Grow your Audience to Grow your Income
Building an online audience in the coaching space requires a strategic approach that combines content creation, community engagement, and effective marketing.
Vickie Dickson
Human Design Business Consultant
I gotta be honest with you.
I see a lot of people in the online space launching offers and products without an audience.
As I watch from the sidelines, I’m always thinking; “Isn’t that interesting?”
Time and time again, these online entrepreneurs tell everyone who’ll listen that their launch failed, nobody’s buying their stuff, and that this online business thing just can’t be done.
I beg to differ.
Building an online audience in the coaching space requires a strategic approach that combines content creation, community engagement, and effective marketing.
Converting that audience into paid offers is just math.
While conversion rates vary, some general statistics hold true:
1 – The average conversion rate across all industries ranges from 2%-5%
2 – Within the coaching space, conversion rates might be slightly higher because we offer a more personalized service and tend to build relationships with our audience as we go along.
A good benchmark for coaching businesses is often around 1% to 3% for cold traffic and up to 10% or higher for warm traffic or existing leads.
When you extrapolate this to an audience size of 1000 (including an email list and social media) you’d expect to convert anywhere between 10-30 people into your paid offer.
That is assuming you were actually presenting this offer in a way that:
1 – Helps them to realize it’s the bridge from the pain/problem they’re in to the desired outcome.
2 – Allows them up to 27 ‘touches’ with your brand and your offer before buying.
3 – Is priced well (and that doesn’t mean cheap!)
4 – Makes them feel like they can’t live without it.
That’s a tall order, I know!
But it’s what needs to be done in order to convert your audience into paying clients.
Let’s back it up a bit though.
I started out talking about how I see people launching offers without having an audience.
It stands to reason then, that the FIRST thing we need to do is build an audience!
That doesn’t mean that you don’t sell anything while you’re growing your audience! In fact, launching offers will help to grow your audience, as long as you make it exciting for them.
How to Grow your Audience Online
I’m a fan of 2 things:
1 – Choose your all in, long game, platform.
This should be something with a search engine where you’ll create content that’s around for the long haul. Think podcasts, blogs, Youtube, Pinterest, even Linkedin to an extent.
2 – Choose your all in, short game, platform.
This is whatever Social Media channel you choose. The most important thing to consider is: Is your ideal client hanging out there? If she’s over on Facebook and you’re dancing like a madwoman on TikTok, you’ll have fun but you won’t reach who you’re here to reach.
Let that be enough.
You don’t have to be everywhere, all the time.
If you love to be online and can still get the needle movers done in your business then more power to you BUT if it is distracting you from the real work in your business then choose one of each and call it a day.
Whether you’re just starting out in business, or you’ve been around the block a time or two, you still need to be adding new audience members on a regular basis to keep fresh eyes on your offers.
You’ll do this by showing up consistently, having a clear message, and adding value.
Every platform has its own format for growth but if you keep these 3 things at the forefront, you’ll be able to build your audience consistently.
Join the Build your Audience Bootcamp!
Why use Social Media for Business
In my own business, I look at Social Media as the welcome mat.
It’s where people can come to the door, take a peek in, and see if I’m right for them.
It gives me a place to deliver free, valuable content to the masses (my audience of potential ideal clients) in a fun way.
No, I don’t want to be online all the time but I sure do appreciate that I have a place to get the word out about my business for (mostly) free.
Sending people to your long game platform from Social Media is where it’s at.
A nod to those who hate Social Media.
I get it, really I do.
While it may be possible to grow your business without Social Media, it does make it faster when you have it. Here’s a link to a podcast episode I did about growing your business without Social Media.
Build your email list!
Building your email list is job 1!
It’s an asset that you OWN in your business. No matter what Zuckerberg does, you can’t be kicked off, shadow banned, or ghosted on your own email list.
Do you remember last winter when Facebook and Instagram went down for a day? Imagine the panic for businesses who ONLY build on those platforms!
Better to be building your database so that you can communicate with your audience regardless of the algorithm.
The best way to grow your email list is to build a lead magnet that people want.
At Bodygraph Chart, we provide you with solutions for this from customizable Human Design charts to branded reports you can create from our templates.
Integrate these lead magnets on your website and connect your newsletter platform or CRM to start funneling leads into your email list on auto pilot.
Join The Build your Audience Bootcamp!
Create Content Consistently to Grow your Audience
Deliver valuable content consistently by showing up on the platforms you’ve committed to.
If you’re using Social Media, that could look like 5 or more posts each week and 3 stories each day. For your podcast or blog, it could be one new offering a week. Youtube could be one long form video and 3 shorts. Whatever you commit to, do your best to consistently show up for your audience. This builds the know, like and trust factor and lets them know that they can count on you to be there for them.
Give people a glimpse of your real life. Show them behind the scenes of what you’re doing in your business. Keep it interesting for them.
Remember that you can use a Social Media scheduler so that you can batch content when your energy is on so that you’re always working with your Human Design.
Use Paid Ads to Grow your Audience
Consider paid ads when you have an organic piece of content that’s doing well that relates to your business. If you’re a Human Design coach and you had a baking reel go viral, it won’t do your business any good to promote that.
You could also consider a well written ad when you’re launching something. It will help to build your audience AND get more eyeballs on your offer.
Host Webinars, Workshops, and Events to Grow your Audience
Whenever you’re hosting something online or in person, remember to have people sign up by leaving their email address. This too helps to build your list. At the end of an event, make them an offer (free or paid) to dive deeper into the world of Human Design with you.
Leverage Other People’s Property (OPP) to Grow your Audience
There are several ways to grow your own audience by doing guest appearances for others.
You could write a blog post for someone else’s blog, be interviewed on a podcast, do a workshop or webinar together, run an online challenge, or even do an email swap. Note – an email swap is not simply swapping lists. It’s where you each provide something of value to the other’s audience so that they can opt in, should they choose. Summits are an excellent way to grow your audience too!
There are endless ways to grow your audience.
Start with the one that resonates most with you or try a few to see what works best in your business. The main thing is that you look at audience attraction and growth as job 1 in your business so that whenever you launch any kind of offer, be it free or paid, you have people lining up to get their hands on it!
PS – If you’re ready to grow your audience and you’d like to have some fun doing it, join our Build your Audience Bootcamp in August!
Vickie Dickson
It’s me, Vickie.
I'm on a mission to stop the endless 'shoulding on yourself' so that you build the life, relationships, and business you're made for.
As a 30 year veteran of the entrepreneurial space, I’ve successfully owned just about every type of business there is. As a Manifesting Generator, I’ve taken them all the way to the top and then moved on to the next thing that I’m passionate about.
There’s a special place in my heart for entrepreneurial newbies and people who make building a business more complicated than it is which keeps them stuck, spinning their wheels.
I’m living the dream here at Bodygraph Chart helping Human Design practitioners build the business of their dreams without breaking their brain or their life!
If that sounds like you, you’re in the right place.
I’ve got you.💙