Your Ultimate Guide To Start Executive Coaching

Executive Coaching is a leadership/role-specific coaching aimed at the development of individuals’ leadership skills & overall performance. It assists individuals in the achievement of professional & personal goals providing greater career and job satisfaction. 

Most people always want to advance their careers, and improve their performance & leadership skills, especially if they have or aim to get a managerial role. Thus, the demand for executive coaches rises. 

So, if you are ready to find out how to start executive coaching, then keep on reading. 

Benefits of executive coaching

Executive coaching benefits organizations, coaches & individuals in multiple ways. That is why let’s overview the main benefits of executive coaching. 

• Provides guidance & solutions to an individual rather than an organization
• Improves leadership’s efficiency (both for you and the coachees you train) 
• Boosts Team’s productivity & efficiency
• Accelerates growth and contributes to faster business-related goal achievement 
• Enjoys high demand on the market, as businesses greatly benefit from executives who are up-to-date trained. Thus, executive coaching enjoys high demand on the market and is scalable. 
• Contributes to your Professional Development, allowing you to get familiar with different businesses’ internal processes, customize approaches to train executives efficiently, and improve analytical skills alongside an expertise level. 

The market for executive coaching

Let’s continue with the revision of overall market trends in the coaching industry nowadays. 

Market demand

Executive coaching has become popular among organizations that aim to improve employee performance & individuals who want to advance their careers. 

According to statistics & predictions for the U.S., the executive coaching industry is expected to grow to $2.3 billion. 

According to Google Trends, average monthly searches for:

• “Executive coaching” searches are 10k-100k
• “Executive coaching program” searches are 100-1k 
• “Executive coaching services” searches are 1k-100k.

These numbers are real-life evidence of the high demand the industry enjoys. 

Competition

To succeed in executive coaching, you must be well aware of market competition and SEO trends to rank. 

In the data showcased down below, you can see the cost of advertisement to rank per key phrase. The higher the cost higher the competition to rank for the keyword. 

However, in general, competition for presented keyphrases is medium. Thus, you can create a good SEO-optimization strategy to rank your website and draw attention to your training program. Make sure that even the description of your training is well SEO-optimized.     
 

Executive coaching challenges

Well, now let’s dive into the challenges that executive coaches face. 

• Resistance to change. Encounter the fact that you are going to work with established professionals that may show resistance toward change. You must be truly good at persuasion to guide them toward improvement. 
• Lack of trust. Executives can be mistrustful and skeptical of the coach. 
• Time investment. The creation and adaptation of a successful coaching program for individuals & organizations take lots of time. 
• Challenging to measure outcomes. 

Can the executive coaching program be online?

Yes, executive coaching can be done online. Moreover, online coaching types are currently considered more convenient and accessible. 

Main responsibilities

Coaching comes with responsibilities. Here are the primary ones for executive coaches:

• Delivery of a program designed to improve the leadership, interpersonal, negotiation, and other skills of employees
• Development of executive program assessments, quizzes, and tests 
• Development of learning materials 
• Implementation of various executive coaching methodologies that will motivate and improve the performances of the participants 
• Measurements of success, overall program performance 

7 steps to start online executive coaching

Finally, it is time to dive into the practical part. So, let’s review how to start an online executive coaching business. 

Step 1 - Define the Target Market 

First of all, you must define your target market. You can do so by thorough market research. Identifying your target market will allow you to:

• Have a clear idea of market trends 
• Get the bigger picture of what modern customers want & need
• Analyze the equilibrium point of demand & supply 
• Create an Ideal Client Persona 
• Segment market
• Create Buyer Personas based on ICP & segments of the market to target each sequence more efficiently. 

So, essentially you will be able to clarify things. This will allow you to set proper targeting with ads that will reach the rights audience, provide value and increase return on investment rates. 

Step 2 - Design an Outline through Building a Business Case

Next, it is time to niche down. Choose B2B or B2C to get started with. Keep in mind in B2B; most businesses want to improve the soft skills of their professionals.

Identify the most “on-demand skills” both individuals and organizations who will hire you want to improve in their employees. Then, you must design a proper outline of the program that is built to improve that skills. However, keep in mind to remain flexible & adjustable to individual needs. 

You can design an outline of the program based on a specific business case or choose a few general cases to create an outline that, later on, can be adjusted to various cases. 

Before creating an outline, establish the SMART goals of the program. 

Step 3 - Develop Coaching Materials

Research & decide on tools you will use throughout online executive coaching. 

For the proper design of presentations (if you want to save time),we recommend Canva. Canva is a tool that allows you to choose pre-made templates and customize those or build ones from scratch. 

Choose tools and incorporate activities that increase interaction and engagement levels. Also, before choosing/developing materials/activities to incorporate into the coaching program, assess their relevance and overall contributions to the program’s objectives. 

Step 4 - Create a Marketing Strategy 

Based on buyer personas, create a proper marketing strategy. In this era, if you want to make sales, you must know how. A great product/service is not enough anymore. 

Consider organic marketing tactics that are free, such as blogs, SEO, guest-posting, and social media presence. 

As well as consider paid marketing tactics such as landing pages with string CTAs, social media ads, etc.

Organic marketing is great for long-term results, audience trust building, brand authority creation, and improved awareness. 

