Ep 247 - How to Market Your Coaching Business Without Social Media: Proven Strategies for Success

Is it possible to sell your coaching WITHOUT social media?

The answer is a resounding YES! In this episode, I dive into the often-overlooked strategies for marketing your coaching business beyond Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTok. While social media can be a powerful tool, the reality is that these platforms are borrowed spaces—we don’t own them, and if they disappeared tomorrow, so would our audience. That’s why it’s essential to build a marketing strategy that stands the test of time.  

I’ll share practical ways to attract clients offline, from leveraging speaking opportunities to growing through referrals and word-of-mouth. These are the same strategies that helped me bring in clients long before social media or even Google existed, and they’re just as effective today.  

So whether you’re an introvert, new to coaching, or simply looking for alternative ways to market your business, this episode will give you fresh inspiration and actionable steps. Tune in now and start building a coaching business that thrives—social media or not!

👉Ready to get supported in your Coaching Business? Book a call today: http://debbieshadid.com/schedule

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Transcript

Welcome to the Life Coach Business Building School where we teach coaches how to grow their coaching business week after week. Today we're going to talk about marketing your coaching business without social media. I know, you guys, did you hear that? How do you market your coaching business without using social media?

Before we get started though, what I do want to talk about is fear. In fact, I want to tell you about my story, about being scared to be on social media, to be on video. to be doing a lot of the things that I comfortably do today. So I think fear is just like a constant companion as you begin to grow your coaching business.

And I know many, many times fear almost derailed my business, almost, but I kept going anyway. So today I know that probably you look at me and you look at many other coaches and you're like, well, I can't do it like they did it. So here's the truth. I just kept going, you guys. I remember. being so scared.

I'm going to tell you a story that I have not told publicly where I was recording myself on Zoom and I was so scared to record myself on Zoom with nobody watching that I was afraid my husband who was downstairs in another part of the house would even hear me. That's how nervous I was and I'm telling you guys this because I want you to know how you feel is perfectly normal.

I was so scared. My heart was beating so hard and I was having trouble breathing. And all I was doing was recording myself talking. And then when I finally got it done and I went to go watch myself back, I was too scared to watch myself back. I had the volume turned down really low because I was too scared that my husband would hear me.

Can you imagine that? It was like paralyzing fear, but I kept thinking how in the world am I going to have an online coaching business if I cannot do this? I even went so far as to set up a Facebook group that nobody was in where I could practice going live. In fact, on every social media platform that I've been on, I actually have a second account where I tried to do something before I actually went to my main account.

So you guys, how you feel is normal. I think it's normal to be scared. It's like primitive fear that shows up. I recently had an opportunity to get coached in a very large group and there was probably a couple hundred people there and we were on Zoom. It wasn't like I was getting on stage. We were on Zoom and I remembered when they called on me.

My heart started to beat so hard. And here I am many years into my business and I was having the hardest time. I felt that same feeling again where my throat was tight and I was breathing kind of weird and I didn't sound like myself. All this stuff was going on in my head and all I was doing was talking on zoom just like I do every single day except immediately I had told myself a story That there was 200 people watching me.

As if I was that important. So just know, fear is primitive. It's gonna be with you. And it only gets better when you do it more often. So you gotta get over yourself. And it only gets better the more often that you do it. So the more often that you show up on Zoom, the more often you record yourself, the more often you practice.

And by the way, practice and watch yourself. You've heard me say it before and I'll say it again. I practice everything I'm doing and then I watch myself. I watch myself back on consultation calls. There is so much to be learned by watching yourself. Go ahead and let the fear be there, right? Feel the self criticism.

As I said, I can just hear the nonsense going on, just talking so loud, that primitive brain going, oh, you look terrible, you sound terrible, like, you know, nothing you're saying sounds good, and you just said that thing again, and all of those things are going on in my head and everybody else's head. Every single time they're on Zoom, every time they're on social media, every time they're going live.

It just finally gets to a point where the voice is not quite as loud. So it's always going to be there. This is part of growing your coaching business. And I always say that, the growth in your coaching business probably is really about self growth. Yes, I teach people the skills of social media and the skills of tech and the skills of copywriting.

The skills of email marketing, but where there's really growth is self growth. All right, first let's talk about social media. I know I'm going to talk about the places other than social media to market your business, but I have to start out by talking about social media because it is the gateway to the world.

And I know, again, I'm repeating myself, but it's important if you have not heard this for you to hear it again, okay? There is no place in the entire world or any other marketing thing that I could talk about today. That is more powerful than social media. You literally have the reach of the world. You guys, the world.

