The "M Word" Virtual Conference

Love it, hate it or want it, there is just something about Money that widens our eyes and makes our heart beat a little faster.

That's probably why a recent issue of choice magazine, "The M Word", was so wildly popular. The issue was jam packed with articles on how to make money and why we love, adore, crave and are sometimes afraid of money.

Sound familiar?

Because of the importance of the "Money" topic, choice magazine is hosting "The M Word Virtual Conference" and I have the pleasure of speaking at this event.

This is a 3 day virtual conference that you can attend from the comfort of your own office or home. The conference has a list of amazing speakers that will take you through 3 exciting days of learning and application related to building your business.

Want to improve your relationship with money?

Ready to learn specific strategies on how to market and sell more comfortably and easily?

Join me at choice magazine's Virtual M Word Conference and discover how to get your money flow going!

Get all the details here: http://tiny.cc/Mword

Resource: Time Driver Online Scheduling Tool

Are you looking for a better way to schedule coaching appointments with clients or complimentary consultations with prospects?

I recently learned about TimeDriver.com - an online scheduling tool that links with Google Calendars or Outlook.

I've found it to be very user-friendly and it's definitely taken the headache out of setting up appointments.

The fee is only $29/year and they have a 90 day free trial.

Are You Focusing on Your Ideal Clients' $10,000 Problems?

If you've been studying how to most effectively market your coaching you probably realize that people are more interested in solutions to their problems than in hiring a coach or experiencing coaching.

That's why you want to position your coaching services as the fastest, easiest, most enjoyable and most effective way to address the critical, specific and pressing problems that your target market has. The bigger and more urgent the problem, the more likely the person will hire you.

Think of these important, specific and pressing challenges as "$10,000 Problems."

$10,000 Problems...

• are the issues that keep your ideal clients awake a night.
• cause your ideal clients a lot of struggle and stress.
• are things that your ideal clients realize they cannot effectively address on their own.
• are so significant because the person has compelling reasons why addressing the problem now is so important.

Perhaps the best way to describe a $10,000 problem is by comparing it to a generic problem. Here are some examples...

Generic Problem #1: Small business owners who need to attract more clients.

$10,000 Problem #1: Small business owners who realize that in order to achieve their financial objectives they need to create a high-end offering that leverages their unique gifts and skills and then find the A-List clients who will happily pay for the extra value they provide.

Generic Problem #2: People who want to make a career transition.

$10,000 Problem #2: BabyBoomers who have been laid-off and want to use the opportunity to make a complete career shift. They have a limited window of time and resources to explore and pursue new career options. They are concerned that if they don't act quickly they will be sucked back into their former profession.

Generic Problem #3: Executives who want to improve their leadership.

$10,000 Problem #3: Newly hired executives with a directive leadership style who need to balance taking charge effectively while also getting buy-in from the existing team in order to achieve their first quarter milestones and "pass" their 90 day probation period.

What differences do you notice between the generic problems and the $10,000 Problems?

In general, $10,000 Problems...

• are specific and when addressed will have a sustainable impact.
• are time-sensitive and need to be addressed sooner rather than later.
• occur within a subset of a broader target market.

How to take the "$10,000 Problem" concept and utilize it in your business:

1. Develop a list of at least five $10,000 problems that your target market faces. You probably have a sense of what these are. Start off by listing the "generic" problems that your coaching addresses or the results it enables clients to achieve and then go deeper. Identify possible scenarios and situations when these problems commonly occur. Explore why solving these problems are so important.

2. Identify the subset of your target market where the $10,000 problems occur most and focus on reaching out and finding those people. These are the people within your target market who have the highest "Readiness Factor" and therefore most likely to hire you.

3. Develop specific marketing campaigns geared towards the subset of your target market who have $10,000 problems. Whether you are focusing on speaking, networking, internet marketing or another marketing strategy, you will get the best results from your efforts when you create campaigns that address $10,000 problems.

4. Focus on and discuss $10,000 problems in your complimentary consultation with prospects. If you've learned the step-by-step C&GR client enrollment system, you already know that this is a critical part of your sales process. When you enable a prospect to articulate their $10,000 problem and you show how your coaching is the best solution, it then becomes very easy for that person to say "Yes" to your coaching.

