Website. Perhaps one of the most ignored aspects of their operations by most coaches remains to be the single biggest differentiator among coaches and brands that are competing against each other. The only difference some would say.
The difference between the courses with bumper sales and the ones that are, well, flop to say the least.
A coach with meh audience retention and the ones with an authority so captivating that people keep buying their courses and other products.
Which one do you aim to be? *just a rhetoric question*
We know the answer.
But, how do you go about it? There must be some reason why most coaches and businesses fail to get it right. Hint: Loads of reasons. Not a cakewalk at all!
Should it be the case, though? With all the technology at our disposal, why should having the perfect website be near-rocket science?
Well, you see..
It’s never about the tech. Definitely not about the personnel to use that tech, too many bright minds out there.
What is it, then?
More about psychology than anything else if it’s a short answer you need. The UX. The color palette you choose. The layout. The testimonials you add and how you add them. All of it.
Essentially, it boils down to how well you can serve the right information and content to game the user journey and impact their decision-making.
Does that mean you’ll need a psychology major? Obviously, no.
We’re here to simplify it for you.
UX > UI
In the early stages of your journey, it’s very tempting to chase the glitters. The best best-looking designs. Flashy sliders. Chasing everything that looks great and trying to include it in your website.
That’s not the way to go though. Why do you ask?
Well, UI merely covers the visual touchpoints on your website. There’s no such thing as a great UI if it doesn’t fit inside a well-thought UX strategy for your product.
UX, however, is quite different, and more important, too.
Having an impeccable UX strategy means impressing your users with easy-to-use, effective, and intuitive websites. It’s about employing the perfect design solutions throughout the user journey and keeping them captivated.
Here’s a quick look at different aspects of UX and UI:
Having a good UI but mediocre UX is nothing more than just making it to your opponent’s court but failing to score. Not getting your UX right is akin to dropping-the-ball.
To keep yourself from dropping the ball, you need to make sure all the elements are spot on.
We will be discussing six different elements of your website and sharing insights on how to get each of them right.
Without any further ado, let’s dive right in:
1. In-depth testimonials
Ok, so, you’ve managed to create the ultimate website, your UI is super intuitive, your UX smooth as silk, and your sales copy bang-on… pfft BFD! — NONE of that is enough to compel your customers to take the plunge.
Not like us humans to set ourselves up to be the guinea pig, right? Not at all. Especially where there is money (and that’s not even petty cash) involved.
We want a product that’s test-driven, one that other generous customers have invested in and confirmed that it is indeed amazing.
In short, we want a sure thing with no measurable risk-taking on our part.
So, where do we go looking? Testimonials!
Believe us when we say this: It all comes down to testimonials.
It is that critical YAY-or-NAY element in the final stage of your customer’s journey, where they decide to just go for it or quietly walk away.
Now, as potential customers are battling purchase anxiety (which inevitably happens), testimonials swoop in and whisk away every last of their concerns, reassuring them with comforting words that they are right to trust you.
And, we don’t mean those “Amazing course!“, “Loved it. Learned a lot!”, “Highly recommended, you guys!” sort of superfluous words of praise.
We are talking about killer in-depth reviews, full of insights and juicy details where real people talk about how your course legit changed their lives.
Now, those testimonials are super compelling.
We dug into the Tony Robbins store to paint you a clearer picture, just in case. Compare the two reviews below:
See the difference?
The first 5-star review is extremely specific; it emphasizes the results of taking the course and talks about how potential customers can benefit from it.
The second 5-star review is well… ineffectual, to say the least. It has absolutely no takeaway for the reader. Almost like, “I appreciate your kind words Mark but it doesn’t help me (or anyone)!“
The three questions that an effective testimonial should answer:
- How did the course change the buyer’s life?
- How was their experience?
- Why should others go for it?
Here’s an example of a dead-on testimonial:
Let’s break it down and see if it ticks our boxes:
- “I was able to identify personal and professional goals and priorities” — highlighting the payoff; emphasizing on how the course improved their life. TICK.
- “Stefano adapted the content and methodology based on what worked effectively with me” — giving insight into Coach Stefano’s coaching methodology. TICK.
- “I was able to make more significant moves step by step. I recommend him to anyone who is looking for professional coaching” — indicating that people can methodically progress in this business with professional coaching. TICK.
Passed!
Now, we know not every testimonial will hit the nail, but you’ve got to aim for it as much as possible.
Simply put, your testimonials should convey that you are an f’ing dream!
With that sorted, let’s address the most common question online coaches have about testimonials: “how do I get my students/clients to write stellar testimonials?”
Well, that one’s simple: ASK SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.
Shoot your clients a crisp, well-written email with your list of questions, prompting them to describe their experience with you.
