How to Scale Your Coaching Business/Agency [Step by Step]

Whether this is “day 1” or “day 1,000” for your business, I’m willing to bet it started with a dream.

A dream of financial independence. A dream to be your own boss. A dream to work when/how you want with more time for the things and people you love.

Whatever your motivation for starting your business, that dream can run into the cold hard reality that comes with running any coaching/services business. That reality? When you’re trading time for money, your ability to earn is directly tied to the amount of time you have – and I doubt you want to work 60-hour weeks. 

You can still live your dream though, if you scale your business the right way. 

I’ve worked with hundreds of coaches, consultants, and agency owners over the years, and I know a thing or two about scaling. Read on as I give you the playbook to scale your coaching business and escape the grind.

Is Coaching Scalable?

I know you’ve heard it said before: coaching isn’t scalable. Let’s get this myth out of the way first. 

Coaching and services businesses are scalable, but there is a caveat. 

If you jump into the deep end of the pool with loads of 1:1 clients, then you’ll quickly find yourself underwater and drowning in work while simultaneously scrambling to find new clients. That’s the “feast and famine” of service work. Though it often feels like a constant famine even when you should be feasting. 

That way of coaching is not scalable. 

If you can find the magic combination of pricing, model, and offering while systematizing as much as you can, you’ll build a business that can scale well past your ability to serve clients and fund your dream lifestyle. One of the best things you can do is diversify your revenue streams by offering group programs, digital products, or a membership site to complement your coaching offer. I’ll show you how to do this a bit later on.

Scaling Constraints for Coaches, Consultants, and Agencies: Why Scaling Seems so Hard

While I used the word “myth” to refer to the idea that a coaching business cannot scale, that was a bit tongue-in-cheek. It’s not that you can’t scale a coaching or services business; it’s just that it’s hard to do, and as a result, many don’t.

This leads to many coaches, consultants, and solopreneurs constantly looking for the next client while wondering if leaping into entrepreneurship was worth it. That’s the direct route to burnout.

If you’re feeling that way now, let me stop you right there. You probably have a fantastic business but are suffering from one (or a few) of the common problems facing coaches and consultants who are struggling to scale:

These problems are common, but I’ve got some good news for you: so are the solutions. Read on as I show you the exact way to scale your business.

How to Scale Your Business: 5 Tactics for Coaches and Consultants

Ready to launch your business to the next level?

I am going to take you through five key tactics that can help you scale your business to new heights. I recommend trying each one in order, though you are free to pick and choose based on what you’ve tried in the past. 

Raise Prices

The simplest (and sometimes the scariest) tactic you can try is to raise your prices. 

Any time you start feeling like you’d like to have a bit more revenue come through the door for all the work you are putting in, it’s time to raise your prices. You don’t have to double them, but a 10 - 20% increase can make a world of difference in giving you a bit more breathing room and bandwidth. 

I recommend raising your prices periodically to see what people are willing to pay. There comes a point where you max out your prices though, so don’t over-rely on this tactic in the long run. 

Still, chances are very good that you can charge more and retain your existing clients and still take on new ones. Remember, higher prices often attract more serious clients who are more likely to implement your advice, leading to better outcomes and stronger testimonials.

Offer a Coaching Program or Group Coaching

Once you’ve maxed out your prices, it’s time to scale your coaching offer by selling a group coaching offer.

Rather than work with each client one-on-one, a group offer allows you to work with multiple clients at the same time. This means you can make the same impact for each client but 3x, 5x, or even 10x the amount of money you make for the time you invest. 

A group coaching offer offers many other benefits to your customers:

Check out my guide to launching a group coaching program for more information. Remember, for a group program to be successful, you need a well-structured curriculum, good pacing, and plenty of engagement from all your participants. 

Group coaching and coaching programs are excellent ways to scale a solo business, but read on for a few that are more hands-off and passive.

Sell a Digital Product/Online Course

Suppose you raised prices and added a group coaching program that runs four times per year. Have you maxed out how far your business can go?

Not even close. 