5. Really connect with the fact that your coaching "solves" $10,000 problems. Although the $10,000 number is a bit arbitrary, it's important for you to think about your coaching as having that kind of impact. This helps you see the value of what you provide. It also put your coaching fee in perspective. For example, if a client invests a total of $2,000 in your coaching and as a result is able to address their $10,000 problem then they are getting a great return on their investment. (And if you are doing corporate or organizational coaching you might want to bump that number up and focus on identifying the $100,000 problems that the corporations and organizations you most want to work with are facing.)

FACT: People hire coaches to solve their problems. The optimum way to fill your practice with eager, well-paying clients is by positioning your coaching as the best solution to your prospects big problems.

What $10,000 problems do you and can you support people in solving?

Q&A: How to Handle Prospect No-Shows

QUESTION: "I was very excited for a complimentary coaching consultation yesterday but the person did not call. Should I bother following up? I'm not needy and don't want to come across that way. I also don't want to set the precedent that missing calls is okay. My time IS valuable! But then again, people are people, things come up and I would like the business. What should I do?"

ANSWER: Unfortuanately No-Shows do happen and often it’s an indication that the person is not serious.

Here's what I recommend:

1. Five minute after the scheduled call time send a quick email or call the person. Sometimes the problem is simply a misunderstanding about who is calling whom.

2. Immediately after the missed appointment send a follow-up email. Here’s some sample language:

Dear (name),
I had us scheduled for your coaching consultation today at Xpm Pacific.
I’m wondering if you missed it because something came up or perhaps it ended up in your calendar on a different day or time.
If you are still interested in having a complimentary consultation to discover how my coaching enables people to (insert what you coach on, e.g.: identify and pursue a career path that is truly in alignment with who they really are and how they want to live their life) , I can do a one-time reschedule for you and have availability (insert 1-2 times) .
If you've decided that you are not ready for a consultation, that's fine too.
Please just let me know either way.
All the best,
(your name)

Tactics for Reducing No-Shows

1. Send a confirmation email that clearly states all of the details, including:

• who calls who
• phone number
• day and date
• time and time zone

2. In your confirmation email state your cancellation policy and emphasize that even though it is a free consultation you take these calls very seriously and are saving the time slot in your busy schedule specifically for that person.

3. Send the person questions to prepare for the consultation and request an email replay with the answers at least 24 hours before the consultation. In addition to providing value, this will help the person take the consultation more seriously. Also, if you don't receive an email in advance it gives you an indication of the person's commitment level.

4. Send a reminder email the day of the consultation.

Put these tactics into place now and focus on developing your business so that the people you are offering consultations to are pre-qualified. In other words:

• They have the "problem" that your coaching coaching can "solve."
• They are ready to take action.
• They appreciate and value the opportunity to meet with you.

When you do this, the No-Show issue pretty much goes away!

Q&A About Billing and Handling Cancellations

Just got this email from a past client and thought I'd post my answers to her great questions about client billing and how to handle client reschedules and cancellations.

"Michelle - I have been reviewing my CAGR course materials as a refresher, and realize just how AWESOME that stuff is! I thought I "got" it the first time around, but realize it takes time to really integrate the ideas into my mind & biz. (For ex., just realizing that I've been losing my compass re: what to publish in my ezine & blog b/c I hadn't clearly articulated my How. Now that I have taken time to do that, I'm on track again. whoo-hoo!)

Can you help me with a few admin questions?"

QUESTION: How do I get clients on a monthly schedule? (right now I bill them after their 3- or 4-session cycles & I'd like to bill all at once, on same day so I can predict my monthly income)

ANSWER: I recommend you do all of your billing on the first of the month for that month's coaching. When you start with a client in the middle of the month, pro-rate the fee for that month based on the number of sessions they are getting and then begin the monthly billing on the first.

I use my shopping cart system and have all of my clients on recurring billing. Once you get it up and running it is a very easy and efficient way to handle client billing.

QUESTION: How can I handle reschedules and cancellations so I don't lose money?

ANSWER: Another great question. It sounds like you are coaching your clients 3-4 times per month. This is part of the problem. It can be a challenge to consistently schedule 4 sessions/month. Especially if you or the client does a lot of travel. Fix it by changing your coaching packages and offering 2 or 3 x/month packages. And this doesn't mean you have to reduce your fees either! Often having more time off between sessions makes clients more hungry and ready for your coaching.

Also, make sure you clearly explain your cancellation/reschedule policy both in writing and verbally at the start of the coaching relationship. A big part is your professionalism. Here's the language I use. This is from my Policies & Procedures document that all clients get at the start of the coaching engagement.

