Why Isn’t My Coaching Website Bringing Me Clients?

You’ve got a coaching website, but it’s not bringing in clients. What’s going wrong?

Well, the first thing that comes to mind for me is a bunch of questions.

Is there traffic coming to your website? If there is, where is it coming from? Is it good traffic, or just bots and random people finding your site?

Then I’d look at the website itself.

What’s the content like? Does it speak to your ideal clients’ pains and struggles? Does it build your credibility? Does it explain what you do in terms of what clients actually get out of working with you?

And is the website clear and easy to use? Are the calls to action obvious? Are the forms even working?

These are some of the big hurdles to getting a website to actually bring in clients.

Sometimes the problem is bigger than the website

I had a client who was a general business coach. He worked with a variety of businesses, had a few clients, and wanted to improve his marketing.

He found me through Google, saw that I helped coaches build websites that attract clients, and hired me.

But rather than jumping straight into the website, we first took a closer look at his business.

We took inventory of his existing clients and discovered that a subset of them were home builders. They were particularly good clients who paid well.

So we decided to zero in on that audience.

We also looked at his existing connections and networks. It turned out he had connections with a local builders’ group that published content for the industry.

That gave us a way to get him in front of more of the right people.

We started contributing articles to their publication and revised his website to speak specifically to home builders and the challenges they faced.

Over time, we got more people visiting the website and joining his email list.

Then we sent subscribers a special invitation to have a conversation with the coach.

And this wasn’t just a generic “Get in touch” invitation.

It was a conversation focused on helping builders increase their profits and scale their building businesses.

That generated a lot of leads and new clients.

Now, I didn’t really consult much on those sales conversations. He was already pretty good at having them. Our focus was on getting the right people interested and giving them a compelling reason to have that conversation.

His practice quickly grew to more than a dozen clients, more than he could comfortably handle. His annual income climbed over the $100K mark, and eventually he had to hire another coach to help serve his growing client base.

The rest is history.

Sharpening the marketing axe

The interesting thing about this example is that it wasn’t just a website redesign.

We looked at the business first.

Who were his most ideal clients? What had worked in the past? What connections and resources did he already have? What were some practical ways to reach more of those people?

Then we got the different elements working together: visibility through the industry publication, a website with more focused messaging, useful content, an email list, and an invitation designed for that particular audience.

It’s a bit like sharpening the marketing axe.

Sometimes you need to move up a level, above the website, and look at the bigger business picture.

Three things I’d look at this week

If your coaching website isn’t bringing you clients, I’d start by taking inventory.

1. How are you getting visible?

What are you doing to get in front of potential clients? Online, offline, networking, content, conversations, whatever it is. What’s worked in the past?

2. Who are you getting in front of?

Are there particular groups of people who are more ideal than others? Who’s shown interest? What topics are they interested in? Are there people or networks that could help you reach more of them?

3. What happens when you get into conversations?

When someone raises their hand and wants to talk, where does that conversation go? Are you really exploring what they want to accomplish? Does your offer address a meaningful goal they want to achieve?

The key takeaway

Most of the time, you need to move up a level, above the website, and take a closer look at the business.

What’s worked in the past? Who are your more ideal clients? What connections and resources do you already have?

Then look at your website, messaging, and offers, and see if you can get those different elements working together better.

Implement, test, and see what works.

If you’re struggling to gain traction with your website and marketing strategies, get in touch with me. Tell me a little about your situation, and we’ll see if I can help.