Smart Coach’s Guide to Creating Exceptional Customer Experiences (so your clients come back again and again)
Ever wonder why some coaches are able to rebook their former clients? Some coaches have had the same clients for years.
Keep your customers coming back with exceptional experiences.
They have a secret.
Smart coaches and consultants understand: it is always more expensive to find new clients than it is to rebook current or former customers.
Truth: Former clients are 86% more likely to sign up again if they have a great customer experience.
Just like you frequent your favorite restaurant, clients tend to rebuy from businesses who deliver… and deliver well.
That said, we are in a new frontier within the coaching and consulting space. People who once were satisfied with an “ok” experience, are now expecting deluxe. Clients want what they want and they want it now.
They ALSO want their experience with a coach to be fun and rewarding, and they want to be treated like they matter.
One coach told me,
“I'm done hiring except for 1-1 and high level groups; and only then when I can both speak to them personally first for a vibe check AND see literally dozens of video testimonials. Yes , as a buyer, my bar is that high now!”
Your coaching client isn’t going to just trust you automatically.
And your client is also carrying the wounds inflicted in other courses and purchases they’ve made in the online coaching space. We need to be okay with rectifying those mistakes made by other people and going above and beyond in our own offers.
Is it fair that we have to make up for their gaslighting, non-delivery, and awful client experience?
No, it’s not fair. But this is business. Being successful in business means doing what you need to do even when it feels like you shouldn’t have to do it. I’m not talking about overworking or over giving. I’m talking about going above and beyond for a client that has been treated badly in the industry that we are all in.
I believe in the next couple of years the consultants, the coaches, the online service providers that go above and beyond will thrive. Many of the successful businesses you’ve seen in the last few years are going to fail this year.
Your clients have needs and wishes and expect brands to accommodate them. They have loads of choices. This is no longer a seller’s market, the clients are calling the shots. Your client has been burned. They are savvy and sophisticated. They want better for themselves, and they are not going to buy from anything or anyone they don’t trust deeply.
Remember the song “We’re not gonna take it? No we ain’t gonna take it!” I feel like we actually have continued to take it. Especially in the coaching industry.
But we have hit the limit.
Another coach told me,
“I was in a mastermind for $50,000 that consisted of two live events and one coaching call. The coach decided to not show up to one of the events and told us to coach ourselves.”
Fortunately, she banded together with many other coaches in the same container, and asked collectively for all of their money back. The coach had to give $1 million back.
The days of your clients just taking it in the gut, those days are gone. Your savvy client is now going to do chargebacks, take you to court and report you to the FTC. (Or whatever governing body is over the trade commission in your country.)
View from the balcony. It looked so nice.
Now that’s an extreme example of what I think is actually fraud. But I’m seeing those kinds of stories over and over. Where people didn’t get what they came for or they were basically abused inside the program. Gaslighted, blamed, all the above.
Remember what I said about this being a coaching client's market?
Clients are actually calling the shots and they are being very choosy about what they buy and who they buy from. It is surprising to me when companies/coaches/consultants persist in delivering sub par experiences. Especially since there are fewer clients actually buying.
We booked a villa on St John USVI. It looked so good in the photos.
Private pool. Lovely balcony overlooking Coral Bay, with a separate room for my son with his own en-suite bath.
I had the company arrange our groceries so we didn’t have to shop when we got there. The rental company also got us a rental jeep. Everything was great!
Until we got to the villa.
The pool was murky, and downstairs where my son was supposed to sleep had dead bugs everywhere. The bathrooms were moldy with black guk everywhere. I wore flip flops in the shower like I was at camp!
The table outside was circa 1995. Rusted loungers. Dirty surfaces everywhere, The view was wonderful but you couldn’t enjoy it because it was so hot, and the umbrella caught the wind and flew out of the stand.
The only parking was on a VERY steep hill and if you parked too close to the edge, you’d definitely fall.
About half way through the week, the brake lights on the jeep came on. We had to drive twenty five minutes one way on winding steep terrain to get back to town. Pretty precarious if you don’t know when your brakes are gonna fail!
It wasn’t exactly elevated. We never rented with that company again, and I won’t ever recommend them to anyone. If you’re going to St John, I’ll tell you who to avoid! When you think of a villa, you probably envision a premium experience. Exclusivity, luxury.
We did too. We believed the hype and the gorgeous luxe photos. Thinking about that story today, It reminded me a lot of how offers are presented in the online space.
Just because something is expensive doesn’t mean it’s going to live up to the hype.
Who hasn’t bought something in the last three years and been disappointed with the delivery or the experience? We don’t talk about our experiences with offers unless it’s a total fail, but we do harbor some feelings about how we were treated. And we tell people in our circle. Even if we don’t complain openly to the company.
We don’t rebuy from people who provide inadequate (at best) client experiences.
Everyone always talks about sales, marketing, audience building, engagement, branding, and messaging. But the client experience? SHHH. Just keep that under wraps!
Once you sell that coaching package, then what?
Well, if we take our cue from most businesses, we will miss the obvious, because most are simply doing the bare minimum to maximize profits. Some companies are actually treating their customers like their experience is their fault! Coaches are notorious for this. If you don’t get results in my container obviously it’s your fault. Companies are not good. Accepting negative feedback and rarely does anything change from that negative feedback. Gone are the days you could get refunds or reparations.
Client experiences, (and customer service) is at an all time low in many industries and companies are using COVID-19 (still!)! as an excuse. Anybody remember those emails in 2020 when hotels said they were wiping things down? And I thought to myself, weren't you wiping things down before? If not, it’s unsanitary and frankly, unacceptable.
I remember a local yoga place sent me an email saying they were also wiping things down, wiping down the sweaty mats.
Like, thanks?
When did the bare minimum become a “good client experience?”
