While there are many ways to grow a thriving practice, experience shows that the 'coaching package' model is a great approach for helping coaches, therapists and other transformation professionals stabilise their income and grow a thriving practice. There are x reasons for this:
a) When people pay by the hour, they limit their exposure. Think about it; who do you pay by the hour? Plumbers, lawyers, electricians… people who you want to spend as few hours with as possible. But as a transformation professional, you're often guiding people through big changes, so you want your clients to ensure they get what they need from you, and don't limit their exposure. The coaching package model is a great way of doing this.
b) When you enrol a client on a coaching package, not only do you have a clear idea of how much time you're going to need to commit to them; you also have a confirmed stream of income for that work. And for coaches who have been charging by the hour, it can be like stepping into another world when clients start paying you L1,000, L3,000 or more to work with you for a longer period of time. In fact, many TCB graduates earn back the full investment for the programme with the next client they sign up.
c) The simple math: If you start with how much you'd like to earn in a year (E.g. L40,000), then divide it by how much you charge for an hour (E.g. L50/hr), most coaches find that the number of client-hours they require is very high (E.g. 800 hours). In fact, for most coaches, therapists and changeworkers, this means seeing a client for an hour, then having an awkward pause at the end when they ask, "Would you like to book another session?"
Now let's look at the package model approach. For example, Christina Cooper recently took part in the Thriving Coaches Blueprint programme and transitioned from an hourly model to a package model. She's enrolled a couple of clients on packages, the most recent one being for six months at L2,500.
Let's do the maths using this model. When you start with how much you'd like to earn in a year (E.g. L40,000) then divide it by a decent package price (E.g. L2500) you find that the number of client-packages you require is much lower (E.g. 16). And there's a world of difference between finding 16 people who are right for you to work with, VS finding HUNDREDS of people who are willing to buy a couple of hours from you. Not only that, but when a client enrols on a coaching package, they're *more* invested and committed to getting the results that matter to them. You might be amazed at what becomes clear to you when you do this simple exercise:
A = How much would you like to earn in the next year?
B = How much do you charge for an hour?
C = How many client hours would you require at this rate? (C=A/B)
D = What's a package price you'd like to charge at this point?
E = How many client-packages do you require? (E=A/D)
By the way, I recently worked through this whole subject in more depth during a Facebook live in the Profitable Coaches Group. You can watch the 21-minute video here: Watch Video Here