I love quizzes and assessments because they open my mind to new perspectives. They encourage me to evolve and transform the way I think about something. How about you?
Coaches often ask me “What do you think of this coaching niche?” Sometimes I can say definitively whether a niche is worth pursuing or not. But more often I ask a set of powerful questions to draw the conclusion. When it comes to whether your coaching niche will pay off for you, what’s really important is your opinion based on a few critical factors.
So, I’ll provide the powerful questions here and you can provide the answer. Give yourself 1 point for each question where your answer is “Yes!” And let your answers educate you about how to shift your niche.
(A NOTE TO NEW COACHES or those just getting started in your business: Let these questions be a guideline to choose a highly profitable niche and set yourself up for success from the get go.)
Where the Clients Are
1. Can you name 3 direct ways to get in front of at least 50 potential new clients in your niche right now?
YES!
NO
If you’ve already picked all the “low hanging fruit” in your niche market — friends, acquaintances and colleagues — I’d recommend narrowing your niche. A more narrow and targeted niche helps you leverage your time and focus your message while authentically inspiring people to engage you and refer others.
Large niches such as women in transition, baby boomers, empty-nesters and many other popular niches may seem highly accessible until you realize those people don’t gather anywhere together or have much motivation to hire professional support for those issues.
A viable niche market is like a deep well where you can reliably draw out your next 10, 20, even 100 clients.
What Clients Want
2. Do you know how to strike a resonant chord with your target audience? (Do they open your emails, comment on your blog posts, sign up for your free calls and consults?)
CONSISTENTLY YES!
NOT YET
3. Is your leads list growing because your freebie is irresistible to them?
CONSISTENTLY YES!
NOT YET
With some casual market research it’s easy to find out exactly what your target audience wants (instead of what you think they need). Then gear your messages and offers to speak to your target audience where they live.
When you show that you understand them — where they are now and where they urgently want to be — it’s easy to get their attention, build trust and enroll clients. But if your words and topics don’t land, they won’t respond well to your offers. The temptation is to lower your fees or give away more for free. But that’s not a sustainable strategy and may keep your business feeling more like a hobby than a career.
How Clients Invest
4. Do you know what ultimate outcomes will inspire your target audience to invest in your support?
YES!
NO
5. If you were your target audience, would you invest in what you are offering right now? Consider whether you’d stretch yourself to invest or just go for the freebies or short term, low fee options.
YES, WITH LONG TERM COMMITMENT!
NO
Prospects become your clients when they believe your services will help them get where they urgently want to go right now. If you’ve been trying to convince them to buy what you do (coaching) instead of the outcome they want, you’re missing the mark.
The better you hit the mark about what they really want and what’s been getting in their way, the more naturally compelled they are to hire you to help them close the gap.
Who is Top-of-Mind
7. Would people in your niche market think of you first to help get where they want to go?
YES!
NOT YET
8. Do your services stand out in the crowd of service providers?
CONSISTENTLY YES!
NOT YET
Too many coaches get lost in the ocean of service providers because they don’t stand out. The more narrow your niche is, the easier it is to stand out and become the go-to person for that niche market. This is your opportunity to be THE big fish in a small pond instead of a little fish in the ocean.
Okay, how did your niche do?
7 – 8 points = You chose a highly profitable niche!
5 – 6 points = Finesse or narrow your niche
0 – 4 points = Choose a more viable niche
You either have confirmation to go full speed ahead or you’ve dodged a bullet. But wherever your score landed, don’t worry. Instead set intention to finesse your niche so that you can answer YES to all of these questions very soon.
Click here for a free primer on choosing a profitable coaching niche. It’s time to do business in a way that feeds you consistently with heartful coaching clients who are hungry for what you offer.
Also I’d love to know how you did on the niche self-test and what came to mind for you as you took this test. Share your comments below and I’ll reply.
