CAM Coach

REMOT E COACHING : a new revenue stream FOR 2020 & BEYOND

Mark Shields shares why remote coaching could help keep your therapy business thriving in 2020…

PEOPLE in the UK are now much more comfortable reaching out for advice in all areas and aspects of their lives. So there are many different forms of therapists and coaches nowadays; we have sports coaches and personal fitness trainers, psychotherapists, life coaches, business mentors and personal stylist fashion coaches. Lifestyle coaching has been growing steadily over the past few years and is set to burgeon in the decade ahead. The demand for life coaches, psychologists, psychotherapists, nutritional therapists and health coaches

has never been greater, but it is vital for all coaches to ensure that their services stay current and remain competitive, keeping up with the industry changes as we move into 2020.

As life seems to get tougher, many more of us are employing the services of a professional coach. Whether it is to help coach our attitude and performance or simply get our priorities in order physically or mentally. The success stories are growing daily. Nowadays whatever magazine or newspaper you pick up will tell of the success someone has experienced and the life changes they have made with the advice of a professional coach. This, combined with the developing array of coaching services available, means it is advisable to look at these different offerings in more depth and decide whether they are all as good as each other and, most importantly, do they help the client get to where they need to go?

There are a number of delivery methods available when providing coaching services. Face to Face Coaching, Tele Coaching (coaching over the telephone), Webinars where live coaching seminars are delivered via the internet, or computer coaching directly online perhaps using a video service such as FaceTime or Skype, or via sites such as www.liveyourlifetothefull.com. Most coaching is done in person or by phone, but this is changing rapidly and remote coaching is likely to gain the majority of the delivery market within the next few years.

Whether you are delivering a coaching service in person or online, both the coach and the coachee need to feel they can work well together, so trust is of paramount importance. Also it is important the two get along together so respect and rapport are important ingredients of this relationship.

Keeping up with the competition in 2020 As we move into 2020 and the competition increases, I want to share the biggest change I have experienced in the modus operandi of coaches / therapists throughout 2019 which is the inclusion of tele coaching I.E. coaching over the telephone.

With the introduction of so many excellent tools to help us coach from a distance, every new coach is including tele coaching within their coaching proposition. These tools are free in the main and include SKYPE, ZOOM and many others. The main benefit of course is opening your market up from your local practice to an international audience.

We are today privy to much more marketing intelligence and coaches are actively marketing tele coaching sessions into such locations as Dubai, UAE, USA, Nigeria, Ireland and the Channel Islands. All these locations having something in common. They either have a lack of specialists in their respective location or they want to hire and can afford the best. They love having the choice.

When I first appraised the differences between telephone and face to face coaching I would have opted for face to face coaching anytime. However, following experience and research my view is completely different. The results of a recent survey I completed amongst CAM Practitioners confirmed over 90% of successful coaches currently conduct most of their client sessions over the telephone and here are the reasons why.

The survey confirmed the success of launching tele coaching into your coaching business comes down to the mindset of the coach themselves. Those that didn’t buy into the concept of remote coaching wouldn’t use it although of those that were up for trialling it in their practice nearly all of them changed their minds and included it moving forward.

I suspect in 2020 nearly all top coaches and therapists will include remote coaching within their programmes.

The benefits of remote coaching You are not limited by logistics. You can coach clients from anywhere in the world without geographical limitations.

Neither you nor your coach will be distracted by physical appearances of each other or the surroundings where you would meet.

The cost for remote coaching and online programmes can be the same, sometimes even more than conventional face to face sessions. Remote coaching is very relaxing and convenient. You are able to partake in your session from any location that you wish without the hassle and delays of travelling.

Clients can gain direct access to world leading experts whilst coaches open up their market to an international audience.

It is proven people are far more comfortable on the telephone. Telephone coaching is done in complete privacy. Nobody knows what you are doing. You are simply on the telephone. To some, privacy is of utmost importance.

You will be able to enjoy the session without the fear of anyone watching or listening.

Remote coaching is much more popular from a time management perspective for both clients and coaches. Clients don’t have the stress of worry of travel time, getting parked, journeying to and from the coach’s location. For coaches it is the same and they can fit many more clients in their diary. So there you have it. This is my top tip for 2020. The argument coaches and therapists have over the advantages and disadvantages will continue. We have seen this first hand in the world of training courses and online coaching programmes. Despite the continual debates we are witnessing a massive shift from face to face to online and remote services. My advice is give it a go and see how you get on. I’m sure you will be pleasantly surprised. n

MARK SHIELDS is regarded as one of the UK’s leading NLP and Coaching experts. Mark is known as the CAM Coach and is the author of a book of the same name. Mark and his team have set up the Life Practice Academy to provide qualifications in Life Practice Transformational Coaching Methodology and proven CAM COACH success in business strategies. Find out more about Mark and the courses at www.courses. thecamcoach.com/p/home i