I actually read an article a couple of days ago about the state of housekeeping in hotels. Hotels are quietly doing away with daily cleaning, or making us jump through hoops to get it. Corporations decided their customer service is no longer a priority, because the fewer personnel they have, the higher their profit margins. Companies gleefully raise their prices, while the client experience gets worse and worse.
A couple of years back, I had an awful experience in a coaching container. It was $20,000. I went to one call then never went back. The only time they contacted me was when my card expired and they couldn’t charge on it.
During that time many of the people finishing the program were complaining in a Facebook group their offer wasn’t “validated.” Meaning her method of selling their offer didn’t work. She quickly shut the Facebook group down.
I have warned more than twenty people about her practices. I recently noticed she changed her business model; she is now selling a $1000 course.
Ouch.
The client numbers add up quickly to damage a business. Here is a look at some numbers:
If 80 people tell 20 people each, that's 1600 people. Just from word of mouth of dissatisfied clients.
And let’s say those people tell others.
And a few folks go on Instagram or Reddit and do reviews.
How many people will you sell into your container? How many people will sign up again?
Give a client an exceptional experience to further your reputation and grow.
Probably none.
In fact, Forbes reported that customer service is in a “free fall.” We aren’t talking about the anthem by Tom Petty! In another Forbes article in In 2018, US companies were losing 75 billion per year due to bad client experience.
You can see how far every company has fallen. That’s an additional 462 BILLION lost. Per year. Every year.
Big companies like department stores, airlines, hotels, and car rental agencies rely on customer churn for unlimited amounts of clients. After all, there is always another customer to take your place if you decide to take your business elsewhere.
But you don’t have unlimited customers within the coaching and consulting industry. This is a place where reputation is everything. Word gets around faster than you might think because the circle is smaller.
You want people to be speaking in rooms in a flattering way about your containers, consulting practices, results, but also how clients are treated after the sale.
I’ve put together some examples of things to do to assure your clients get the best in your containers. And come back to sign with you over and over.
Top 15 Ways Smart Coaches and Consultants Create Excellent Customer Experiences.
Treat the Client with white glove service. Automate things on the front end so no one slips through the cracks.
Be flexible and fair. If a client is late to an appointment, give them the benefit of the doubt. Find out what happened before you automatically send them a mean email describing how they forfeited the session. Things happen. Life happens. Sometimes your child wakes up with an ear infection or the client simply forgets. You can uphold your boundaries and still be gracious to clients.
Make sure you deliver what you promise. If for some reason, you cannot deliver, make some time to talk to the client and explain the situation. Many times clients are very understanding and you can usually come to a compromise.
Keep money in reserve for refunds. I know we don’t like it, but the reality is that people will ask for refunds, and especially if we have not delivered on the contract yet, we should be willing to at least listen. Remember, businesses are losing hundreds of BILLIONS of dollars in lost revenue because of bad reputations. Don’t let that be you.
Treat your client like they are a real person with hopes, dreams, problems, needs, pain, and desires.
Go above, and beyond what others will do. Look at your competition, see what they’re doing, and do it better, faster, or make it easier for your client. Make your container fun to be in.
Be unconventional. Send a margarita kit or champagne and glasses to toast the end of your containers. Throw parties. Send surprises and delight your client. Everyone loves swag! Everyone loves feeling special, they love gifts. Be creative.
Assure your clients aren’t falling behind in your process. Make the milestones achievable in the time allocated. Do frequent check-ins. Offer more access and more calls if necessary. Let them know what to expect!
Check and see if everyone is getting good results. If not, find out why? Train your teams to listen to clients and help them achieve their goals.
Offer accountability if your clients need it. Most people will not implement in the way they need to without that gentle push to move forward.
Send handwritten notes and certain points of the journey. Recognize how far they have come.
Recommend your clients to your network. Promote them if they have businesses. If they don’t, keep their results and even their purchase of your program under wraps. People want privacy.
Halfway to the goal, do a debrief call/check in. Are they feeling ok with their progress? Is there anything to tweak or address? Do that now before too much time passes.
Follow up with opportunities to continue working with you. Have offers that make sense for the client who has graduated from your flagship.
Form a loyalty club. This is a space where your VICs are (very important clients.) These people get early access to anything you promote. They get invitations to in person events and dinner parties. They can buy branded swag that only your VICs get! They can serve as affiliates and brand ambassadors. They get first dibs on sponsorship opportunities. The sky's the limit. Pro tip: Luxury buyers love loyalty clubs!
Remember, if you take care of clients, give them a good experience, and get them results, they will recommend you and sign up with you over and over. This year you could increase your profits 30% simply by keeping more of your current clients or moving them into a higher level offer.
If you could make 50% extra revenue this year without doing ads or literally any more leg generation than you do now, what would that do to your bottom line? What if you didn’t have to sell this year and you still made 50% more revenue?
Put together a brilliant customer experience. It’s worth it.
When you’re ready to create an unforgettable client experience, let’s connect about working together.
Key takeaways about creating exception experiences for your coaching clients:
Client experience is king: Businesses that prioritize exceptional client experiences, especially in coaching and consulting, will thrive. Conversely, a bad experience can spread quickly and damage your reputation.
Clients are choosier than ever: Today's clients expect more than just good results. They expect to be treated well throughout the entire process, from initial contact to post-program support.
Loyalty is profitable: Retaining existing clients is more cost-effective than acquiring new ones. By providing exceptional experiences, you can turn happy clients into repeat customers and brand promoters.
Go above and beyond: The competition is fierce in the coaching and consulting world. To stand out, surprise and delight your clients with unexpected touches and personalized attention.
Build relationships, not transactions: Don't just focus on the sale. Focus on building trust and rapport with your clients. Become their advisor and help them achieve their long-term goals.
