Welcome to the Masterful Coach Podcast with Molly Claire. If you're a coach who's ready to impact more lives, make more money, and create a life you love, you are in exactly the right place. Get the support you deserve as a female entrepreneur, master your coaching skills, grow your ideal business, and to honor your priorities in your personal life.

Are you in? Let's get started with your host, bestselling author, and master life and business coach, Molly Claire.

Hello, coach. Welcome to this week's episode. I am thrilled to be here with you. As you know, I've been taking a bit of a break this summer. I hope you've been loving all of the phenomenal interviews on the podcast. Listen, if you've missed any of them, there have been great guests every other week and you've gotta go back and listen because there are so many nuggets in all of these episodes and I've been enjoying re-listening to them this summer as well.

And don't worry, there's more to come. I'll give you a sneak peek as to what you can expect next week. I set up these interviews very intentionally because I was definitely needing to create some space in my life and also in my business. And so these last couple of months I have been totally focused on delivering for my current clients and also really making some important shifts in how I help you. And I just cannot wait for everything that is to come.

I am going all in on the ways that I can help you to be more effective with your clients, all the ways I can help you to be more effective in communicating to your clients, how you actually help them, and really equipping you with what you need to be so confident in what you do as a coach and how you do it that it is almost impossible for you to not sell people on them working with you. So, so much good stuff to come.

And along those lines, I wanna let you know that coming up on Monday, August 7th, you can attend a free webinar masterclass. All of my webinars are always interactive workshop-style webinars, and I'm going to be talking with you about how to create a killer program that creates results for your clients. I am so excited about it and I am mostly excited to connect with all of you there and answer your questions and really personalize it for you.

So listen, if you're uncertain about your program, or maybe you don't even have a program, this is definitely for you. You can click the link in the show notes, or you can also go to mollyclaire.com. Check out the free webinar. It is August 7th. We are talking about how to create a killer program that gets results for your clients. Next week, I'll give you this heads up - then we're gonna dive into the power of a coaching program in this week's episode.

Next week, you will get to enjoy my interview with Lindsey Pullman. Lindsey Pullman is a phenomenal leader in the coaching space as she brings trauma awareness to coaches. And I personally did her course to become trauma-informed. She teaches an advanced certification for relationship trauma, and as you'll hear from next week's episode, Lindsay is all about bringing awareness to the whole world, not just coaches, not any one industry, but everyone. So you can look forward to that amazing interview next week.

Alright, coach, let's talk about the power of a coaching program. So we know that you are in the business of helping people to change their lives, helping them to get new results, maybe create new experiences with how they are navigating their life or how they feel about their life. You're helping them to change their experience of their relationships, the way they engage in their relationships, right? So many things. Family, life, intimate relationships, money, career, all the things. And what good is any of it if we aren't actually being effective, right?

And so today I'm talking about the power of an effective coaching program and the offer that will sell it. Now I'm touching on these, and obviously if this is speaking to you and you're wanting more, definitely come to the webinar because I will be talking much more in depth and introducing some new concepts there as well.

So I've had my business for nearly nine years now. This October will mark nine years since the beginning for me, and I've seen over these years, the power in a good program. When I started my business, I created a six week program for moms. I turned my program into a book, which became a bestseller, allowing me to triple my prices overnight and get easy 'yes' answers on my consultations in this time.

I also co-created a coach training program that sold for over $500,000 in my high-end programs that I've sold for $10,000, $15,000. I have had strong programs that not only sell, deliver at a high level for my clients. In fact, just yesterday I had the honor of being on a call with one of my past clients. And as I spoke with her and she talked about her experience in our program - this was the program in the Coaching collective when I was in business with my sister - and she talked about how that program and experience was exactly what she needed. And isn't that what we wanna hear?

She said it was exactly the pieces I was missing, exactly what I needed. And she also shared with me how that program felt very catered to and personalized to her, which I think is another really important thing when it comes to having a powerful program. Yes, you want to have the standard things that are in your program, the ways you create results for everyone, and also that ability to personalize. And so a good program is worth so much and it is worth taking some time and not skipping over this step.

