The world is full of individuals wanting more happiness, more wealth, more success, and they are looking to be guided on their route. No wonder then, that coaching is one of the hottest professions out there today. Of course, as a life coach your primary intent is to guide individuals in need – but everything must come at a fair price.
As you start out on your journey, you’ve probably had a lot of questions about your life coaching packages and pricing strategy: How much must you charge for your services? Is the price point in league with your competitors’? Whatever the demand or supply may be, your services should not be so exorbitant as to dispel future clients. Nor should your services be offered at dirt cheap rates with an aim to beat competition – it won’t sustain you or your brand in the long run. The idea is to put your smartest foot forward while pitching life coaching fees packages in a highly competitive market. In this blog, we tell you how exactly to zero in on your life coaching packages and fees pricing and what factors should you consider in order to offer competitive life coaching packages. Read on!
Factors you should consider while fixing life coaching packages prices
There are a number of ways you can fix a price for your life coaching packages. But what would be suitable for you will depend on various factors such as your niche, the market you cater to, your experience, your clients, etc. According to the executive coach and founder and CEO of Clear Impact Consulting Group Dr. Joel M. Rothaizer, “you need to integrate multiple perspective in setting your prices”. Here are some determinants that may help you adopt the ideal strategy in pricing life coaching packages and fees:
1. Working backward with your monthly income
Although the incentive behind choosing life coaching as a profession is client success, it also has to be sustainable for you in the long run. Having a practical target for a monthly income first and then setting the prices of your services accordingly could be one way of pricing your life coaching fees packages. This will help you determine the number of clients you should onboard and the pocket pinch for each of them – both of which you should approach practically.
2. Figure out what the ideal client is ready to pay
Good research never disappoints. It’s always a great idea to build a persona of your ideal client (profession, requirement, career level, etc.), assess the value of your service in the lives of your clients, gauge the paying power of your target audience, and connect with your prospects in advance to find out how much the ideal client is willing to pay. Pro tip: Always be mindful of what your competitors are charging a similar profile of client, in order to set your prices around the same mark.
3. A price that’s worth your service
You can have tremendous confidence in your life coaching abilities and you can see heavy demand around you. But remember, going overboard with your pricing will only take you half the way. So, picking more clients than you can handle or setting a steep price for your services is not sustainable. Similarly, underplaying your services’ worth can spell disaster. Setting a low price can attract eyeballs and interest but in no time, you may feel discouraged without anyone to blame but yourself. The secret lies in a smart, optimized and balanced pricing strategy that can be scaled according to any situation.
4. Your client’s location
Geography matters. If your client is based out of a Silicon Valley-like setup, don’t be hesitant to up your game and set a price that you know can very well be afforded by your client. However, if your client belongs to a more modest location, you can figure out his budget or willingness to pay, and orchestrate your price tag accordingly.
5. The client’s context, timeframe and outcome
No life coach should set pricing with a half-baked idea about the client’s requirements, intentions, targets and timeframe. It’s best to devote time to understanding your client’s specific needs like how much time he is willing to spend to achieve the desired outcome, etc. Depending on that, you can customize your prices according to short-term agreements or long-term engagements, the importance of the outcome, and so on.
6. Research the existing market rates
Getting a sense of the environment you are working in and competition around you can help you decide, regulate or justify your pricing. This may take some time but speak to competitors, most of whom will be happy to be transparent; speak to your target industry folks; speak to prospects – it is absolutely essential to understand what the existing market charges are to build your life coaching packages pricing approach.
7. Consider your niche
Clients can come in all packages. Some can want quick results to build or grow their career; some can take it slow and steady for a more sustainable outcome. Some require mindset and accountability coaching; some may need your input to handle their finances. Focusing on your niche and exploring the expectations and requirements of your ideal clientele will help you determine your packages and pricing. As Sheila R. Carmichael, executive coach and leadership strategist, says, “different strokes for different folks”.
8. Prices should be outcome-oriented rather than time-bound
Avoid time-bound packages. Life coaching is a serious business – it’s not a ‘fill-it, shut-it, forget-it’ affair. You are investing your time, skills, expertise and energy in your client alright but the value you are creating in the process is the most important. Results should be measured by outcomes, overall value, and success, and not by the hours you spend with your client. Rather focus on your client’s problem area, find out how much cost is being incurred because of that – and then tie your life coaching fees packages to relevant and specific outcomes.
9. Price for availability and accessibility
As a life coach, you are a help-at-hand guide for your clients. As such, your availability and accessibility are valued very highly by them. Your presence between sessions to clear doubts of clients, helping them negotiate challenges, has a worth of their own. This worth should be translated to monetary value while you are setting the price of your life coaching packages. Your clients are very likely to not mind paying those extra bucks for an added edge.
10. Tiered package approach
You can’t bundle your services to everyone. Just like any other services, life coaching packages are best offered in a tiered manner. This ensures your services can be availed by any section of your clients based on their requirements. Sample this: A tier-1 package that’s short term and low-cost; a medium-term tier-2 package can be the most successful one; and a low-demand but premium-priced tier-3 package that’s more long-term in nature. Rest assured; you will find clients for all categories.
Basic pricing strategies
Once you know what exactly your offerings are, whether the duration of the program is fixed or flexible, what outcome you are looking at with your coachee, etc., you can select a strategy for pricing coaching packages. Some of the basic pricing strategies (or coaching packages examples) are:
a. Hourly
It is the most basic and straightforward form of pricing strategy where your client pays you for every hour of coaching. This is quite popular among new coaches or if you aren’t sure of the overall duration of your program right in the beginning. However, on the flip side, this form of pricing isn’t sustainable in the long run.
b. Value-based
This form of pricing is based on the value the coachee feels she/ he will able to derive from attending your coaching program. The coach must have a detailed discussion with his/ her prospects in order to give them the sense of value the sessions will have on his/ her coachee.
c. Retainer rate
In this pricing strategy, the coach and the coachee mutually agree on a monthly fee based on a thorough discussion of what coaching services are to be delivered to the latter. It ensures a steady flow of income on a monthly basis and spares you the hassle of looking for a new client every now and then.
d. Competition based
It’s no secret that pricing strategies of any commodity or service are based on the existing market price trends. The coaching industry is no different. In a competition-based pricing strategy you need to factor in the prevailing market rates before pricing life coaching packages. However, different coaches charge different fees based on their coaching methodology, experience, outcome, time devoted, etc.— no two coaches can have exactly the same approach towards their work. Hence, it’s difficult to align your pricing to any fixed market rate, rather you can use the competition as a guiding tool.
d. Sessional
As the name suggests, the sessional pricing strategy takes into account the total number of sessions between the coach and the coachee. However, do consider a few factors while fixing the price based on this strategy—such as, the frequency of the sessions, how the sessions will be held, etc.
The bottom line
There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to life coaching packages and fees. A lot of factors go into deciding an ideal coaching package price at a macro level. This further gets subjected to individual niche, client’s location, sessions, availability, etc. which varies from one life coach to another and their clients’ unique objectives. We hope this blog post has provided you with the guidance you need to fix the right price for you!
Sources
Forbes, evercoach, evercoach, Simply.Coach
Read More:
Simplify to Amplify: Why You Should Choose a Coaching Niche
Different Types of Coaching Styles & How to Develop One of Your Own
