Imagine this … you’re in an elevator, and guess who walks in? Your dream client — the one you’ve been cyber-stalking on LinkedIn, the big fish you’ve been trying to catch. You’ve got 30 seconds before those elevator doors slide open again, and your golden opportunity walks out of your life, possibly forever.
What do you say? How do you sum up your entire coaching philosophy, approach, and unique value in less than a minute?
Pretty intense, right?
You might have 20 years of experience or 200 coaching techniques, but can you summarize that into a single sentence? If you’ve got a business coaching tagline that packs a punch, those 30 seconds are all you need to turn a chance encounter into a business-changing meeting.
Why You Need a Tagline for Coaching Business Clients
You know the saying: You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Whether it’s someone landing on your website, meeting you in person, or hearing you interviewed on a podcast, potential clients size you up based on immediate gut reactions.
A strong tagline is your calling card and your identity summed up in just a few words. This easy-to-digest motto helps you stand out from the sea of other business coaches. It positions you as an expert, even if you’re fresh to the market.
As a business coach, you need a tagline that clarifies what you’re bringing to the table without jargon and fluff. The more precise you are about what you offer, the easier it’ll be for your dream clients to see that you’re the coach they’ve been searching for.
Speaking of dream clients, the saying “All money ain’t good money” applies to your coaching tagline. New business coaches tend to say yes to every potential client, not yet recognizing the signs of a troublesome client or bad coach-coachee fit. Every paying client isn’t a good client.
A winning tagline is a filter that sifts the gold from the sand. It deters the clients you’d rather not deal with, saving you resources and the headache down the line. Everybody is not your client, and that’s okay. Your tagline zeroes in on the people who align with your values, your methods, and your style. You’re not just setting the stage; you’re setting the right stage.
The Recipe for the Perfect Business Coaching Tagline
When it comes to landing your dream clients, you need more than just skills — you need an impactful tagline that gets you remembered, respected, and hired. Let’s look at how to create a tagline that’ll make your competition wish they had thought of it first.
Step 1: Identify Your Unique Selling Proposition
What’s your magic sauce? This is your USP or unique selling proposition.
Sure, you’re a business coach. So are your competitors. What makes you stand out from them? Maybe you have decades of CEO-level experience or are the go-to person for scaling startups. Whatever it is, find that gold nugget and polish it until it’s clear.
… when you think about your unique genius, what really makes you you, what sets you apart from the rest of the world, it can be elusive because it is so interwoven into the fabric of your being. your greatest strengths feel commonplace to you. You don’t even recognize them a lot of the time.
Annie Petsche on the Coach Factory Podcast
Step 2: Tap Into Your Audience
Before you open your mouth or hand over that business card, you have to know who you’re talking to, right? What are they struggling with? What are their aspirations?
The trick here is to get so deep into their psyche that your tagline resonates on a spiritual level. They need to feel it because that emotion is where the value lies.
Step 3: Combine USP and Audience Needs
Now, take your USP and mix it with what your audience is craving.
Step 4: Keep It Short and Sweet
You don’t need a whole paragraph. Your tagline should be a quick, powerful jab — not a 12-round fight. Keep it under 10 words, but make each one count. Cut the fluff; keep the substance.
Step 5: Test It Out
Before tattooing that tagline on your business card, test it on some trusted peers. Use social media polls, hit up colleagues, or even try it out on a few clients. If it flops, go back to the drawing board. But if it hits, you’ve got yourself a winner.
5 Examples of Great Business Coaching Taglines
1. Amy Porterfield
Tagline: Online Marketing Expert and NY Times Best Selling Author
This tagline subtly communicates who the target audience is while mentioning the stamp of approval from one of the most respected publications in the world. This shows that Amy is after people who value her expertise in proven, high-level marketing strategies.
2. SoniaMPower
Tagline: Conquer Your Fear of Public Speaking
Sonia‘s tagline is dynamic. It’s specific, addresses a common pain point, and promises a solution. It packs an emotional punch in as few words as possible.
3. Richard Chiumento
Tagline: Leadership Solutions to Accelerate Growth
This strong tagline from Richard Chiumento is short enough to be memorable and specific enough to imply a focused area of expertise. It directly speaks to organizations hungry for growth and looking for leadership solutions to get them there.
4. Aina Alive
Tagline: Impactful Agile Transformation and Leadership Training
With this tagline, Aina clearly broadcasts that she serves companies serious about change and growth. It might not be the shortest, but sometimes you need a few extra words to capture the essence of what you offer, and this tagline does just that.
5. Chris Lema
Tagline: You don’t have to learn every business lesson the hard way. I can help.
Chris‘ tagline is inviting, relatable, and screams, “Let’s make your life easier.” It plays well to the challenges almost every business leader faces and presents coaching as the shortcut to success. This is a tagline that has its finger on the pulse of prospective clients.
Free Business Coaching Tagline Worksheet
In those crucial first few seconds when someone lands on your website or sees your business card, your tagline has to leave an imprint. For step-by-step guidance on crafting an impactful tagline for your coaching business, download the Coach Factory worksheet. It’s just one of the dozens of resources available to you as a VIP member.
