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If You Want More Coaching Clients, Listen to the Market: A Deep Dive Into Testing, Traction, and Finding Your Voice

Growing a coaching business can sometimes feel like shouting into a void. You have passion. You have the expertise. Still, the puzzle of consistently attracting and converting coaching clients can seem daunting. You might have heard “Just be yourself and your clients will find you.” Or, on the other hand, “Follow this proven script and you’ll be booked solid!” But the truth is this: if you want to expand your coaching practice, you must actively listen to what is happening in the market. That means engaging strategically, testing messages, and ultimately finding traction in your own voice. Let’s dive into how you can do this practically, based on decades of digital marketing experience and real-world web support for diverse entrepreneurs.

Listening to the Market: Why Guessing Isn’t Enough

Too often, coaches create content or launch offers based solely on what they think people need. They invest precious hours into designing programs, recording videos, or writing blog posts—only to be met with crickets at launch. Why? Because they skipped a crucial step: tuning in to the market’s pulse.

In today’s highly connected world, the digital marketplace is noisy. Prospective clients are bombarded by coaches, consultants, and experts. They scroll quickly, pausing only when something grabs them—be it a message, an energy, or a story that resonates. The only way to discover what grabs your audience—and why—is to regularly put your ideas out there, and then review the data. Not guesses. Not gut feelings. But the actual numbers.

Why Regular Content Posting Is Your Cheat Code

Posting content regularly is the lifeblood of this process. It’s not just consistency for consistency’s sake. Each piece of content—be it a YouTube video, an Instagram reel, a blog post, or a LinkedIn article—is an experiment. It’s a data point you can study to detect which messages connect and which fall flat.

Let’s say you’ve been creating videos for a couple of years. When you look back, you see that some of your videos have only a handful of views while a few stand out with hundreds or even thousands. Those high-performing videos are goldmines of insight. What topics were you addressing? What stories did you share? Was your energy different? Did you reveal more of your personality? Were you addressing a top-of-mind pain point?

For example, if a video titled “3 Mistakes Every New Coach Makes” outperforms “Why You Need a Website as a Coach,” that tells you something about your audience’s current concerns. They’re more interested in avoiding pitfalls than in technical solutions at the moment. Your next experiment might be to double down on the “mistakes” theme, or to add nuance, like “Mistakes I Made My First Year and How I Fixed Them.”

How to Test Your Messages Like a Pro

Developing a message that lands is never about luck. It’s about methodical testing. Here’s a step-by-step method you can adapt:

1. Brainstorm a list of messages. Pull these from your expertise, client conversations, questions you see on social media, and topics you care about.

2. Create varied content. Every week, put out different types of content around these messages—short tips, live Q&As, stories, how-tos, myths debunked, personal anecdotes, etc.

3. Use analytics to gather data. Nearly every platform will show you engagement data: views, likes, comments, shares, saves, average watch time. Don’t forget to read comments and DMs—they tell you how people feel about your message.

4. Identify traction. After a few weeks or months, look for patterns. Which topics get the most reactions? What triggers direct outreach (“I needed to hear this”)? Does a particular style—humorous, vulnerable, authoritative—get more engagement?

5. Refine your content strategy. Now double down on what works, while gently phasing out what doesn’t resonate. Tweak one element at a time so you know what’s driving results.

It’s Not Just What, It’s Who

There’s another angle coaches often miss: your message is only part of the equation. The market isn’t just looking for information—they’re seeking someone they relate to, who delivers the solution in a way that makes them feel seen, heard, or inspired.

Think about this: countless coaches teach “confidence skills.” But one coach uses humor and self-deprecating stories, while another leans on mindfulness and zen analogies. Each attracts a different audience—not because their message is fundamentally different, but because their style, their voice, resonates with a certain group.

So when you post content, you aren’t just testing what people want to learn—you’re also testing how you show up. Play with different modalities:

- Video vs. written posts

- High-energy vs. calm delivery

- Personal storytelling vs. quick tips

- Behind-the-scenes glimpses vs. polished presentations

As you experiment, you’ll discover where people pay attention. The content getting the most responses is a hint about your “message-market fit.”

