The Simplest Way to Take Your Coaching Programs Online
If you are a health coach who wants to take some of your coaching online, you are likely looking for the simplest way to do it. For most coaches, the biggest hurdle to starting online coaching is the tech stuff, so we are going share a couple of the easiest ways to kick things off.
In this episode, you’ll discover:
- The two easiest ways to run your online program without the tech overwhelm
- Two other logistics you’ll need to have in place to help your clients and stay in touch
- Important mindset shifts that are critical to taking your coaching online
The name of the game with this is ACTION, and not PERFECTION, so don’t get hung up on bells and whistles and figuring out the EXACT BEST way to do this. Just get started. Run your first round as a beta program where you offer it at a discount, so you can get feedback and testimonials for the next time you run it.
We have two simple options to share with you today.
OPTION #1: The easiest, most low-tech way is to run your online group program with livestreams or recorded video in a Facebook group.
This is like hitting the “easy” button because it’s very low tech. You can do live video, or you can record video ahead of time and upload it to your group, along with any resources like PDF handouts, recipes or worksheets.
If you’re going to record the videos, you can use Zoom, then download the video to your computer, and upload it to your group. We think LIVE video is the way to go, so you can answer questions in real time and interact with people, but if you are brand new to video and livestreaming makes you way too nervous, you can upload recorded video and be in the group to answer questions or host a live Q and A via livestream each week or every other week. Do what works for you and test things as you go. There is never one single right way to run your business, so keep that in mind as you go. You’re going to learn new things each time you run your program, so don’t get hung up on perfection and let that hold you back from getting started.
OPTION #2: Use a platform like Practice Better or Kajabi.
These are a couple of great options for hosting your program because you can house all of the content for your program inside one platform that people can access even if they aren’t on Facebook. You can incorporate slide decks, PDF downloads and any other resources you want to include. You can do the same in your FB group too, but if you want to host your program off of social media, Practice Better or Kajabi are great. There are a lot more choices too, but we don’t want to overwhelm you with options.
We like Practice because it’s specific to health coaches and nutritionists, and it’s less expensive than Kajabi. You can also use PB with your 1-on-1 coaching clients, so it’s a fantastic all-in-one solution, and it also has a feature that works a lot like a Facebook group if you want that option. We have an affiliate link where you can start out with a free PB account if you want to test it out with your 1-on-1 clients. You need the paid version to run online programs but with the free version, you can get a feel for how it works with up to 3 clients.
Let’s cover a couple of other things you’ll need to make it easy to take your coaching online:
- Content for your coaching program – this will be your sessions or modules – this is the information that will help people get a result or outcome (your 30 day, 3- or 6-month program) and any other resources like Karen mentioned such as PDF’s, recipes, worksheets, etc. The content can be in the form of recorded slide decks or face to camera video or a mix of both. For example, you can start out with face to camera to introduce the topic, why it’s important and then go to the slide deck. You can do all of this in Zoom. If you aren’t sure where to start with creating the actual content for your coaching program, I invite you to check out my Coach with Confidence 6-month health coaching program and when you go to the page, you can download a sample session that will show you what it looks like.
- The next thing you will need is emails to send to your members that include a welcome email and a weekly email to check in, let them know what you’re covering this week and any calls to action such as posting in the Facebook group. The more you can get people to take action on what they learn in your program, the better their results will be and the better testimonials you will receive. If you don’t already have an email marketing software that you like, we recommend MailerLite because it’s very user friendly, it has a great free version and it also includes awesome landing page templates that you can use for your freebies and your sales pages if you don’t have a website yet.
So, taking your coaching programs online doesn’t have to be complicated at all, and in fact, it can be very low tech and simple. Simple is your friend when you are starting out because it allows you to take action much sooner than later and people need your help right now. Most people don’t care how they get the information – they just want a solution to their problem – and that’s where you come in.
So, what steps can you take to put this into place sooner than later? Set a date and put the pieces into place, knowing that imperfect action is the way to go.
In my free guide: The Ultimate Guide to Launching a Successful Online Health Coaching Program, I walk you through more steps and resources to make this super easy. It covers pricing, naming your program, ideas for filling your program and MUCH MORE, so be sure to grab that while it’s available.
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