Meanwhile, paid marketing is good for short-term goals such as lead generation. 

Step 5 - Choose a Platform 

Choose an online coaching platform.

An online coaching platform or LMS is a platform that allows coaches, course creators, and trainers to host their programs/courses online. The best platforms offer you more flexibility, such as website & course builder, white labeling, live functionality, and integrations. 

With the right platform, you will be able to save lots of time yet deliver high-quality experiences to the end users. The choice can be difficult to make due to the variety of these platforms available. However, not every single one of them will work well for coaches. 

A few of the best ones are Uteach and Mighty Networks. Yet, if you want more features and flexibility, go with Uteach. 

Uteach will allow you to create a whole website, build courses, sell digital & physical eLearning-related products, and even provide mobile learning experiences. It is quite affordable and full-featured.

With Uteach, you can create an executive coaching business and deliver a variety of programs, guides, and even pre-recorded courses. It gives you so many opportunities. 

Step 6 - Set up the Website & Program 

When you have a program set up, the strategy created, and the platform is chosen, it is time to set up the website. 

Luckily many tools (e.g., Uteach, Thinkific & Kajabi) allow you to build & customize a website in drag & drop editor without coding. When designing a website, you can choose a pre-made theme & templates and further customize these. 

When choosing colors, follow the main branding guidelines. Choose 3 to 5 colors max to stick to. Make sure colors are contrasting. Also, keep in mind that your website must have enough white spaces for better UX. 

Step 7 - Revise & Improve 

The final step is an ongoing process. Within every client and collaboration, you must gather feedback, revise and improve the program. 

Besides, improvements are not just related to the program but to every business process. Revise strategies you use for marketing, etc., their performance, and how you can increase return on investments. 

Needed skills for executive coaching

Must have skills for executive coaches to succeed are:

Hard Skills 

First of all, let’s review the hard skills that every executive coach must have. Hard skills are interconnected with the profession. 

• Training Facilitation 
• Awareness of how to use technology & tools 
• Assessment & evaluation of an individual to track progress, performance, and efficiency throughout and after the executive coaching program

Soft Skills

Now, it is time to review soft skills that will level up the performance & efficiency of executive coaching training. 

• Active Listening, as you must be well aware of the client their goals, etc., to provide efficient guidance 
• Communication skills & high Emotional Intelligence 
• Trust building skills 
• Leadership skills 

FAQ about executive coaching

We will also take a look at a number of frequently asked questions related to executive coaching to clarify things further. 

Can I start the executive coaching with minimum investments?

Yes, you can start executive coaching and win minimum investments. 

Consider costs of equipment such as camera & microphone. Also, the cost of online platforms & various tools, such as Canva for design, whiteboard, etc. 

Do I need certification for creating executive coaching?

Technically you do not need certification, yet in some areas, you may need a license. 

However, there are multiple benefits of having a certification. First of all, as a beginner coach with no past clients, internationally accredited certification improved the trust factor toward you.

Secondly, certification requires an investment of time in your own education & development as a professional coach. Thus, you will be well aware of the latest trends, best practices, and various methodologies to practice coaching more efficiently. 

How much does it cost to create executive coaching?

If you have a good camera, then the approximate cost of other physical & digital equipment will be anywhere from $100 to $300. 

Also, you might want to have a marketing budget for short-term goals, so consider an additional $100-150 per month (when just getting started). 

So, the approximate cost is around $200 - $600. 

If you want to invest in yourself & your knowledge, one of the best certifications for executive coaches programs costs anywhere from $999 up to a few thousand dollars. 

How much can I earn by selling executive coaching?

The price varies on a variety of factors, including experience as a coach, your demand on the market, etc. 

The price is anywhere between $150 to $650 per hour. As a beginner, you can charge around $150 per session, so a program consisting of 10-15 sessions can be priced at $1500 to $2250. Thus, if you find your first five individual clients during the first month, which is an attainable goal, the income potential is from $7500 to $11,250. 

How to measure executive coaching effectiveness?

In order to measure the effectiveness of executive coaching, you can use several methods. Let’s take a look at some.

• Analytics. Choose a tool that offers analytics features with which you can track both marketing & student performance. 
• Ask for feedback and, based on it, improve the program.
• Create exams, tests & quizzes, or other assessments that will give measurable results.
• Observe behavioral changes. 

How long does it take to create an executive coaching program?

Giving an exact answer s difficult, yet usually, it takes from 1 to 6 months to create an efficient program. 

If you are already certified and experienced, you can set a goal of 1-2 months to get started with sales. 

During month 1, you can focus on market research, outline & material development. Meanwhile, during month two, you can dedicate your time to revising & improving the program. Also, to build a website and its contents. Then, you can start with marketing strategy implementation.

Monetize Your Skills Online

Take your first step toward success with Uteach! 

Imagine getting your professional website done faster than light travels from the Sun to the Earth. With Uteach, you can automate many processes. 

As a result, you will be able to dedicate MORE time to creating & selling whatever you want:  coaching sessions, training, and webinars. Triple your income with bundles and memberships. 

You can access special features such as  fully-automated coaching with calendar and booking system, integrations, and even your local payment gateway. 

Many online learners are waiting for you to light their way. Book your free demo with our expert now and see how you can become a better and more efficient business coach with the help of Uteach.