Over the years, I’ve done hundreds of “strategy sessions”. You know, those “free consultations” that you offer at the end of a speaking engagement when you can’t sell or, even more likely, when you are just starting your business and want to talk to as many people as possible.
And my truth is they are still one of the easiest ways to sell high end packages. Very rarely will someone hire you as a coach – especially if your services are priced on the higher end – without first getting an experience of you, either on the phone or in a live event.
And that goes both ways. You should not agree to work one on one with a new client without first getting to know her better.
In my Rapid Results 90 Day Challenge, I share my RAPID Enrollment Formula, an easy 5 step approach to the enrollment conversation. It’s all about a simple structure to build rapport (R) with the potential client so that you can have an open, deep conversation with them. You ask (A) them what they really want in the area in which you work (life, health, wealth, business, or area of expertise), and what challenges and pain right now (the Present Picture or P) is stopping them from having what they want. Then you get them really clear on the impact (I) that gap between the two is creating.
Of course, if it’s a fit, and your programs and services can support the potential client by closing that gap, then you design the best solution (D), be it a referral or inviting them to purchase your services and decide on a next step together….hopefully a sale.
So to “spell it out”, the RAPID Enrollment Formula goes like this…
Rapport first
Ask what they want (vision)
Paint a Picture of the Present – what are the present challenges
Impact that it’s causing – explore the pain and create urgency to eliminate it
Design the best solution and Decide on a next step…hopefully a sale!
This simple process totally changed the way I look at sales and literally tripled the number of “yes’s” I get in these conversations. It works for virtually any service based business, from virtually any kind of coach, to a virtual assistant, to a financial planner, to a graphic designer, and more.
I also get that it sounds simple, but it’s not necessarily easy! I remember when I started my coaching business, I was awful at getting clients from strategy sessions, mostly because I never asked for the sale!
Back then (this was 2000…yikes), the coaching industry mostly taught that you do a complementary coaching session, then you ask if they’d like to book more sessions. Sounds easy right?
Here is the problem…when you give someone a full coaching session the first time you talk to them, because you are brilliant, you fill them up with breakthroughs and ideas and next steps. So what happens when you ask them if they want more sessions?
More often than not, you get a “no” because they already feel like you’ve given them so much to think about and implement, their first reaction is to say “not now”. They likely loved the session, but you didn’t leave them wanting more.
To be totally transparent, I still do this too often! I love coaching and problem solving, and when I get on the phone with someone, I want to help! But I’ve learned that I don’t do them the highest service by supporting them too much on the first call to get what is likely a short term solution.
What happens is they leave the call excited and ready to make changes, and then life gets in the way. And quickly they are back in their old patterns because they don’t have your ongoing support to stay on track to closing that gap between where they are and where they want to be.
Instead, the purpose of a Strategy Session is to support the potential client in BECOMING AWARE of what they really want versus where they are now. So often we are in denial about how big that gap is, and you illuminating it may not be all that much fun, but it oftentimes is exactly the breakthrough that the potential client needs to make change happen.
When you shift your definition of sales to it being a service to your potential client to support them in gaining awareness of what’s possible and where they are stuck, it’s so much easier to have the conversation!
I know every time I get on the phone with a potential client that I’m going to make a difference with them, regardless if they ever work with me or not. That’s what it’s all about, right?
Every time I think about how this works, I think of Jacqueline. Jacqueline was referred to me about 8 years ago by a friend. She was totally stuck in her business, not making the income she wanted, and had a huge financial imperative as she was going through a divorce and wasn’t getting much support with her kids from their dad. Not a good situation.
Long story short, in our strategy session, Jacqueline got really clear on the life she was committed to creating. She described the hours she worked, what she was doing, her clients, and what her relationship with her kids and soon to be ex-husband looked like.
Then she got really present to what was keeping her stuck. She was simply afraid she wouldn’t be able to make her business work, so she sabotaged herself by not moving forward so she didn’t have to go out on those skinny branches and take a risk (sound familiar anyone?).
Jacqueline got that she was getting in her own way, and she became very clear in our one call that those days were over. She was a “10” on commitment, but, alas, a “1” on finances. While she wanted to work with me, she couldn’t work out the money stuff.
Fast forward 8 years. Jacqueline is now a successful wellness coach. She has private clients and does group work, she’s pretty much fully booked, and she’s loving every minute of it.
And here’s the kicker. Just about every time I run into her, she tells me I changed her life in that call. And she didn’t even hire me.
That’s what’s possible for you too, and I know they’ll actually become a client too!
What would it look like if everyone you talked to this week you approached from the standpoint of “How can I support this person in seeing what’s holding them back, and inspiring them to a “10” in commitment to close that gap?”
Strive for making a difference, not making a sale, and I’m convinced you’ll get both. How many lives will you change?
Share your transformation stories below. Let’s get the inspiration flowing!