Here’s one way to go about it:
| Hey <Insert Name Here> It’s been wonderful having you on board and I’d love to learn about your experience with me. If you could take out the time and answer the following questions, I’d appreciate it greatly: – What pain points were you looking to address when you came to me? – How would you describe your learning experience? – Would you recommend my course to your friends/family? (a sentence or two would suffice) I’d love to include your invaluable testimonial on my website. Thank you so much! |
Once the glowing testimonials begin pouring it, display them on your website so people can see them and trust you.
Oh, and don’t forget to include pictures of your clients. Ask them directly or download a professional-looking (preferably smiling) headshot from their Facebook/LinkedIn page (with permission, of course!) to add to their testimonials.
We know your course is amazing, but don’t make the mistake of believing that customers will take your word for it. Leverage effective testimonials to help your case and see conversions fly through the roof.
2. Social proof
Over the last few years, social proof has become one of the most important factors for consumers while they’re evaluating a product or service. Especially in the digital realm.
Well, to be fair, it’s always been there. Hasn’t it?
How often have we seen one-liners written and highlighted on books that look like this:
20,000 copies sold!
{Words of praise with adjectives doing a lot of heavy lifting} – Some CEO
All of that is social proof. Important enough to incorporate within your website, agree?
Now, how can you use it to make reflect authority from your website?
The easiest one is to straight out tell them how many people like your work.
Now, depending on where you are in your journey as a coach, you will have a different sets of numbers that you can put on your website.
From numbers on social media followers to just simple figures on your total/gross earnings, everything can be used as social proof on your website.
As an example, look no further than Ventture’s very own website where we put up our insane numbers for every visitor to see and be impressed by:
These numbers provide enough social proof for any visitor to stop and think about Ventture, and eventually, put their trust in the brand.
Another very important and severely underrated method of demonstrating social proof on your website would be to simply add counts of your customers/subscribers or the number of happy clients you’ve served throughout your journey. Here’s a quick example of resume.io:
By showing this 8-figure number as total number of users, this company has absolutely sealed the deal. Conversion rates go stonks!
Another great example for absolutely winning at social proof in websites would be PageFly. This is what you see when you fire their site up:
Complete W, if you ask us.
For those who are just taking their first steps in building their brand or just launching their first course, there’s no reason why social proof can’t work for you.
In these cases, you need to focus more on the quality and personalized nature of the social proof more than anything else. Here’s a list of things you can do:
- Photos and testimonials from customers
- Company names and logos, particularly from recognizable and well-respected brands
- Reviews on third-party sites such as Yelp or Google
- Video-based content as testimonials and recommendations
3. Expert seal of approval
When an individual or a business is in the early parts of their journey, there’s hardly much to show for.
It’s completely normal.
Nobody was born with a million subscribers on the tube. Or, maybe 20 testimonials by CXOs.
Discouraging yourself is not the way to go about it. Never.
Here’s what you need to do: no matter how big you are, there’s always going to be a bigger and more authoritative name out there. Be sure to get associated and be recommended by as many of those as possible.
Imagine yourself as an upcoming hockey player, looking for a strength and conditioning expert to really boost your performance. You check out a few online. Get leads suggested by fellow athletes too.
After much due diligence, you shortlist a couple of those. There’s one difference, though.
Coach A has been praised by big shots from the senior league or even worldies from a different sport. And to make their case for themselves, they’ve made a point to feature it (read: flaunt) on their website.
Coach B, on the other hand, has nothing much on their website apart from some stock images and generic copy.
We know which one you’re going for. No question about it.
If you are just starting off, it can be almost impossible to get associated with the biggest names out there.
Here’s the alternative, tho: Get it from the relevant ones!
By showing association with relevant and niche publications/brands, you show your audience that you mean business.
For instance, if you are just starting out as a strength and conditioning coach – you can add logos of related organizations that your target audience (budding athletes) can recognize. Here’s one such example:
Seal of approvals work pretty much straightforward if you think of it. It’s just about showing your affiliation with a bigger and reputed brand.
Have you contributed an article to a great publication?
Have you been called upon by a conference/seminar/webinar to share insights or story?
Well, all you’ve got to do is showcase all of that on your website.
Let’s have a quick look at how Jeff Bullas does it. Being a leader when it comes to digital marketing, Jeff (and his team) has really mastered the art of oozing authority outta every landing page or banner he gets out. Here’s what you on top of his website:
Straight away throws the 25 million at you. That’s some authority and a half, innit?
Here’s his bio that you can pretty much find all over the website:
Jam packed with the names of the biggest publications and their logos. Good seal, don’t you think?
Okay, think we’ve made our point. Get your seal of approval from the biggest brands and put it on your website with great visuals. That’s it.
4. Sea of content
Blogs to pods and videos to good-ol’ infographics. You need to have it all on your website.