So I'm gunna answer a few questions today, including what is the difference between a program and an offer? And talk about how there are similarities and what the difference is. I'll also talk a little about why not being clear on what your program is or your offering is can hold you back. And I'm also going to talk about what you need to do to ensure that the work you're doing with clients works.

Alright. So first question, what is a program versus an offer? What is the difference? And I'll tell you, the way that I describe it and the way that I help my clients to work through this as well. And especially those of you working with me this fall, this is what we're going to focus on. Your program is really what you are teaching your clients, what you are giving them in terms of content and direction.

So your program would include things like, the structure of your sessions, the length of time that your sessions are, it is the concepts that you're teaching, how you're teaching them. It could be videos, it could be worksheets. There it is. All of those pieces that are very clear to you as a coach, as to what you are delivering and how you are actually helping your clients with what you deliver to get the results that they want. So that's all the work on the backend.

Now, the offer is really the way that we articulate that program to your clients. So in a sense, it's got some similar pieces to it, right? It would certainly include the way that you work with your clients, pricing structure, all of that. But more than that, it is the way that you articulate what each piece of your program actually does for your clients. And so when we're talking about the program, you wanna make sure that you are very clear on what you're teaching, what you're focusing on, and how you are helping that to actually transform your client. And when we're talking about the offer, we're talking about the way you explain those pieces to them.

And so oftentimes the offer is much more of the marketing and sales language that meets your client where they are. And I'll give you a perfect example of this. One of the things that I do when I'm working with my coaches in a group and helping you to move forward with your business is we often do emotion work and we might even incorporate some things that help you with some nervous system activation you may be experiencing.

But my guess is that none of you wanna hire me because I say, "Hey, we're gonna meet every week. And part of what we're gonna do is work on your nervous system activation". Now, some of you might want that, but most likely, most of you would really like for me to help you create a good program and create a good offer, right? And you would like me to help you actually sign clients. And so, while I know that the nervous system activation needs to be looked at and handled with care, and while I know that we need to do emotion work, and we need to look at your thoughts, what I'm talking to you about is what it actually means for you.

And so the same is true with your clients. So there are aspects of what you do with your client that will make sense to your client and there are aspects of it that really won't, or that they don't really need to know, right? They don't need to know exactly what your formula is to help them lose weight or what your formula is to help them have a new way of managing their money. They just need to know what it's going to create for them. So at a high level, program is clarity for you, offer is clarity for your client.

Let's dive into question two, and that is really important to understand why not being clear on your program can hold you back. So whether you're a brand new coach or you've been at this for a while, my guess is that you all know the experience of starting your coaching business and having about a million questions flood your mind and about a million insecurities right along with them, right? Where do I begin? Can I really do this? How do I sell my services? What am I actually offering? How do I offer it? Does it work? All of the things.

And so we're always searching for all the answers, the ways to bring certainty, and what I find is that when a coach starts their coaching business and they have certain tools that they know and they have processes that they're able to do with their clients, but they're not actually clear on the backend for themselves, as far as what the structure looks like, what the focus is, what the plan is to move their client forward, you as a coach can end up feeling a lot of uncertainty. Because if you don't know, how can you possibly communicate that to your clients?

So when I see coaches that are not clear on their program, or they don't know how to articulate it to their clients, oftentimes a coach will end up really lacking confidence in their ability to actually create results for their client.

I see coaches hestitating and changing their mind on a niche constantly, flip flopping back and forth because they haven't made that decision. Now I wanna be clear that when I helping my clients with a program, we can make it very clear and specific and also allow room to serve people that aren't quite in that niche. But the problem is when we don't narrow in and create a program, it lends itself to all of this wide open space where our brains, as a coach, want to redecide and question and change what we are focusing on constantly.

