Session #6
After I spent a little time chatting with Ryan about Tip Top K9 Dog Training, it was time to head back to The Box That Rocks to set in on another one of Clay’s client meetings. This time is was with a local dry cleaning company who have been in operation for many years.
Seeing the diversity and range in their clientele was impressive.
Without getting into too much detail, I’ll say that this meeting was themed largely around new customer acquisition and search engine marketing. To be clear (well, as clear as I can be with violating someone’s privacy), this client appears to be doing exceptionally well with some custom strategies. I was actually kind of surprised that I was allowed to set in on some of the meetings like these, because of how private the details were.
So, why would someone like this, with a well-established business, need a business coach? Haven’t they already rose to the top of their (likely) saturated market? Read on.
Summary
After shadowing Clay and Marshall for this entire day and spending about as much time over the last week writing this, I’m left with this conclusion:
Regardless of a company’s current level of success, a business coach offers more than just strategies to work on for the next week. If they’re worth their salt, a business coach is a person that you’ll brainstorm with and who will “raise the average”, as opposed to — let’s say — a family member who freely solicits their opinions on what you should be doing differently, despite their lack of any real interest in your industry.
A great business coach will be there to talk to you about the ideas that you’ve come up with and show you how to implement them in a way that moves your business forward. Your ideal coach’s guidance will be reliable.
Combined with that, a business coach that is worth the money that it costs to have one will also be your #1 source of accountability, and this might be the most beneficial reason for having a business coach.
A great business coach will be there to talk to you about the ideas that you’ve come up with and show you how to implement them in a way that moves your business forward. Your ideal coach’s honest guidance will be reliable.
What did I think of the Thrivetime business coaching program?
I can’t think of a reason that I wouldn’t want to have a business coach if I was running a small business in Tulsa. I’m intimidated enough by how a local restaurant or retail store has to sell a certain amount of widgets per month just break even or pay employees.
After spending the day with this ko bunch and their clients, it almost seems silly to cross your fingers and hope you’ll get the same results without any coaching.