And there are new people entering into this space every single day. Again, most of you guys, your fear is based out of not knowing what to do. And why would you know what to do if you have never done it? We actually teach clients, who are even in their 70s, upper 70s. How to do this stuff and how would they know how to do it?

They've not done it either. Okay Even our people that are you know, 20 and 30 that we work with sometimes they are uncomfortable with social media So it's just normal. So I think that most people that are scared about social media really are scared about I don't actually know if I'm doing it right.

Even if I've watched trainings, You know, what happens if people find out that I did it wrong? Most of it's not anything anyone's going to find out, right? You're worried about what to say. You're worried about what you look like. You're worried that you're going to embarrass yourself in front of all these people.

And you're worried that you're going to sound dumb, right? You're going to look terrible. and I think all of those feelings are so justified. I really do. I think it's like, let's just normalize the fact that it's scary to be on Zoom. It's scary to talk about your coaching business.

This is a skill that has to be learned. Getting comfortable with social media, it's a skill. You know, I'm at a point now, after years of doing this, that I can do things sometimes in one take, and then sometimes it takes me ten takes to try to do something. So. I just wanted to let you guys know, fear is normal, I've been where you are, I have been paralyzed honestly with fear, but I figured out how to get past it and to get on with it.

Fear just keeps showing up and I keep getting on with it. Alright, now let's talk about where you can market your business without social media. You guys ready? Okay, the first thing is, is that you do have to have a website.

So if you're not doing social media, and ideally you'd be doing both social media and you would have a website, but if you're not going to be on social media, you've got to have a place where people to check you out. It's like your storefront, right?

It's your address. It's the place people can drive by and see who you are and all of that. But more than anything, it's the place where you put your calendar. where people can schedule a call with you. It's also the place where you capture email addresses. You cannot go into 2025 and not start going an email list.

It is essential to have email addresses. We just went through the tick tock thing. It is going to happen again. You guys, there will be other social media platforms that people face this kind of challenge with. The only thing that you own are email addresses. All right. So the first thing I want to talk about, In marketing your business without social media is talking to people.

I know, again, I talk about this all the time, but this morning I was at our church and they had this big dinner after church and there was hundreds of people sitting there and I just was thinking like, how many of you guys, and I know some of you guys are gonna say, I don't go to church. That's not my thing.

I'm not saying you should go to church. I'm just saying there are places where you show up and there are lots of people or. you might want to start showing up in places where there are lots of people. Because this is the other thing, is a lot of you guys are like, I don't go anywhere. And I want to say, well, if you want to have a coaching business, then you better start going to some places.

Because you do have to be around people. So, think about what the places are that you have people. For me, it was just an example this morning, I knew I was going to record this podcast, And I was looking around the room thinking, Geez, how many people in here have no idea about whatever your niche might be?

And all you have to do is walk from table to table and have small talk. You're not there to sell people. You're just there to make friends and, you know, say, Hey, what's happening? What's going on with you at work and just have conversations. So think about the places that you go or the places you're going to start going.

You know, at the gym is one of the places that you can talk to people, but also at your local mall. how many of you guys have seen people walking in the mall? I see it all the time, especially before hours, you know, before 10 o'clock or 11 o'clock, whatever time your local mall opens and people are walking around the mall.

There's places like that all over where people go and they get exercise. So even if you don't belong to a gym or don't have the finances to go to a gym, there are places where you can go meet people. I was shopping yesterday. You walk into a store, they start asking you, Hey, what's happening? What are you up to?

That is an opening for you to start telling what you're doing. If you guys have children, you're dropping off your kids at school. I'm a Grammy. I'm taking my daughter's kids to mom's day out, right? I walk in people like, hey, what's happening? I'm like, oh jeez. I've got a busy day of coaching.

Literally, that's what I say. And they're like, coaching? What do you do? I tell people, okay? If you go out to dinner. I had dinner last night with my mother in law. The guy's like, hey, what do you guys been up to? That is an invitation for you to say what you've been up to. I'm going to go on and on with some examples because you guys are still saying, well that's Debbie, we don't do any of that stuff.

I'm pretty sure you've had something repaired at your house. I'm pretty sure if you live in an apartment and maintenance guy has been there. If you have a dog, you could go to a dog park. You could walk your dog. Most of you guys get haircuts, Most of you guys go places.

And again, if you are living in your house, And all you're having is everything delivered, then get yourself outside. If you want to be a coach, this is part of what you have to do. So, all of those things are ways that you market your business. When I started my business in 2000, what I had access to was the phone book.

