In a recent interview, Business growth strategist Charlie Lyons explained why coaches and consultants struggle with their client acquisition efforts. “Most coaches and consultants offer prospective clients a free consultation and it’s during that first call that they make one of the most common mistakes which is to try to solve their problem on that call,” explains Lyons.
According to Lyons, most coaches and consultants focus on demonstrating how much they know and why they are qualified to help the prospective client. “That actually works against them,” says Lyons. “They would provide the prospective client more value on that first call by focusing on understanding their biggest challenges and getting them to acknowledge they won’t likely achieve their goals without the proper support.”
Lyons says the purpose of the first call is to bridge tha gap with the prospective client by helping them get clarity on where they are now and where they would like to be within six to twelve months by working with the right coach or consultant to achieve their goals. “Any coach or consultant can bridge this gap by having an authentic and direct conversation with a prospective client and help them identify and acknowledge that they can achieve their goals with the right coach or consultant in their corner,” explains Lyons.
“They’re actually doing more harm by trying to show prospects how good they are on that free call,” says Lyons. The end result is the prospective client finishes the call with just enough confidence to feel like they have addressed their challenges and most often believe the need for a coach or consultant is no longer there. The reality, according to Lyons, is although they may have experienced a major breathrough during the call, that prospect will likely continue to face the same challeges long term because of how that call was executed.
Lyons explains that coaches and consultants shoulder a huge responsibility when discussing the future success of a prospective client. While coaches and consultants may feel disappointed that they didn’t land a new client, that prospective client they didn’t get is often the one cheated out of reaching their goals because of an ineffective client-getting approach, according to Lyons.
Lyons says he can help coaches and consultant change their inner dialogue which is almost always responsible for the challenges they experience with getting clients. “I doubled my business within 60 days,” says Francesca Rossellini, PhD, a client of Lyons.
Charlie Lyons is a bestselling author, speaker and business growth strategist with over two and a half decades of sales and marketing savvy. He’s generated over 100 million dollars in revenue across multiple industries. Lyons is Founder of Authority & PR and Managing Partner of Alpha Oracle. He specializes in business growth strategies for coaches, consultants and entrepreneurs.
For more information about Charlie Lyons, visit CharlieLyons.com