Using Trends Without Losing Yourself

Some coaches make the mistake of chasing whatever seems to be trending, hoping to ride a viral wave to client abundance. While being aware of trends is smart, it’s only helpful if you can connect a topical subject to your deeper message and strengths.

For example, perhaps everyone is talking about AI and productivity right now. If you’re a life coach, you might film a video: “How Using ChatGPT Helped Me Beat Procrastination—And How You Can Too.” This lets you plug into a trending topic, but through your lens of personal development. Don’t lose your core identity chasing numbers—let trends be a bridge, not a detour.

Finding Your Own Voice: Your Greatest Asset

Over time, your message will naturally evolve as you get feedback. At first, you may mimic the style or tactics of successful coaches. That’s normal—a kind of training wheels phase where you’re learning the ropes. But keep a keen eye on where you come alive and where you get traction. This intersection—where your unique way of teaching meets the market’s needs—is your sweet spot.

This “voice” isn’t limited to words. It’s the stories you share, the details you focus on, the gaps you call out in your industry, the way you interact in comments, your quirks, your passion. Clients don’t just buy solutions—they buy you, the coach they resonate with, the person they’d enjoy working with week after week.

Turning Engagement Into Offers: Planning Your Next Steps

So what’s the end game? All the insights you glean from posting, testing, and analyzing help you to create offers—coaching programs, online courses, digital products—that people are already signaling they want. Instead of dreaming up an offer in a vacuum, you can look at your most commented-on post, your most shared video, your highest retention rate, and think: “This is what my market cares about. How can I package this into a paid experience?”

Start small—a live workshop based on your top video. Or a mini-course around the topic people DM you about most. With each success and each failure, you calibrate further, moving closer to a stable, thriving coaching practice.

Beyond Keywords: The Human Element

Many coaches rely heavily on keyword research or SEO tools alone. Yes, those are helpful for identifying popular topics. But the missing link is always the human element. People are not only searching for what and how-to—they’re also looking for a guide, a voice, a mentor who aligns with their values and energy.

If two coaches offer a workshop on “Scaling Your Coaching Business,” the coach who shares honest stories, responds to comments, or offers a fresh perspective will outshine the one who sounds robotic or generic. That’s why testing your market in public, not just keyword tools, is so vital.

The Virtuous Cycle: Post, Test, Refine, Repeat

Let’s recap the process as a virtuous cycle:

1. Post regularly—don’t overthink, just start sharing.

2. Monitor the data—track engagement metrics and feedback.

3. Identify what resonates—keep your eye on honest signals, not vanity metrics.

4. Double down on traction—repeat and tweak what works.

5. Create offers that match demand—be agile, build as you go.

6. Refine your voice—allow your personality and passion to come through.

Real-World Reflection: My Own Journey

As a web consultant and digital marketing coach working in Santa Barbara—and online with students and business owners around the world—I have spent decades watching this process play out. I’ve seen coaches rise by doubling down on authentic messages that fit their style, and I’ve seen good-hearted experts stagnate because they tried to fit into a cookie-cutter mold. My YouTube channel is proof: certain videos took off not because they were the slickest, but because I showed up as myself and spoke to real problems I observed in the marketplace.

And when you’re in the trenches helping coaches and business owners—across PC and Mac platforms, tech-savvy and newbie alike—you develop a sixth sense for “traction” before the numbers catch up. But you can’t shortcut the process. You learn by doing, testing, and reflecting.

If You Remember One Thing…

Getting more coaching clients is not about shouting the loudest, being the most polished, or jumping on every new trend. It’s about committing to an ongoing process: listening to the market, testing your messages, noticing where authenticity and demand meet, and then building coaching offers the market already wants.

Keep showing up. Keep listening. Iterate relentlessly. And your tribe—the people who truly need your voice—will find you.

Until next time, this has been your Santa Barbara Web Guy—cheering you on as you build a thriving, heart-centered coaching business that makes a difference. Take care!