or Desire
Do you have a vague, not-super-specific idea of who your target market is? If you really want to attract dream clients, you don’t just need to know who you are, you need to be very clear about who they are, too.
So, what are their demographics? What are their interests? What problems do they need help with? What are their deepest desires, especially when it comes to your area of expertise? The more specific you can be, the better.
As you start to reflect on these questions, you might notice your ‘dream client’ is super broad, like working moms who want to build a business. If that’s the case, you might need to take it a level deeper. Is there a way you can niche down even further, like from ‘working moms’ to ‘working moms who want to make passive income on the side of their 9-5s’? Even a simple tweak like this can make all the difference when it comes to attracting the right clients.
You need to know who this person is before you can create content or any other marketing messages that make their ears perk up and think, “Oh, that’s me!” or “Oh, I need help with that!” or (best of all), “Oh, I totally need that!”
3) You’re Not Active–or Consistent–on Social Media
Okay, social media is not the holy grail and you can absolutely attract dream clients many other ways. (Personal referrals and email marketing, anyone?)
However, it is a major driving force in many coaches’ businesses–and for good reason. We all know social media is the fastest and arguably easiest way to connect with potential clients and build relationships with people all around the world. There’s never been another time in history that you could so easily build trust & credibility with total internet strangers. So why not take advantage of it, right?
That said, you do need to use social the right way. If you’re not active on social media and/or you only show up when you have something to sell, you’re missing out big time. Make sure you have profiles on the major networks (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) and that you’re regularly sharing interesting and relevant content (and not just generic quotes and cat memes, as cute as they might be).
You also want to make sure you’re showing up in the right places. Are you posting and engaging where your ideal clients actually hang out? If you’re looking to attract Gen Z clients to help them navigate their early careers (or fledgling businesses), LinkedIn sounds great on paper. However, you’ll probably have better luck on TikTok, where the audience skews younger. Explore each platform and see if you can find people already serving your people in a similar capacity–this is a major green flag, especially if you can tell that they’re successfully reaching your audience and receiving engagement.
4) You’re Not Easy to Hire
Have you ever binged someone’s content, double-tapping like crazy on post after post, only to try to click over to their website to learn more and discover they don’t even have one?
If you’re anything like us, we bet you have–and we also bet you forgot about them promptly after. Cue the sad trombone.
Let’s make sure you’re not that, coach, okay? You have way too much to offer the world.
Instead, do the opposite and make it wildly easy for dream clients to stay in touch with you past their initial contact. Make sure people can get from your social media to your website (read: include your website URL in your social media profiles), and then make sure said website is optimized to collect their emails. One of the best ways to do this? Entice them with a juicy opt-in freebie. (And if you don’t have a freebie, don’t fret. CoachGlue’s VIP Club is filled with done-for-you trainings you can easily turn into a lead magnet!)
You’ll also want your website – or even just a link in your bio – to include a link to a contact form, your email address or a calendar booking link. Don’t make it hard for interested people to get in touch with you and book your services.
And if you offer other products beyond one-to-one services, make sure those are clearly visible on your website as well. (Hello, passive income!)
5) Your Content Doesn’t Resonate
There are oodles of reasons your content might not be helping you book clients. Maybe you’re not including calls-to-action (see reason #7), you’re not speaking to your ideal client’s specific pain points (see reason #1) or you’re not using language that they relate to or–perhaps just as important–actually gets them excited.
If you’re writing or recording loads of content and you’re not getting engagement (or, more importantly, sales), switch it up.
Experiment with any of the below to figure out what resonates most:
– Using different language and words in your copy
– Focusing on different pain points (or different desires)
– Exploring different topics or subtopics within your niche
– Changing up the type of content you’re putting out (if Reels aren’t working, try Stories, for example)
– Breaking up educational content with personal stories, or vice versa
– Using new calls-to-action with varying (but similar) language
– Making your content more interactive, like by asking questions or encouraging people to comment.
And go from there.
6) You’re Not Building Relationships
Do you ever feel like you’re talking at people on social media, not with them? If you’re posting and ghosting or only using your social media to sell–and not engaging with the people who Like and Comment on your posts–it can leave a bad taste in their mouths (not to mention they might totally forget who you are or forget to come back to your page). Instead, carve out 10-20 minutes after every social media post you make (or simply everyday) to respond to comments and DMs, comment on like-minded people’s posts, answer questions, and start convos. This will help you build rapport with potential clients and show them that you’re interested in connecting with them beyond the sale.
You can also network with others in your niche/industry or people who provide complementary coaching to yours. You’d be shocked how many fantastic referrals will come from other coaches!
Bottom line? When you focus on building relationships first, you’ll be more likely to attract dream clients who are looking for a coach they can trust.
7) You’re Not Promoting Enough
On the flip side, you might be doing too much connecting and educating and storytelling–and not enough straight up promoting.
While you don’t have to “sell everyday” (although some coaches definitely do), you shouldn’t shy away from including calls-to-action in your marketing when it’s appropriate.
And we’re not just talking about social media. You should also be promoting your offers regularly in your emails and anywhere else you market online (podcast interviews, YouTube Shorts, you name it!). The right clients can–and will–come from all of the above.
Go ahead and try one (or all) of the strategies above and we can guarantee you’ll see an increase in engagement and more dream clients actually inquiring about hiring you. Enjoy!
