Posted on July 11, 2012 by Stephan Wiedner

To succeed at marketing your coaching services in a competitive Internet landscape, you need to have a clear and concise message that passes the 10-second test. If the interest of your ideal clients is not peaked in less than 10 seconds, they’re going to hit the “back” button and check out the next coach.

In another post, I provide a simple formula for crafting your value proposition but sometimes it helps to look at and find inspiration in great examples.

Here’s a short list of some of the coach profiles that pass the 10-second test by clearly identifying:

1. the pain of their ideal customers,
2. the solution they offer, and
3. how their service is different from others.

Enjoy learning from some of the best in the industry.

Hunter Phoenix – Executive Coach, Los Angeles CA

Hunter’s description of her ideal client fits the formula almost perfectly. She clearly identifies who she works with (busy professionals), what their pain is (stress and overwhelm), and what her unique solution is (finding a balance between accelerated growth and extreme self-care).

I don’t know if it’s intentional or not but in the “about me” section of her profile, she makes a point of describing her services rather than her personal history. If you’re like a lot of the coaches I talk to, you may struggle to write about yourself. It’s natural to feel that way because you’re selling a highly personalized service and you feel like you need to expose everything about you. Hunter doesn’t do that. It’s a subtle but valuable shift in thinking to consider how we, as coaches, are selling a service and not ourselves.

Tara Russell – Life Sabbatical Coach, San Francisco CA

It’s not enough to only connect to clients on their pain, such as hating a cubicle job. You need to offer a unique solution and Tara does a good job advocating a specific solution: taking sabbaticals and travelling the world. It’s not for everyone but it certainly passes the 10-second test.

She also does a good job adding articles with excellent titles that reinforces what she’s all about.

Dr. Doris Helge – The Joy Coach

What I like about Doris’ profile is that she has tapped into a distinct pain her ideal clients feel (i.e. fear) and smartly positioned herself as the “Joy Coach”. The language she uses throughout her profile reinforces her brand. She uses inviting copy such as “discover how easily”, “enjoy confidence and joy”, and “work with Doris is fun”.

Kimber Nelson – ADHD Coach

I like Kimber’s profile because she does a good job speaking to ADHD clients, from top to bottom. There is no doubt what kind of clients she serves. It’s clean, consistent, and to the point.

Do you have any comments or suggestions? Please leave them below.