Do you want to hire a marketing coach or business coach? You want one, you need one, but the price tag is making you throw up a little bit in your mouth.
To help you identify, hire and succeed with the right business or marketing coach, we asked CEOs and business leaders this question for their best insights. From trialing a coaching session at an hourly rate to finding someone who has done exactly what you aim to achieve, there are several tips to follow in order to hire the best business or marketing coach that would help you succeed in your niche.
Business Coach vs Marketing Coach
The terms “business coach” and “marketing coach” are often used interchangeably, but there is a distinction between the two. Business coaches look at your whole business, marketing coaches will help you nail down a solid marketing strategy, set up your brand, marketing message, choose a lead generation tactic and help you measure and adjust your marketing processes.
What to Look for in a Good Coach
Here are nine tips these leaders followed to find and hire their business or marketing coach:
- Trial a Coaching Session at an Hourly Rate
- Look for Someone Who Has the Same Values
- Find a Coach Who Understands the Direction You Want to Go
- Seek a Coach Who Uses Personalized Approach
- Hire Someone Who Should be Totally Honest With You
- Pay Attention to Reviews to Find Someone Who Listens
- Ask Your Network to Refer You to One
- Choose a Coach Who is Niche-Specific
- Find Someone Who Has Done Exactly What You Aim to Achieve
Trial a Coaching Session at an Hourly Rate
Despite glowing credentials and outrageous testimonials, it’s possible that the “perfect coach” isn’t perfect for you. Ask to test out their coaching sessions before making a commitment.
Most coaches operate on 3 – month retainers. If they’re genuinely invested in seeing you grow, they’ll be willing to offer a single session and charge an hourly rate.
Take advantage of that time to assess whether your energies and ideals match. Look for cues in their body language and counseling styles. Coaching can get quite personal, so you’ll ensure that you trust their skills and personality. The goal is to feel comfortable with the professional you’re hiring.
Stephen Light, Nolah Mattress
Look for Someone Who Has the Same Values
When looking for a business coach, you want to find someone who checks many boxes. Beyond skills and experience, when you decide to work with someone on your business, you want to ensure they thoroughly understand your mission, values, and goals.
If they know and respect those core tenants of your company, you can build on that foundation. When your core values don’t align, that’s where you’re going to have the most issues. Find someone with the skills and experience you believe you need, and then beyond that, focus first and foremost on how compatible you are with values and working together to achieve your goals.
Ann McFerran, Glamnetic
Find a Coach Who Understands the Direction You Want to Go
When choosing a business coach, the most important thing is that they have the same values as you. You want to ensure you align on what you are hoping to achieve and that they understand and respect your company mission.
Once you have that, you will want to look into their skills and personality. You want to ensure you are interviewing qualified candidates ready to take on the role of the coach and with whom you will mesh well. Finding the right business coach is no easy feat, but the most important things are that they understand your goals and values, have the right skills, and are a good fit personality-wise, where you will want to work with them and trust their advice.
Sumeer Kaur, Lashkaraa
Seek a Coach Who Uses Personalized Approach
My best tip for hiring the right business coach is to look for someone who uses a personalized approach. A business coach who uses a personalized approach can help you to achieve greater success in your business endeavors.
A one-size-fits-all approach simply won’t work for every business owner. Instead, look for a coach who is willing to tailor their methods to fit your individual needs. This way, you can be sure that you’re getting the most out of your coaching experience.
Lorien Strydom, Financer.com
Hire Someone Who Will be Totally Honest With You
A great coach is someone who will challenge you to make the necessary changes in order to succeed, and this requires fearless honesty.
A coach is paid to be objective and tell you the truth, giving you a clear direction on what you must do.
This means you will be honest with yourself and be willing and open to your coach. Take the feedback no matter how harsh you think it might be.
An outsider’s look is precisely what you need to make the necessary changes. In my experience, the best coach I had was able to help me rethink my business model by being completely honest about what it lacked and the direction I was going in. He helped me shift my focus, and I was able to adjust my thinking. I have been far more successful than I would have been without his help.
Georgi Todorov, ThriveMyWay
Pay Attention to Reviews to Find Someone Who Listens
Platforms for business coaches will usually have a rating system that can help you find the right business coach.
Consider the level they are willing to instruct and read the reviews posted about them. Don’t be too absorbed in the praises. Rather read the comments on the three, two, or one-star rating. This will help you deduce their faults and determine if they are the right fit for you.
I had an enlightening experience with coaching. Although we had a brief relationship, I learned a lot from him and finally gained the confidence to manage the business independently.
First, he did not abolish my entrepreneurial vision. Although he had a different dogma in marketing, he listened to me and, with his expertise, helped me find a compromise where I could emulate his strategies while also sticking to mine.
Max Hauer, Goflow
Ask Your Network to Refer You to One
The best tip for hiring a business coach is to ask your network to refer you to one. Your network mostly consists of similar businesses. So, they’ll tell you about a coach that’ll be perfect for you. I believe that this is a foolproof way to hire a perfect fit for your business.
The best part is that those who’ve referred this coach to you must have already benefited from their services. So, they’re recommending someone to you out of their own experience.
I’d say that my experience with a business coach has been one for the books. The coach truly helped me understand the ins and outs of the industry and helped me make the right choices for the company. They even assisted me to develop targeted strategies to propel the business forward. As a result, I saw a massive increase in my company’s sales and profit margins.
Cristina Cason, Texas Family Homebuyers
Choose a Coach Who is Niche-Specific
Opt for a coach who has a niche-specific discipline instead of a generalist.
Coaches that focus on a specific discipline have deeper insights into this niche and can therefore provide more in-depth advice.
While generalists can be helpful in providing insights into a wider breadth of knowledge, there is a danger that they have a more shallow knowledge as compared to experts who have a deeper focus.
Find someone who has been in the industry for longer than you have and has seen its evolution throughout the years. Their experience and expertise are a gold mine for valuable data and industry trade secrets.
Claudia Gancayco, Leg Master
Find Someone Who Has Done Exactly What You Aim to Achieve
My number one tip for hiring a coach would be to look for someone who has already done exactly what you’re aiming to achieve, in the same market. This can be difficult and time consuming to find the right person, but will be so worth it in my experience.
I’ve personally worked with a few business coaches to help me with growing an agency. They were good, but I feel like there is a limit to what you can learn from someone who hasn’t already walked the specific path you’re on.
With more general coaching advice here’s always going to be a disconnect between those strategies and the exact things which are working in your market today. When I managed to connect with someone who had already built a successful company in my market it was a game changer. I would happily pay 10x the price for someone with this experience vs. a good general business coach.
Ryan Turner, EcommerceIntelligence.com
Conclusion
Making a list of what you want from a marketing coach is the first step in finding and hiring one that’s perfect for your business. Coaches come with different specialties, so it’s important to find someone who knows your industry inside and out. Ask your network for referrals to coaches who have helped other businesses in your field achieve success. And, finally, be sure to choose someone who has done exactly what you want to do in terms of achieving success in your market. With these tips in mind, you’re on your way to finding and hiring the perfect marketing coach for your business!