While I often espouse the merits of sponsored executive coaching, it’s dawned on me recently that it’s not all rosy. In fact, there are downsides, and one stands out as significant for newer coaches to be aware of as they launch their practices. It has to do with timelines.
You see, one of the great benefits of direct pay coaching is the sales cycle. It’s typically going to be 30 days or less. Direct pay clients are seeking out coaching. Once they’ve found a coach that suits them, they make a decision to go forward. Pretty simple.
Direct pay clients also usually pay promptly since they want the coaching to continue. This is good for your cash flow, which is especially vital for a new business.
What about sponsored executive coaching? Well, the sales cycle can be quite different although it begins similarly. An organization is looking for an external executive coach to work with leaders. Oftentimes this coach will join a bench of external coaches. Another scenario is that the company is seeking to establish a brand-new coaching program for leaders.
In either case, it may take months to culminate in you coaching a leader at the organization. In my most extreme case to date, it took roughly eighteen months for me to get my first coaching client after starting the conversation with a company who was simply considering adding me to their external bench. Mind you, they invited me!
In that case, the leader of the coaching program team turned over three times, which always caused a delay in getting me onboarded.
In another case, a company seeking to launch a new coaching program for leaders started the conversation roughly ten months before it ever got started. This is not unusual. If you’re well established and have ongoing clients from other organizations, you can withstand long sales cycles like these. However, if you’re just getting started, these can be practice killers.They could be demoralizing too.
One last thing to keep in mind, once the organization does initiate the engagement, it may take another 30 – 60 days to get paid. Big organizations tend to move slowly.
Bottom line, be aware of these realities when it comes to securing lucrative sponsored coaching engagements and prepare for long sales cycles. Know what you will do to survive them so you can reap the benefits when they do come through. For example, you may want to actively seek out direct pay clients and sponsored engagements with smaller companies, which may make decisions more quickly.
If you are on your own, then you need to be able to market your services well. I have one process I like to follow that helps me position myself and services in a positive and productive way. Read our article on “Learn one of my key marketing processes.”
Contact me if you have follow-up questions or would like to talk about your coaching business and how to develop it.
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