The other way I see this holding coaches back is a lot of fear of marketing. Have you ever thought, "Well, what am I really selling?" Or like, "How do I tell people what I do?" All of that fear is, not only is it not necessary, but it will really keep you from marketing and selling.

And the other thing is not being clear on this one aspect of your business, it's really just one more thing for your mind to worry about. Which personally, I think is kind of a shame. Because it's one of those things, it is one of the few things that you truly can put in the work and check the box on having your program and your offer, clear. There are a lot of things in business that are not so cut and dry, right? The way you market the different platforms, all of that is always gonna be shifting and adjusting. But the core pieces of a program can be set, and even as you tweak them down the road, the tweaks, in my experience over all of these years, are very minimal.

Okay. Let's talk about the last question, which is what you need to do to ensure that the work you're doing with clients works. Number one, meet them where they are when you sell them. So this is really referring more to the offer piece. So that as you are putting your program together, that you are able to clearly communicate it in a way that meets your client where they are using the language that they understand.

So this is really less to do with the actual results that you're creating with them. However, you have to first get the clients in the door, right, in order for the work to work. So make sure you're meeting them where they are. Next up, articulating the clear result for each individual client. So whenever you're putting together a program or a curriculum or something that's working towards certain objectives, I always, always, always recommend that you set it up as a standard. These are the standard things I do with all of the clients.

And, more than ever, people are wanting to be seen and heard as individuals. Don't we all want to experience life that way? I know I do. And what I find is that if we get too stuck in the cookie cutter approach or the, you know, conveyor belt approach, we really miss out on meeting our clients where they are as we're working with them.

So I think it's really important that as you create your program of what you're working toward, you are also, or, I'm sorry, I should say, what you are helping your client work toward, that you're also building in that wiggle room to really personalize what exactly each client is wanting and how to help them achieve it.

Okay, next step. The third thing I wanna hit on in terms of ensuring that the work you're doing is working, is make sure that you have some form of accountability or progress tracking, even if it's in a unique way. And this is what I mean by this. Sometimes coaches will say, well, accountability doesn't really fit the flavor of coaching that I do. Or, how can I really track progress with my clients when they're just trying to have more confidence or have a better relationship and I don't have numbers to back it up?

And what I wanna challenge you to do is that as you're thinking about your program, what does accountability or progress tracking mean in terms of your client and what they are specifically trying to create? And I know sometimes it can seem like an intangible result, but make it tangible. Make it clear you don't have to turn it into a number. In fact, I am not a believer that all changes, like the most meaningful changes often that we create, we can't really put a number to. But challenge yourself to think about what is the measure of progress or success here, or what is the version of accountability here that makes sense?

Okay. Next up for ensuring the work you're doing works, make sure you do have a clear structure for your sessions, a clear structure for delivery of your content or teaching, and clear pricing. Just setting all of that stuff in place will eliminate so much uncertainty for you, and it is so worth it.

All right, coaches, the last thing when it comes to making sure the work you're doing with clients works is make sure that you have confidence in the results you are promising. And all I can say about this is don't get too caught up on this before moving forward and getting started with your work. You have to coach people, you have to practice. You have to be in the work in order to make it better and better.

And so as you put your program together and as you clarify the result you're moving your clients toward, make sure that you have the confidence and the competence that you can actually help deliver the results you are promising.

All right, coach, this is what I've got for you. The power of a program is real. It is one of those things that you can check off your list. And having an amazing program that is clear, that is powerful, that is effective will be worth every bit of time, energy, and money spent on making it happen.

I hope to see many of you on the upcoming webinar, and I really look forward to helping so many of you this fall to build an incredible business that serves your clients well. Alright, coach, I'll talk with you next week.

Thanks for listening to the Masterful Coach Podcast. Are you ready to build your amazing business with Molly as your coach? Check out www.mollyclaire.com to find out about Masterful Coach Foundations and the 10K Accelerator Method. It's the ultimate support for you as a coach, building your ideal life and business.