Coaching: What Is the “Product” Being Sold?

When it comes to coaching, both coaches and their clients often have misconceptions about what is being purchased and what value is being received in exchange for their investment.

This is understandable, as an intangible product, we sometimes get stuck in what you might call the ethereal nature of the product of coaching. This can make it hard to identify and articulate the real features and benefits of coaching.

Many people looking for a coach assume the coach themself is the product in which they’re investing. 

We are consumers and are conditioned to receive tangible products in exchange for our purchases. When we’re hungry, we purchase a meal. When we want access to TV & Movie entertainment, we pay for a Netflix or Hulu subscription. And so on…

This transactional dynamic between product and monetary investment conditions us to expect something tangible out of our purchases. 

People turn to coaches for guidance, for transformation, for growth, for accountability, and other intangibles. What, then, is the product they’re receiving in exchange for their investment.

To be a successful and effective coach, it is crucial that you are able to properly identify the product you’re providing.

To be a successful and effective coach, it is crucial that you are able to properly identify the product you’re providing. Why would anyone buy your services if they don’t understand what they’re getting? Especially when they’re paying really good money for your service. 

Time and again, I see both coaches and their clients make the same mistake when attempting to identify their product.

How does a coach, or anyone in a consulting role, identify their product correctly?

When I first started coaching, I understood that as the coach I am the product. 

I understood that embodying the essence of the coaching and living the life I was coaching my clients to live was the only way to be authentic to myself and my clients.

And that idea missed something really important. 

Practicing what you preach is essential for coaches, but it doesn’t mean that the coach is the product the client is purchasing. Sure, the relationship with the coach is an essential aspect of the transaction, but there’s something much more important.

It was at an intensive coaching seminar with my coach, that this idea was overturned when he said, “You are not the product”.

Wait…what?

 “The product is your client’s dreams.”

OH… right…🤯

As a coach, my role is to facilitate the insights, breakthroughs, and extraordinary results my clients achieve. Of course, I am not the product. 

The product is quite simply those insights, breakthroughs, and results!

What an INVALUABLE product to be providing! 

It can be difficult for people to gauge the real impact of coaching, but that’s precisely the marketing challenge for coaches.

We’re not only challenged to identify the impact, but even more importantly, we need to communicate this value to our clients by helping them to understand the actual changes occurring and clearly identifying the results they’re achieving. 

To ensure that my clients are able to truly see the value and results of our coaching sessions, I utilize different tools and accountability measures. One of these tools I like to refer to is completion. Completion is an interview I conduct with a client about how things are going in the coaching process. This is conducted every 3 to 6 months or when the client finishes with the coaching, to ensure the exchange of value is identified, present, and recognized.

I've executed completion exercises with all of my clients. Not only does this help my clients with accountability, but it also helps me understand and curate the real value I'm bringing to my clients. 

When you hire me as your coach, you’re not paying for me– you’re quite literally purchasing your own transformation. 

When it comes to coaching, the real product is your growth and improvement over time. It’s being able to actually meet and exceed the goals and dreams you have set for yourself, as well as celebrating your victories along the way! This is why coaching is such a powerful and life-changing tool in people’s lives. When you hire me as your coach, you’re not paying for me– you’re quite literally purchasing your own transformation. 

Have you ever wondered if coaching is right for you? Maybe you’ve considered coaching in the past but are worried about investing on the off chance that you are unable to extract real value or change out of the process… 

If this sounds like you, sign up here for a free consultation so we can discuss exactly how you are going to receive the greatest return on your investment in a coaching program. 

The door of limitless opportunity is open for you, all you have to do now is step on through it.

Let’s meet! Sign up for a call today.