Why do you ask?
First off, it’s important for your overall website hygiene and even detrimental to having an engaged sales funnel. By creating content that targets people at different stages of their buying journey, you get to boost your sales. Here’s how this works if you need a quick recap:
Besides, having a large pool of content covering different aspects of your industry will help you come across as a knowledgeable and sometimes even as a know-it-all coach. Exactly what you want to be seen as, isn’t it?
Neil Patel obviously comes across as the ultimate example for this. With over a 1000 blogs on his site, probably more than a 100 videos, he’s got a sea of content at his website.
And then he serves it all to the audience on a platter like this:
This really sets him apart from all the marketing gurus out there.
Even though you wouldn’t get direct sales from each and every piece of content, you’ll be building a meaningful relationship with your audience. As they keep coming back, your chances of making a good sale will keep increasing.
5. Case studies
Two content pieces —
- one, that outlines the specs and USPs of an online course, and
- another, that takes you through the journey of a customer who successfully solved a pain point (possibly similar to yours) using the online course —
Which of the two is more likely to influence your purchase decision?
The second piece? We thought so.
And Dimensional Research confirms it. As per the report, 90% of buyers find customer success stories, or case studies as we call them, awfully compelling.
Not to mention, they help you stand out!
See, chances are, every credible brand out there is leveraging the authority-building tactics we’ve listed in the article so far, whether it is assertively blogging, gathering social proof, or stacking testimonials.
But case studies. They are a league of their own.
Only the best of the best, aka the OGs (think Google, Facebook, Amazon), have taken this prospect-focused route to SHOW (not tell) their customer how terrific they are. The others continue to “bang their drums.”
As it happens, the old sales copy “our course is the best in the market” doesn’t cut it anymore. Customers are looking for quantifiable results to determine a brand’s ability to deliver.
Check out how brilliantly digital marketing expert Neil Patel structures his case study content.
Notice how the figures $600,000 and $15 million stand out?
Like testimonials, case studies also provide social proof. Only this time, it is from the POV of the brand rather than the customer.
For example: “How our Course on Instagram Marketing helped XXX Shoot Up their Followers from 300 to 30,000 in 4 Months.”
Or “Find out how Ms XXX lost 23kgs in 12 months.”
There are two psychological reasons why case studies work:
- They are structured as a story (reliability)
- There’s data to support claims (trust)
For example, Gary Vaynerchuk, one of the top digital marketing coaches in the world has his case study pinned right at the beginning of his homepage.
This way, the moment a potential customer lands onto his website, they are convinced of the value they stand to gain from subscribing to his services.
Not only do they connect with the subject of his success story, but also find it easy to trust the brand because of the irrefutable data provided.
But don’t get us wrong. Not every case study should be backed with measurable numbers. For example, if you are a psychology expert or a life coach, you can seldom demonstrate your success quantitatively.
In such a case, you can narrate impactful real-world success tales with interesting anecdotes to inspire your visitors.
One thing to keep in mind, though, is that the headline of your case study is the real crowd puller. Make sure it’s captivating!
So, get started on your real-world case studies right away. All you need is a gripping niche-specific subject (ideally someone your TG will identify with), whose life-altering journey demonstrates your boss-like problem-solving abilities.
Throw in some solid quotes and testimonials, highlight the results using real numbers, and package it in a stellar content format. VOILA! There you have your case study!
Quite open-and-shut, huh?
6. Flawless navigation
Ensuring great navigation for your website is a great signal, too. An average user can never appreciate a website (or the business that owns it) if they’re left stranded on a web page.
As a rule of thumb, your website navigation should be good enough to allow people to land on any page of your website and find whatever they need within 3 clicks at most.
Any effort more than that, if needed, is essentially an inconvenience to the users. Here’s what pops into their minds right away:
Who makes a website like that?
Do you get it? It hampers your chances to get an authoritative presence in their heads.
To bolster your navigation, you need to look at options for users to click and get on a new page.
For blogs, you can add internal links in certain sections that your readers must know about. Not only this, you can have a “Related Articles” sorta section on the side or at the bottom of your blogs, too.
This will really make your website more UX-friendly. Here’s a great example by CopyBlogger:
Another important aspect for website navigation is having a great footer.
This is essentially a separate section on every page of your website, located right at the bottom, with links to all the main pages of your website. For relatively newer and smaller websites, it could even have all the pages apart from individual pieces of content.
Here’s a good example of Zappos that you should totally check:
Last but not the least, you need to keep it highly responsive. All the navigation elements on your website must be easily accessible for users with all devices, be it mobile or desktop.
All done then…
That was the last of the six cardinal elements that make your website synonymous with authority. Stick to them and you’ve got a successful formula.
Go on, get cracking on your website today. Which element do you plan on beginning with?