And my area, you know, I had that wedding magazine that I bought. My area was the state of Oklahoma. Well, I didn't have phone books for every single town in Oklahoma. I had, like, the phone books that I could gather for all my towns right by me, and that was it. Right? You had to start looking up people.

There was no get on Google and look up people, okay? So how did I build my business? I found some businesses in the Yellow Pages. I started going to them. I did not call first. I went to the business. A lot of them were closed, right? Cause they, they were wedding places that were not open regular business hours.

But you know what? I kept going until I found a wedding venue that was open. When I walked in, I started talking to the lady. I was telling her what I was doing and we just got to chatting, right? We just chatted and as we talked. I said to her, Hey, tell me, who do you know? Like who are your favorite people in this space?

You know, in the wedding world, who are your favorites? You guys apply that to your business model, to whoever it is you coach. And it could be your hairdresser. Like Who are the people that you know that are in need of this thing? Okay, so I asked this lady Who do you know and she told me some names, you know what I did.

I got in my car I immediately drove to that business. I walked into that business and I said, hey Tabby told me I should talk to you that is how you do it. I literally built my business by one person telling me who to go talk to next Are you bold enough to ask people who should I talk to? That's called referrals.

You guys. I want to tell you that before I actually made my first sale. I know I've got this written down somewhere, but it's close to 200 sales calls, 200 people that I talked to before I made one sale. And you guys, my offer was 135 a month. So before I made one sale, I think it was 198 or 196 people that I talked to.

Are you willing to do that? How many people have you actually talked to and when I say talk to people I'm talking about real Conversations where I said, I want to tell you what I do. I you know, I'm here to sell you an ad in my magazine This is what the circulation is. Remember when you're talking to people you talk about the pain points So, I had figured out what the pain points were in the wedding world, in Oklahoma City, in my hometown.

I figured out what that was and then I talked about me being the solution. Why they needed me. Are you doing that? you guys, I tracked every single person that I talked to. And do you know that over the next 12 months, after I started my business, I kept going back to the same places, month after month, I would repeatedly go back to places and I'm sure they were like, Oh God, here she comes again.

I'd walk in the door and I'd be like, Hey, what's going on? I was in the area. I thought I'd just stop by and say, Hi, how are you guys? Right? I would find out something about, you know, their kids, or their partner, their spouse, or like, show me the new things you've got in the shop. Whatever it was, I went by and I made friends.

And do you know that after a month, after month, after month with connecting with people. Sometimes after a year, people would say, you know what, what is it that you do again? And that was an opening for me to start talking to him about what it was I sold.

You guys are salespeople. Are you willing to do this? That was basically networking, right? I wasn't going to a networking event, but everything I've just described to you is networking. Now let's talk about networking events. I also want to tell you, and out myself. I've gone to many networking events early in my career where I walked in and I was too scared to talk to anyone.

Again, I'm sure you guys are like, Debbie talks all the time, how can this be? No, where I, I went in and I was too afraid. I've even pulled up to places and I couldn't even get out of the car. I get how you feel, but again, there has to be a motivation. I had a big why. What is your big why? Remember the why that makes you cry.

What is it? My big why? I had a mortgage to pay. I had a daughter that I was taking care of. I was a single parent. I had to get it figured out. There really wasn't an option. So the few times that I did stuff like that, I was mad at myself at the end of the day. Like I need to make a living. How am I going to do this?

So you find networking events that you can go to. Figure out what you're going to talk about. Figure out the stories that you're going to tell. Figure out how you're going to introduce yourself to people. Again, one of the reasons why you don't like going to networking events is because you're not sure about your niche.

You're not sure what to say, right? You haven't practiced it. Remember that practice thing where you walk around your house, walk around your neighborhood, and you say what you do to help people. Get to where you're comfortable saying that. So go to networking events. How do you find networking events? You Google it.

You Google and you ask for networking events and you get specific. You can say networking events for women and try to think out of the box. So like you could go to a networking event for women that was like to do with financial planning let's say. Why would that be good? if you're going to an event where women are talking about investing Then we know they're people who have money, right?

So you go and, and some stockbroker puts on this luncheon and it's a networking event. He's there trying to sell you, but you're there connecting with people. So think out of the box. You're not going to find a networking event where your person is specifically, so you want to find other networking events.

Do not pay if anybody here is in BNI and you're listening to this, I'm sorry that I'm going to say this, but you do not need to pay for BNI. For those of you guys around the world, I'm sure you don't even know what I'm talking about, but in the U S there is a company called BNI. Don't pay. Okay. Yes, you might need to pay a one time luncheon like fee.

to go to that particular thing because there's going to be a lunch and they're at a venue or something. But don't join a networking group long term. Plus there are many things like Toastmasters that you can go to for free and introduce yourself. Here's the thing. Meet people and follow up. This is the beginning of you learning how to nurture relationships.