Changes/Cancellations
I request that you make our scheduled coaching calls a priority. On the rare occasion when you need to reschedule please let me know at least 48 hours in advance. Except in the case of an emergency, you will be charged for last minute cancellations or missed calls.

Hope this helps and if you have ideas or thoughts on these topics please leave a comment!

Increase Client Retention by Adding the Right Value

In a service-based business like coaching there's a continual need to find new clients.

And while client turnover is natural, wouldn't it be great if you could reduce the number of new clients you need to attract while still meeting your business objectives?

One simple way to accomplish this is by increasing the length of time that clients stay with you.

For example, let's say your ideal full coaching practice is 15 individual coaching clients.

If the typical client coaches with you for 3 months, you need to attract 60 new clients each year to achieve your full practice goal. That seems like a lot, doesn't it?

Extend the average duration by just one month and that number drops to 45.

Get your average coaching relationship up to 6 months and you need 30 new clients.

Work with clients for 3/4 of the year and now you only need to attract 2 new clients each month to maintain a full practice. Doesn't that sound a lot better than needing to find 60 new clients?

So, what are the secrets to increasing client retention?

You can start by packaging your coaching services as a multi-month program. For example a 3 month, 6 month or year long coaching program.

An even better way is to add so much value that the last thing your clients want to do is stop working with you.

While there are many ways to add value - from remembering special occasions and sending cards to checking in via email and forwarding resources - the very best way is to discover the particular needs and desires of each individual client so you can be of service in a way that is most valuable to him or her.

Here are some examples from my coaching practice to give you some ideas:

• One of my clients does a lot of public speaking so I email her the day before an event to wish her luck and the day after to find out how it went. This literally takes me 5 minutes and provides huge value to her. Even though she's a solopreneur, she definitely doesn't feel like she's going at it all alone.
• I have a client who is working on a new website and I've been providing feedback on the overall strategy, design, copy, etc. When something comes up where a dialogue is most useful I call her instead of waiting to address it in our next scheduled coaching session. She has thanked me profusely for my responsiveness as it has enabled her to move this daunting project along at breakneck speed.
• One of my clients typically uses our coaching sessions for brainstorming, strategizing and planning. As he talks a mile a minute I scribble notes and then type them up and send them to him after our session. The very first time I did this he said that one session alone was worth the monthly coaching fee. I've continued to work with him in this way ever since. He's been a client for more than 2 years... and has doubled his income during that time as well!

Ready to increase your client retention?

Make a list of your current clients and for each one identify:

• How you can add more value to that client in a way s/he will appreciate most.
• What would make your coaching feel truly indispensible to that client.
• At least one specific action you can take for each client to provide relevant value.

Maximizing client retention is a skill that gets fine-tuned over time. Adding enough of the right value is a great place to focus. And if you're not sure how you can best be of service to a particular client, ask!

Summer Mode

During the past 9 years that I have been coaching full time my business has slowed down in the summer. The first few years I would freak out when my client base started declining in May and June.

Now I have come to appreciate the summer slowdown. In fact, the past few years I have actually given myself permission to get into full on "summer mode." When I'm in this mode I still coach my clients and get my monthly administrative tasks handled, but I take a break from most everything else.

Instead I focus on "life stuff."

For example, in the summer of 2005 I spent a lot of time in New York with my mom who was battling cancer. She died a few months later and I was so grateful that I was able to get in so much quality time with her.

In the summer of 2006 I had ACL replacement surgery on my knee. By making my healing and physical therapy the top priority I enjoyed a full recovery and was skiing that winter.

In 2007 I got engaged and was so happy to have extra time to plan the wedding and take a nice long trip back East to introduce Adam to my family.

Last year the focus was house-buying. I looked at 72 houses that summer and ultimately moved into a beautiful home in the Oakland Hills in the middle of September.

Despite the fact that I have taken a lot of time off the past five summers, my business has steadily grown each year and my client base always ramps back up each fall.

If you're like me, the constant pressure to grow your business can become daunting. Even when business is going well, it seems like there is always more you could do.

Now, don't get me wrong, as long as you are in business you need to do marketing and business development. You just don't need to focus on it all the time - especially when you have automated systems in place so your marketing can work 24/7 even when you are on vacation.

Isn't having the ability to take a break from business and focus on "life stuff" one of the big reasons we got into this profession in the first place?

Note: This is an updated version of an article that originally appeared in the August, 2008 Coach & Grow R.I.C.H. newsletter.