How can you use professional networks to find new writing opportunities as a coach?

Before starting my coaching agency, I was familiar with the concept of coaching and entrepreneurship. My first clients were friends, classmates, professors, and fellow entrepreneurs seeking to improve their pitching skills or health. We served as mirrors and accountability partners for each other. My coaching experience began on the playground and has transitioned into the classroom and real world of business, with diverse clients such as US Air Force Captains and divorcees launching new ventures. I enter their lives during a time of transformation, starting with a self-evaluation process.

When I am researching potential clients on LinkedIn I find it particularly useful to look at their posts and other interactions to understand their behaviors, as well as their goals, before reaching out.

For my coaching business, I primarily seek out clients through personal connections. We connect on an emotional level. While I may come across potential clients at networking events or through my blog posts, most of my clients are referrals. I don't actively advertise my services and often work with clients pro bono. People have suggested that I should become a certified therapist, but what sets me apart as a coach is my writing ability. By continuously improving my writing skills, whether for articles or books, I am able to effectively communicate with and inspire others. Writing and coaching go hand in hand, as both require the ability to truly understand and empathize with others. Coaching, like writing, is heart-centered.

When pitching your idea, it's crucial to understand the motivations and interests of the person you are pitching to. Pitching is essentially about building a partnership. This took me some time to realize. People don't want to feel like they are being sold to; they would rather form a genuine connection with someone new. While ideas can be inspiring, they are also fleeting. Friendships, on the other hand, require effort and emotional intelligence from both parties. So why not skip the sales pitch and invest in building a sustainable partnership instead? This way, you will get your pitch across.

Your portfolio does more than showcase your work to potential clients - it validates your capabilities. Mine is stored on Dropbox for ease (mine and my client's) and I've found it useful to split my work into a range of folders. I work with a variety of industries in my B2B practice, so I find it useful to create folders reflecting my range. For agencies, this demonstrates my range of knowledge. For direct clients, it means I can share the most relevant folders with ease. I also find it particularly useful to create folders for different writing formats (eg in house publications, profiles, ads). This communicates to the viewer the breadth of my work and often leads to add-on sales.

I utilize my writing portfolio through platforms like Instagram and Upwork. IG allows for easy content curation, while Upwork's client review system helps me establish credibility quickly. Sometimes, I offer a complimentary draft to showcase my tone and style and to ensure compatibility with the project. I refer to it as a "teaser," although others may see it as free advice; however, we all know there is no such thing as a free lunch. I believe that providing a sample benefits both parties by aligning expectations and reducing potential misunderstandings. Additionally, I often ask clients to consider me for future projects or to work together long-term after reaching certain milestones, as this builds trust and improves the overall output.

Remember, the professional network is also a space for you to showcase your writing. Use it to truly add value to others. When you write, be sure to share useful content that fills gaps for folks. It's a shared space and what you write might resonate with many including potential collaborations.

Don't be afraid to think outside the box and come up with innovative ideas. For example, if a technology company is looking to engage their audience in a creative way, they can draw inspiration from other industries. Using narrative techniques like metaphors and concepts such as the hero's journey can greatly enhance technical documents and tell a compelling story. The art of storytelling is simple - it follows the hero's journey, which is how we consume stories. So why not personify technology; i.e., AI, and blockchain and make the developers the heroes? Instead of just explaining features, tell the story of technology using the hero's journey. It's inventive and powerful.