Coaches and Consultants: Should You Work For Free?

There are separate, yet equally valid points to consider in the working for free issue. Many people believe that working for free is sometimes essential to the start up and or growth of a company. This group of people says that working for free allows your skills and your name to get out there, and establishes you more as experienced in your field. It can also be an excellent way to generate word of mouth about your business, just as many startup companies give away free samples.

In the beginning, you may need to work for free, either as an intern in a company or as a volunteer. These can be valuable ways to gain experience and connections. Many writers work for free, in order to build up their ‘clips’ and gain a name for themselves. Working for free can be a good marketing tool.

Others believe that you should not give away your services for free. This may set a bad precedent. People often ascribe a value to certain things, and the value they base on things can often be based on the amount they paid for them.

Another argument is that it becomes difficult to start charging for services – it’s hard to go from a free or very inexpensive service to a service that actually charges your market value, and people you had counted on as clients may leave. Thus, there are those who say you should start out charging your set rate.

If you feel a need to give away your services, perhaps because your business is as an event planner and you haven’t got enough references, you can always have your services auctioned off for a charity. This can make it clear: you normally charge, but in this instance, you are donating your fee to a charity. This is also good for the charity.

Whether or not you work for free is your own decision.

Working for free is something to consider as part of an overall business plan and marketing campaign, and thus, the decision and the factors affecting the decision will be different for each coach or consultant. If you choose to give away your services for free, be sure you have a plan for when you are going to start charging.

Perhaps let clients know that the first session is free, and after that, it is your regular price per session.

The choice of whether or not to do work for free is just one of the many decisions you will make in becoming a coach or a consultant. Be sure to choose a path which you will enjoy and find fulfilling.

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Getting Started As A Coach or Consultant

For any business, you need a solid foundation, it is no different with coaching. For your clients to trust your coaching or consulting expertise, you need to appear business like and well organised. You do not want to leave things that may seem trivial and say that you will deal with them later, as you may get a lot of clients quicker than you think.

The first thing you need to do is develop a business plan. This business plan should include details of the following, although you may have other factors you want to consider as well:

• You will need to choose a name for your business. This should be simple enough so that everyone understands what it is you do, yet it should leave space for your business to expand

• The basics of the business – where are you going to set up the business? Will it be a sole proprietorship, a partnership, or will you go limited? It may be best to be go limited , as this causes the company to be a separate entity from yourself. In a sole proprietorship, the company andthe individual running the company are seen as the same entity. Many companies start as sole proprietorships and become limited as they grow bigger.

• Other more basic basics like where your office will be. Many consultants start out with a home office, which is a good way to keep initial and recurring expenses down. You already have to pay rent or mortgage on a home, it can be difficult to start a company when it also has rent or a lease to pay. If you do not have the space – perhaps you need to be able to use large equipment – you may want to consider renting a studio. If you are running classes or workshops, you may wish to do so at the client’s worksite, or do occasional rentals of conference rooms from community centres.

• Will you get a credit card? Will you get a small business loan? Or are you looking for investors?

• A budget for start-up costs, as well as a budget for running the company – overhead costs, expenses, and revenues. If you need to get certification or be trained yourself, don’t forget to include these costs in your budget.

• What will your prices be?

• Marketing: How will you market your business? How much of your time can you spend marketing your business

Careful planning at the beginning of your coaching career can lead to a much more successful business later on.

Dealing with any problems at the beginning and having a plan for them means you are in control of what happens to your business, rather than just setting out and hoping everything will work out.

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