Why I love working with Coaches and Therapists
I started Jackie's Virtual Bureau back in 2018 and a year or so down the line I knew I had to develop some sort of niche.
A niche makes life so much easier as you can be really specific in your marketing messages. It helps you to stand out, gain authority and hopefully demonstrate that you're the go to person in the niche - that's certainly my aim!
A niche could be in a service area, or in the industry you serve. For example, you could be an employability coach for mid-life women, a sports massage therapist for aged 50+ marathon runners, or a psychologist who works with teenagers with social anxiety.
Do you see? By drilling down to one specific area, your life becomes so much easier when talking about and promoting your business. Of course, you still get to work with who you want, you're just making your life easier in terms of your marketing.
My service area/expertise is websites, email marketing and online content and I decided to focus exclusively on helping coaches and therapists for a couple of reasons:
#1 I understand the industry
I've always been interested in holistic health and self knowledge, self improvement and growth. Examples include:
I know my Myers Briggs type, Human Design type and can interpret my birth chart - all of these have provided valuable insights into my own personality traits, both 'good' and 'bad' and provide ways to navigate life's ups and downs more easily. See my About page for more information about me and to see which 'types' I am!
I've had coaching from a range of people over the years, and am currently a member of the brilliant Entrepreneur's Circle where we learn tried and tested ways to grow our business by learning from experts. Coaching pushes us out of our comfort zone into that slightly uncomfortable place where the real growth and insights are.
I'm a former holistic therapist, trained in body massage, aromatherapy, Usui Reiki level 2, Hopi ear candling, crystals, colour therapy and tarot. I enjoy an aromatherapy massage as and when I need one. I understand how important it is to help people to de-stress, unwind and simply relax even if it's just for an hour a week or month.
(I remember being amazed at the number of my massage clients who literally didn't know how to relax and lie still…..One lady wanted to watch EastEnders during her Swedish back massage…er…no! However, once they got the hang of it they realised just how tense and stressed out they were! )
I've also experienced a range of talking therapies including two rounds of bereavement counselling which really helped me through tough times in my life, and I've had Transactional Analysis which helped with depression in my 20's. This was a real eye opener, and truly transformational for me.
Like massage, until you experience being in a safe space to talk and, importantly, be HEARD, you're unaware of just how much stuff is in there that you want to say, purge and deal with.
The second reason why I love working with coaches and therapists is:
#2 It's a really supportive two-way, win-win relationship
I've been pleased and privileged to have supported many, many amazing people over the years, and what I love is that I get to learn all kinds of coaching and therapy tips and techniques that help me with my own life struggles (because we all have them), plus it keeps my knowledge up to date.
Sometimes, I'm my own clients' ideal client (mid-life, sometimes struggle with work/life balance, menopause etc.) so when I'm working with them on their content and copy, often I'm like, 'this is me!' and I can offer lots of great feedback.
When I put together clients' newsletters, upload website content or help them get ready for a launch or workshop, they send all of their content to me to format, brand, upload and connect up the tech, so I'm literally absorbing that amazing content…for free!
As well as taking away your stress and tech worries, I can offer lots of advice and feedback. Yes, I edit your content and provide copywriting help, but I share insights into what's worked really well for other people...and what hasn't.
Another reason specifically why coaches are so good to work with is that they understand the bigger picture and often have a clearly mapped out plan…they know where they need to get to, they just need a little help along the way and they're not afraid to ask for help, which is, after all, the first step anyone needs to take.
I hope it comes across just how much I love my niche!