Now, we shift toward passive streams of income that can help you scale your business to new heights. One of the best ways to build passive income for your business is to sell a digital product (like a course, eBook, or series of worksheets or planners).

Digital products allow you to package your expertise in a format that can be sold repeatedly without requiring any involvement on your part. This allows you to reach a broader audience well beyond your capacity for one-on-one or group coaching. 

Creating a course is a fantastic way to scale your coaching business or agency, but it’s not easy. Creating a course can be expensive, so check out my complete guide to creating and launching a course for some expert tips.

Remember: when developing a digital product/course, focus on addressing a specific problem/skill for your target audience. Make sure your content is high-quality and actionable so you get testimonials and repeat customers.

Launch a Membership Site

If you’ve already tried the other tactics, it’s time to try scaling with a membership site. 

A membership site is a subscription you offer to customers (monthly, quarterly, or annually) that gives them access to gated content and a private community in exchange for a recurring fee. 

A membership site typically offers exclusive content, resources, and even direct access to you through Q&A sessions or forums. This allows you to scale by taking on many customers while providing ongoing value to them. Succeeding with a membership site requires consistent, fresh, and valuable content while maintaining an engaged community.

Check out my complete guide to launching a membership site for a full walkthrough.

Scale your Team

The final way to scale your coaching business (assuming you tried every other tactic) is to scale your team and delegate. 

Why put this last?

The problem with hiring first is that your business may make a lot of financial sense when you’re doing all the client work, but if you add a full-time hire to the mix, it can all break down. If you lose a client (or a few) or your new hire leaves, it puts you in a bind that is far more painful than your original situation. 

If you’ve maxed out your prices, tested the waters with digital products, and developed scalable offers that have catapulted you well into six figures, then it’s time to bring other people into the fold to free up your time to work on the business rather than in it. 

Look for people who have the same skill set as you and who align with your values and vision. Don’t rush this. Take your time to find the right hire and systematize your work as much as possible so they can hit the ground running. As your team grows, you can ease off of client work and focus more on high-level strategy and growth. If you’ve tried every other tactic, scaling your team is one of the best ways to build a 7-figure coaching business/agency.

Can You Really Scale Your Business by Selling Courses? You Bet. Just ask Barb!

All of these tactics are great in theory, but I understand if you’re scratching your head wondering if they can work for you.

Maybe you’ve tried these before with mixed results (or worse, no results). To show you that it is possible to scale a coaching business with digital products, let me share a success story from a customer of mine, Barb.

Barb is a business coach just outside Toronto. She caters to female business owners and helps them with strategy and communication. Barb began her business with one-on-one engagements and scaled it by selling courses and other digital products. Not only did this bring in a new passive stream of revenue, it magnified the impact she made on her audience.

Here’s what she had to say:

Barb is just one of the many coaches, consultants, and solopreneurs I’ve been able to help over the years. You can read her full story here.

The Best Way to Scale: PLR Products and Courses

Barb scaled her business by selling courses and digital products, but her secret was that it did not end up being a massive mountain of work. Instead, she bought high-quality ready-to-sell courses from my PLR shop.

PLR (private label rights) is a license that allows you to purchase a digital product (like a course, eBook, or even blog post) and rebrand it as your own before selling. All the hard work is done for you! Whether you wish to sell PLR courses, planners, or eBooks, you can purchase a year’s worth of content in minutes. It’s fast and easy to customize PLR as well to add value and match your brand.

High-quality PLR products are one of the best ways to source content that you can tweak and turn into money-makers for your business. If you’re looking to scale your business with digital products or stockpile content for a membership site, PLR is one of the most efficient and cost-effective ways to get premium content you can sell.

Check out my shop for hundreds of high-quality PLR products to sift through (but check the end of this post for a special offer)

Escape the Grind: Get 30% Off Your First Order

I have a special offer for you that will help you scale your business to new heights in the next 6 months.  

Click the button below to get my regular email updates and news, and you’ll save 30% off your first order from my shop. In the next 10 minutes, you could have a year’s worth of courses and content to sell to your audience - whether you want to open a digital shop on your site, use my products as lead magnets, or create a membership site. 

So subscribe and save 30% on your first order now!