So you go, you sit in your car. As soon as you get done, you write down all the people that you met. You write down a note about what it is they talked about. Right? Make sure you've got a way to connect back with them. As soon as you're done, at the end of the day, you send them a message. Whether it's a text message, an email, Or a voice message and you're like, it's so great to talk to you today, you know, if you're ever in the area Let's connect over a cup of coffee or please make sure you pass on my name to so and so Okay, you want to follow up and build relationships? Relationships are going to be the key to you getting to the next person, Okay, people want to refer you when they know you No like and trust. This is a key part of building a business. Alright, now there are all kinds of places online. Go to Google again and ask Google, Where can you market your business online? There are so many networking groups.

So you'll end up in a big networking group They'll put you in a breakout room and you go and you introduce yourself and you tell them what it is you need Okay, look and find those things make a commitment to do this and again follow up with those people Right keep following up. Alright, let's talk about speaking and teaching.

This is another opportunity for you something you can do without spending any money in a lot of cases and Doesn't involve social media. Okay, there are places online where you can promote your speaking event. You've heard me talk about Eventbrite That's just one example again in the US go to Google go to chat JPT and ask them Where can I promote an event for free?

Okay an online event or an in person event? You can use anything in your local market as well. So if you're gonna go to the library, the library has a bulletin board or they have a website where they're gonna promote you, okay? At our local libraries here, you can rent a room and you can promote within the library system what your talk is gonna be about and you can go there and do a talk.

People can sign up and it's free. Also, think out of the box. So, your friend's hair salon, let's say you could offer something, let's say about the mindset of weight loss, and it could be free for people that are her clients. You come in and you do kind of like a pampered chef party. You guys remember those where you bring in food and you're like, you have people come in and you just meet people and you teach people.

Right? We even have a client that is doing at home parties. She's partnered up with somebody kind of like Cabi or Pampered Chef and she's partnering with them and she's teaching coaching and they're doing, selling their stuff. Yeah, you guys just have to think out of the box. Okay, another thing about speaking online would be joining a summit.

You guys have heard me talk recently about the Design Live Thrive Summit for Women. That is where we showcase our clients, but there's many opportunities, many opportunities. Now I will say, the one thing that you should know, I have mine organized in a way that if there's 32 speakers, which is how many spots we have available, about half of them are spoken for, 32 people, including myself, and I have a big list, we're all marketing for each other, okay?

And then you have to have a really good freebie. So that you can get email addresses that would be like a companion guide that goes with your talk So if you're gonna do a summit make sure that you don't you know, skip out on creating this epic freebie That is of such high value and it's not just a consultation call or a you know coaching session It needs to be something that really feels them.

They will give you your email address. So, again, summits online. Just go ask ChatGPT, where is a summit that I can talk, you know, where I can do a speaking event at or where I can host a workshop or where I can educate people. Locally, you can also do print. There are print magazines. Yes, I had print magazines, so I know a lot about that.

And there are still like boutique style print magazines. Even within my local neighborhood, there is a print magazine for my neighborhood. So I'm sure it's the same all over the country. You just got to start looking. You can also become an expert at your local TV channel. And I know you're like, I don't want to do that either, but here's the deal, you guys.

That gets you in front of a lot of people and I too have done that remember the girl That's so scared of everything. I did that too. Reached out to my local network and I said, you know, I'm an expert on this particular topic and I would love to be able to talk anytime that you need somebody to fill a time slot and You know, the producers of that morning show, let's say, or the evening news, or the lunchtime news, whatever it is, they have to fill the time.

Like, if there's an hour, they have to fill it with things. So there's weather reports, there's local news, there's national news, and then there's also times that are just empty that they need to fill. So I said, look, when you need to fill a spot, Then I am the go to expert on these things. And guess what? I got to go talk on the air, right?

And give out my name and my information. So you could be the go to expert in your local area. Maybe they have a Sunday morning show. I don't know. Figure that out and get yourself involved. So how about connecting where you help people? I have a current elite client who is actually doing this already at her job.

She has been at her career for several years and she decided after she got certified to start giving back. And so she does a monthly workshop for her coworkers and she doesn't charge the company. Okay. She's doing it for free, but it gets her in front of people. And you know what else it does? This is so good.

It helps her employer and she works for a big company. See the value that coaching brings because they might actually want to have her go to another location Now we're talking about getting paid So she teaches people on a monthly basis about how to get along with your fellow team members better About how to work better in different roles What to do if you're being overlooked, right?

