by Tara Rodden
Robinson, PhD
For lots of coaches, marketing is viewed
as something to avoid. Almost everyone seems
to know that they need to do marketing,
but almost no one understands how. Marketing
is perceived as cheesy, underhanded or worse.
Because coaches resist marketing, they never
learn how to create an effective marketing
plan.
When coaches do create some sort of marketing
strategy, the plan is often to look at what
other coaches are doing and emulate someone
else’s approach. This sort of marketing–being
a copycat–is born of the belief that if
someone else is doing “xyz,”
it must be because “xyz” works.
When the clients don’t show up, the
coach is left to wonder, “Is it me?”
No, it’s your marketing.
One shortcoming of the way most coaches
approach marketing is that they don’t
allow the potential client to see any noticeable
difference between them and any other coach
in the same field. That leaves the client
to base his or her decision on just one
thing: price. And that is very bad news.
When you start competing on price alone,
you’re on a slippery slope. There
will always be someone who is willing to
price his or her services cheaper than yours.
So what is the coach to do? Marketing can’t
be an afterthought. Everything you do relies
on your ability to market your practice
effectively, allow potential clients to
see your value, and be willing to pay a
decent price for what you have to offer.
In this article, you can learn seven key
steps to successful marketing. These principles
form the basis of a real marketing plan.
Not some copycat approach, but a means of
distinguishing the true value of your practice
and attracting all the clients you need
and want.
To
read on,
click here. (Members only)
————————–
Tara Rodden Robinson, PhD is the founder
of Zugunruhe [zoog.un.roo.ee] (www.zugunruhe.com),
a coaching firm dedicated to helping great
people get [good] things done. In her work with small business owners
and non-profits, Tara uses Duct Tape Marketing®, an award winning and
super-practical system for small business marketing success.