Many CEOs hire coaches or use mentors to help them become or remain great leaders for their companies. Let’s face it, it can be lonely at the top. The same can be the case for entrepreneurs, especially solopreneurs. A business coach can help business owners meet their business goals by sharing ideas on how to increase sales, reduce costs, enhance quality, recruit and retain staff, elevate customer service, and other areas of business operations. In addition to offering guidance, business coaches can help you develop action plans and an understanding of how to implement business operation strategies. But how do you choose a good business coach?
One of the first things to look for in a business coach is expertise, experience, and knowledge in the area of business that you need help with. Some business coaches are generalists, meaning they may have experience in many areas of business. Some are specialists, meaning they prefer to be an expert for a niche audience or type of business. You may choose either as long as they are experienced in solving the problems or providing guidance for the specific challenges or opportunities you are facing in your business.
When choosing a small business coach, don’t be afraid to ask questions that will help you assess whether they can meet your needs. This means that you will need to understand what your needs are. Make a list of the areas of your business that you need help with such as start-up assistance, marketing, pricing strategies, etc. Then get more specific by identifying your goals or the outcome you’d like to have after working with your business coach. When meeting with your potential business coach, ask for examples of their work or a portfolio of their success stories. This will give you insight into the type of clients they’ve served in the past and you can also get a sense of their capabilities and the quality of their work. You should also read customer reviews or testimonials that are found on search engines such as Google or Yelp.
Other qualities you should look for in a potential coach include being unbiased, detail-oriented, seeing the big picture, thinking outside of the box, resourcefulness, and having a passion for helping you succeed. A good coach will push you and hold you accountable for the actions required to meet your business goals. You also want to make sure that your values align. While this information cannot be fully assessed through one phone call, you can get additional insights from their website or on their social media platforms, especially LinkedIn.
Of course, the cost of a business coach should be considered. However, keep in mind that lower cost does not mean low quality, just as a high cost doesn’t equate to high quality. Using the tips mentioned in this article can help you determine the value and potential return on investment that a coach can bring to your business. One-off courses that cover one subject area can be as low as $29 while business coaching programs can run as high as $15,000. On average, for one-on-one coaching, you can anticipate plans starting at $500.
Overall, the right business coach will help you increase your business effectiveness, help you assess and respond to industry trends, streamline processes to allow your business to be more efficient, and develop an action plan that will give you direction to move your business forward.