From Connections to Clients – Effective Networking for Coaches

Whether you are starting your business as a coach or are more established, networking can provide you with connections and new clients.    It has certainly been significant in growing my client base, opening doors to interesting opportunities & meeting brilliant people.   

There are many other wonderful benefits of networking, including positive relationships, inspiration, support, personal development and friendship. You can easily make valuable connections and attract clients by networking effectively. 

Where should you start?

I would start with one important word: ENERGY!    In fact, I would start pretty much anything by focusing on energy!  Our energy includes our attitude, focus, intention, mindset & how we feel.  We can check in with our energy by doing one of the things that coaches do best; asking great questions!   

Ask yourself how passionate you are about the power of coaching?  It may seem obvious given you have chosen this as your profession.   However, it is important to be able to convey this to other people and sometimes in the busyness of life, we must remind ourselves first!  It is vital to feel empowered about our work if we intend to empower others.   The belief factor must be high.  Do what you need to do to remind yourself what you are excited about. 

Here’s another couple of questions to ask yourself:

1: How energised do you feel and what can you do to improve this? 

I am not suggesting you lunge your way into the room or perform star jumps, that might be a bit much and you don’t want to spill your coffee!  However, we do know that body language ‘speaks’ thanks to Albert Mehrabian’s research revealing that 55% of our communication is non-verbal, so it is something to be aware of. 

2: How positive is your mindset and expectation? 

Given that everything begins in the mind and what we expect we project, I would say it’s better to expect to be successful! Be positive about your business and yourself because this will radiate out like sunshine! Walking into a room and feeling like a magnet for attracting the right people is a completely different energy to feeling like you aren’t sure whether people will want to hear what you have to say. 

Your energy (as well as your reputation) sells your service and people buy from people.   With your energy is in the right place, amazing things will happen!   Avoid the slippery slope of outdated sales tactics and persuasion, because just like dating, that’s a real turn off.  When you believe in what you offer and you communicate that enthusiastically, others will be drawn to it. 

Stay Open

Stay open and trust that you will meet the right people and have the experiences you are meant to have on your journey.   Being authentic is key so that people can get to know, like and trust you.   You will more quickly attract the right connections for your business by being genuine. 

Networking is about relationships which take time, effort and commitment to flourish. It can also be incredibly enjoyable and fun.  Once you have worked with someone in your network, they could provide a testimonial for you which enhances your reputation and your reach. 

Focus on the other person

Curiosity may have killed the cat (although they are said to have 9 lives!) but it won’t harm you when it comes to making conversation.  Being interested in other people and their businesses will help your conversations to flow and for you to genuinely connect. 

If you feel nervous, focusing on the other person is a great way to alleviate those nerves. We know coaches are good at asking questions and listening, this is good news…you already have the key skills for building relationships!   

Networking is also a great opportunity to discover what people’s challenges are and to better understand the needs of your potential clients.   This can inspire you to address some of these commonalities either in conversation or via social media or your newsletter.   You can also use your networks to share details of upcoming masterclasses, taster sessions and content.   You may find opportunities to collaborate and combine services with regards to events, projects, programmes and more to expand your audience.

I have received fantastic opportunities and contracts through people I have met via networking and from being known and trusted for my work.  We just never know what can come from these relationships when we stay open minded!

Prepare well and be part of the ‘after party’

In some cases, you can showcase your talents at networking events; from a short pitch to a seminar or presentation.  Take the opportunities and prepare well so that you are sharing your message clearly. It is an opportunity for potential clients to resonate with your content.  You can also organise to meet up with people outside the networking group when you want to get to know a connection better. 

The networking conversation can begin before the event and continue afterwards via social media also. Are you part of this conversation and the after party?    You can build contacts by positively sharing photos, memories, thanking and connecting on various platforms. 

Finally, trust…

…that your next new client, exciting opportunity, key introduction, potential collaboration as well as a friendly and supportive community are waiting to meet you! 

Go for it, enjoy the experience and be proud of what you do, because coaching is a life changing experience for so many people! 

About Author: 

Amanda is a Transformation Coach & Facilitator who specialises in Spiritual Intelligence & Emotional Intelligence for Personal Leadership.  Amanda is the creator of the Elemental Leadership® model which focuses on increasing self- awareness around our mindset & thinking patterns, belief system & emotional landscape, so that we can enhance all aspects of our own life and more positively influence the people around us.