The troubles that people have in the workplace She teaches and coaches around that Can you see how you could do something like that if you do work full time? You could also go to your school, your local school. Like I have people who coach mindset coaching around sports teams. They've literally gone to the football coach or the basketball coach or cross country coach and they've said, look, I'll do some mindset coaching for the cross country team.

And of course they said yes. Okay. You can do that with the Girl Scouts. I mean, you guys figure out, I'm just saying, think out of the box. Of course, podcasting and YouTube would be amazing. You can be a guest on a show. You guys have to find a show that really fits your space and you're not going on their show to sell.

You're going on their show to support their clients. When you show up as an amazing guest and you give super high value, you know what happens? The people who are listening, they're like, I want to go find out about Debbie. That's how that happens. It's not because you're selling them, okay? And again, asking people to refer you.

Alright, neighborhood directories I mentioned, schools, Girl Scouts, gymnastics, sports, uh, talking at your work, the libraries, lots of places, okay? Let me give a recap of everything I've just covered, and I just want to challenge you. Go to Google. And go to ChatGPT and say this is the kind of coach I am, this is the person I'm looking for, this is who my ideal client is.

Remember in ChatGPT you want to give as much explanation as possible. Go there and say please list all the places other than social media that I could market myself for free and tell me the best ways to do that. You guys with me? Okay. Let me recap. Expect to be scared. It is so normal. Nothing has gone wrong.

Nearly every one of us is an introvert. I hear this too. They're like, but Debbie, you're not an introvert. I'm like, yes I am. What are you talking about? I don't want to go walk into a room of people I don't know. But I want to make money, and if you don't get over that story that you're telling yourself about being an introvert, you will never make a dime. So time to set that aside, okay?

No one else can do this for you. I hear this too. They're like, if somebody else will just bring the clients to me, it doesn't work that way, my dear one. It does not work that way. You're the coach, and you're the marketer, and you're the salesperson, okay? So you guys have to represent yourself the story I want you to start saying is This is a beautiful opportunity that I have to be in charge of my own business.

It's a beautiful opportunity that I get to say all I've done. It's a beautiful opportunity I get to do to introduce myself to people because I'm the one that can best sell myself. That's a story you have to tell. So, talk to people everywhere you go. Network locally and online. Again, do your speaking workshops at the library, wherever.

Support your community. Look at getting on TV. Be a best resource for reporters. Do your podcast, your YouTubes, all of those things. In closing though, you guys, imagine that there was no Google, and now imagine there was no ChatGPT. You are a smart woman. What I want you to do is you answer the question. If I was not going to be on social media, How am I going to find a place to promote my coaching business?

And don't say, I don't know. I don't know is not a valid answer. You can't do that right now. So where are you going to promote your coaching business? Where are you going to find somebody? You have shut down your mind and you've said to yourself, I don't know where to find my people. Have you done that?

That is like closing off your brilliance. What you need to start saying is, I am smart enough to figure out where to find people. And ask yourself that question every day. If the electric was getting shut off today, or my kids needed medicine, or I had some car, I needed gas in my car, whatever is like a crisis, where would I find somebody to sell my coaching to?

You guys figure that out, because today is the day that you can change everything that you're doing. Today's the day you can ask yourself, where am I meeting someone that I'm going to talk to about my coaching? People will begin to listen to you.

And this is how you build a profitable coaching business. People have been building businesses for decades, you guys, decades, without having online resources. And you can still do it today. Alright? I hope I've inspired you. I hope I've, helped you to just see we're all nervous. We're all in this together.

We're all worried about looking bad. We're all worried about saying it wrong. And the only way you get from, the only way that I got from the girl who could not even record herself, and I'm talking about it took months to get over that, to the woman who's here on the podcast, who wants to be standing on a big stage, The only way I did that, you guys, is because I practiced. I practiced and I changed my mindset.

One last thing. If we have not connected about all the ways that I can support you and your coaching business, Please get on my calendar, Debbieshadid.com/schedule you guys should know me by now. I'm not an arm twister. You guys have a problem, which is you don't have any clients or enough clients.

I have a solution. Right? Let's get together and see if we can bridge the gap between where you are to where you want to be. Because again, I have the framework to get you there. And I know that you've, you know, already spent money. You've already made mistakes. You've already not gotten what you thought.

But you're never going to get your business built unless you get some help. So come have a call with me again. Debbieshadid.com/schedule. Let's explore what's happening in your business and just decide if it's a place for you. Decide if what we have to offer is the best next place for you to go and learn about how to grow a profitable coaching business.

We'll see you guys later. Bye bye.