Why are some business coaches so expensive?

On a regular basis, we have customers asking us “why are some business coaches so expensive?” or even “why are YOU guys so expensive?”. So we thought the best thing to do would be to put together an honest review that guides you through the pricing for business coaches and why they vary so much.

Suppose it’s a little like buying a car. Some cars are cheap and some cars are expensive. There are lots of choices and with a clear understanding and some gentle guidance, you can have more certainty that you’ve made the right choice.

Things that can make coaching really expensive are usually pretty straightforward.

High Profile Coaches can be expensive

Often, if a coach has got a really high profile, they charge more and can be really expensive business coaches. So think of it in terms of Tony Robbins or Brad Sugars. These guys both have programmes that you need to invest a million quid a year to join. Think about it, if Tony Robbins only charged £5000 a month, he’d have more potential clients than he could possibly have time to service. So he’s priced at a point to make his own business as efficient and profitable as he can. His pricing leaves him at a point where he gets just the right amount of customers and potential clients. High enough so that he doesn’t get too many leads, and low enough that he actually has some paying clients.

Who’s buying?

Linked to the profile, but also individual in its own right, the price can often come down to who the typical buyer might be. So for example, if Amazon or Apple wanted a coach, they might go for a coach with a really high profile and pay extra for it. But also, the coaches that generally specialise in coaching blue chip companies have some background in that world. They are accustomed to living on the big salaries that come as part of the territory. Does that make them better or worse than coaches that would only help small businesses? That’s subjective, but it can be one of the reasons that those business coaches are expensive.

Is a corporate coach a better coach?

Well actually, they are probably much better at coaching blue-chip or corporate companies than a business coach that usually only works with small companies. Those big guys come with a whole bunch of different challenges than a small family-owned business would. As a coach, you tend to deal with a similar type or size of challenge on a regular basis. And just like with any skill, muscle memory and repetition really play their part.

However, a corporate coach might not be as confident or be able to get results as quickly with a smaller business. Compared to the bigger companies they wouldn’t have the cash flow to throw at problems or recruit the best talent on the globe like they do.

Generally speaking (and we’re being really general here) huge companies tend to have problems with innovation, or leadership. Smaller companies can regularly have challenges that are completely different, such as cash flow or getting new customers.

It’s really important that you take the time to figure out who the right coach is for you and whether you and your business are suitable for coaching.

And there we have it, 2 things we’ve covered so far that might make a coach more expensive could be their profile or who the typical client might be.

How much time it takes for the coach to deliver the programme

On a smaller scale, your “local” coaches may be a little bit more expensive if they invest a lot of time into each of their programmes. So for example, group coaching programmes are usually more affordable than 121 coaching programmes because they take less of the coach’s time. In a group coaching format, the coach can help multiple people at once (although they would need to prep a group session more diligently).

If for example a coach offered 121 coaching and invested 5 hours per week to just one member, that greatly limits the number of members that they can work with and would ultimately make them more expensive.

Other things that can affect the price could be things like;

What the coaching programme includes.

There are coaches out there that can keep costs really low because all they do is offer a leveraged programme, like group coaching, and they don’t offer any other products. If that’s the case, then the overheads for the coach are likely to be extremely low and therefore they could pass that saving on to their customer.

On the other hand, here at Action Coach, we have lots of extras that we offer our members, things like training portals, access to a business community, financial analysis reports, and extra coaching sessions with wealth coaches and finance coaches. We also run a huge event each month and have some of the world’s best speakers and business teachers educating our members. So as you can imagine, there are a lot of extra overheads compared with a coaching company that offers none of that. (Click here to see our prices and programmes page so you can see for yourself).

Which option is right?

That’s not to say either option is right, for some, they just want the help and they want it for a price that’s as cheap as they can get. Others want to grow and get all the help they can, so their happy to invest in a coaching company that offers the extras.

That can all be summarised by looking at what kind of business they are running. There are coaching companies out there, that are just one-man bands, they are happy with the level of earnings they make, and happy with the number of people they can help. On the opposite side of that coin, you see coaching companies that really want to grow, whether it’s because they want to make more profit, help more people, a bit of both, or for a completely different reason all together.

There are just a few things that can make a business coach expensive, so let’s take a look at what makes a business coach cheap.

What makes a coach cheap?

As mentioned above, some of this comes down to profile and experience. Our business coaches have all won global awards (a pretty big deal in the coaching world). One of our coaches was previously an Olympic coach. Another has even starred in a full docu-series on Amazon’s “Prime Video” (search for “business as unusual” on Prime if you want to give it a watch).
So our coaches come with a big reputation and lots of experience.

A rookie coach in their first year will generally be a good place to go if you’re looking for a cheaper coach. The experience and reputation aren’t there just yet but the principles that make coaching work (accountability, education, and a focus on results) should still be there with any good coach. As long as a coach can follow the principles that make coaching so successful, their members will get results. It’s only when a coach starts “telling” their members what to do, or even worse, doing it for them, that results for the members can start to slide.

That’s when you have to start looking at whether business coaching is a waste of money or not.

Rookie Coaches

So experience plays a big part, just like a profile can make a coach expensive like our good friend Tony Robbins, it can also make a coach really cheap. A good example would be if they’re new to the marketplace or haven’t got much experience. In all honesty, we don’t even think this is a negative thing. If a coach can charge much less and still run a profitable business then it’s great. It just means even more people are being helped and coached which can only be a good thing for businesses in the UK.

There are also a lot of coaches out there that aren’t interested in growing their coaching practice as a business. As we mentioned earlier, they might just spend their time coaching to help others or for some cash to invest elsewhere.

The coach has found a cheaper way to provide the service

And finally, some coaches might have just found a cheaper way of providing the service. Maybe they leverage their coaching through software or systems so that they don’t incur much of a cost. Maybe they host all their group coaching events on Zoom so they don’t need to pay for a venue or catering. Most coaches that you’re likely to meet aren’t greedy. They want the best for their clients or members and their price is usually fair for both parties.

Free Coaching

There’s also free coaching out there and usually, that comes from grant funding. Banks such as NatWest, or not-for-profit organisations like the Growth Hub in Manchester, or even Manchester University have different programmes that are completely free. Most of these you have to apply because spaces are pretty limited, and most free coaching has a limit on the number of sessions you have with your coach (or maybe even a time limit) but it can be a great boost to get you into coaching in the first place. Once you’ve finished a free programme, if you really found coaching useful, you can always look at joining a paid programme next and finding a coach that’s just right for you.

Hopefully that gives you a good feel why some business coaches are expensive, and why some are cheaper.

If you want to find out more about Action Coach just visit our learning centre here.

You can find out programmes and prices here.

Or you can jump straight in and join a membership here.