Previous Experience Desired
One of the most common questions we often hear from new coaches building a practice is, “Should I niche?” As you may know, a niche, or the act of niching, is a marketing strategy intended to generate visibility with products and messaging aimed at a specific demographic. The belief is that by operating within a niche, your service or product and your consumer can find each other. It can also provide a way to effectively maximize limited resources (money, time, etc.).
When we begin to look at coaches and their approach corporate clients, we have found that coaches tend to engage in a similar conversation: Should I niche in a specific industry? More to the point, the niching conversation steps away from a marketing resource and becomes an obstacle. Primarily, we hear two reasons for this: (1) coaches believe that they cannot approach companies without industry specific experience, and (2) coaches get stopped when prospective clients raise the objection that they want a coach with a background in that industry.
Does this sound familiar?
What’s a coach to do?
We would like to offer you five questions to ask yourself if you’re in this predicament:
1. Are you a consultant? Remember that ICF distinguishes between coaching and consulting. If you are a consultant, then yes, industry specific knowledge may be an important factor to the services you offer. As a coach, consider that it may be more helpful—even preferable—to be outside of the industry. The coach will then be immune to the prevailing assumptions of the company or the industry and partner from a clean, clear space.
2. Are you, or do you have an intention to be, an internal coach? If you are an internal coach or if you aspire to be an internal coach, then familiarity with an industry will likely be useful. A great deal of relationship can be formed because those clients will experience a sense of connection based on the commonality of experience.
3. What does your empire look like? Another way of asking this question: What is your intention around your practice? Do you want to be the coach for working moms? Not industry specific. Do you want to coach financial institutions because you formerly worked in finance and want to transform the industry from the inside out? Industry specific. The key elements to your answer will involve choice and intention.
4. Where are you choosing from? You might consider exploring how many of your automatic behaviors (habit, fear, “easy,” fast) are informing this answer. We are not saying that choosing from your automatics is “bad.” It just may be limiting. What can’t you see because you’re operating from old patterns of behavior when it comes to building your practice?
5. What are you avoiding by being in a conversation about niche? Action? Commitment? A breakthrough? Hmm…?
So, if we might offer advice rather than coaching: stop worrying if you’re in the right place and start carving out a place. Right now.
P.S. We’d love for you to share your thoughts on this topic in the comments area below.
Christine Sachs and Patrick Burlingham
Christine Sachs, MA, MCC, is a New York City-based Leadership Coach and trainer who has worked with individuals and organizations. She has coached executives and senior managers in a variety of industries and organizations, including multinational corporations, NGOs and tech startups. Christine is especially skilled at working with high performers in examining and understanding what shifts and/or changes will propel them to their desired results. Additionally, she creates customized leadership development programs uniquely suited to the organization with whom she is working. These are full service programs that can address all aspects of leadership development from identifying key leadership traits to accelerating existing leaders in their positions. In addition to her private practice, Christine trains coaches with Accomplishment Coaching. She holds a master’s degree from Washington University and lives in Manhattan with her husband and their daughter. Patrick Burlingham maintains a growing coaching business, supporting leaders and high performers in tech startups as well as independent creatives of all types. He is a graduate of Accomplishment Coaching’s accredited coach-specific training program. Patrick leads an HR consulting practice in New York City, advising and working with early-stage, venture capital-backed businesses in periods of rapid growth. He has also held roles in executive leadership for the HR function for various e-commerce businesses, including Plated and BluePrintCleanse. He received his SPHR designation from the HR Certification Institute in 2012. His joyful and relationship-focused leadership style was shaped by his early career on both the management and creative sides of theatre production. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Kalamazoo College. Patrick is an avid marathoner and triathlete, having completed over 25 half and full marathons in the past five years. He is currently training for the 2017 Cozumel Ironman. The views and opinions expressed in guest posts featured on this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of the International Coach Federation (ICF). The publication of a guest post on the ICF Blog does not equate to an ICF endorsement or guarantee of the products or services provided by the author.
The views and opinions expressed in guest posts featured on this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of the International Coach Federation (ICF). The publication of a guest post on the ICF Blog does not equate to an ICF endorsement or guarantee of the products or services provided by the author.
Additionally, for the purpose of full disclosure and as a disclaimer of liability, this content was possibly generated using the assistance of an AI program. Its contents, either in whole or in part, have been reviewed and revised by a human. Nevertheless, the reader/user is responsible for verifying the information presented and should not rely upon this article or post as providing any specific professional advice or counsel. Its contents are provided “as is,” and ICF makes no representations or warranties as to its accuracy or completeness and to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law specifically disclaims any and all liability for any damages or injuries resulting from use of or reliance thereupon.
Great post!
Love your photos ❣️Information was informative. Thanks
As a trained whole life coach It took me a long time to own my Motivated to Marry Niche. It brings me the type of clients I am passionate to help. Singles looking for a serious, committed relationship. So many other things come up in the coaching that I do serve my clients in a whole life capacity. The Motivated to Marry niche is just the door they come in to. And I am known as an expert for this area of relationship coaching. Today I believe having a niche is very important in coaching to differentiate yourself.
As a certified Career Transition coach, having a niche has been extremely important in gaining the respect of not only my civilian clients but also my military ones. I have talked to many professional that wanted to hire a coach , but they weren’t comfortable hiring a ” general ‘ do everything coach. They thought for their needs they needed someone who was zeroed in on their specific issue. I believe you can market yourself so much better with a niche and really target that industry that you have a passion for. I know for a fact that the military would never have hired me if I said I was a general ” life coach “. . Their needs were resume writing, cover letters and preparing them for interviews, which is what I do. Many of my clients are unsure of their next career move , so understanding the employment trends and all my coaching background is essential to assuring them the best possible coaching. I am 100 % for having coaches develop their own niche. Honestly it might take awhile, but in the end it really will pay off when it comes to gaining trust and respect from the professional community.
Nice article. However! I disagree with your implication that a niche = industry-specific.
A niche could equally be “SME owners of companies in their first year”, or “working moms”, or “junior executives wanting to develop executive presence” – or not?
Keith