Are you ready to take your business to new heights and multiply your impact? Scaling your business from a 1:1 model to a 1:many approach is a game-changing strategy that can skyrocket your success while allowing you to share your expertise with a broader audience. It's time to unleash the power of scalability and unlock the doors to limitless growth.
In this blog post, I'm going to lay out three ways you can scale your business as an expert - and only one of them involves business coaching! I'll be sharing practical strategies and insider tips to help you seamlessly transition from serving one client at a time to reaching a multitude of eager learners and clients.
The biggest key to scaling successfully? Tapping into your unique expertise, identifying scalable options that align with your passion and audience needs AND ensuring it all fits in with your lifestyle.
So, let's dive in.
Option A: Building an Agency
Probably one of the most underrated ways of scaling your business is by building an agency. Why? On the surface it may not seem it, but it is the most straightforward. With an agency you can target the same audience with the same offer- just with multiples of you. You don't necessarily need to do extensive list building to attract new clients either- instead you can use the same method as you have done previously. The key way to increase profits will be to raise your prices as you become more in demand.
The biggest fear that business owners have when moving to this business model is that their team may disappear and take clients with them. There are 2 solutions to this problem. One: divide your expertise into specific roles eg if you are a marketing expert this might look like an email marketing expert, an instagram expert, a content writer etc. You are therefore not cloning yourself directly. Two: ensure you have watertight contracts that include a non compete clause with a time period- even with freelancers/contractors you hire.
My top tips for this model? For your clients to continue to get great results you will want to ensure that you have a thorough onboarding practice for new team members, with clear expectations of minimum standards. You'll also want to foster an environment of continuous learning, alongside performance reviews and spot checks on standards of work. These are all processes that you can put into your business with the right support.
Option B: Teach others to do what you do/create a certification
This is the business coach option. This is where you've nailed what you do- and you can now teach others how to do what you have done and build a successful business with it. This may even be in the form of a certification that your students will need to complete so that they are working to a particular standard. To get your clients results, this would require you to teach 2 subjects and numerous skills- not only around your expertise but also how to build their business including getting clients.
The initial drawbacks around this model are that this requires building a new audience in comparison to those who previously sought out your expertise. However, you may wish to continue to attract the same audience so that you can direct them to those who have completed your program/certification. Some people who have certifications require their graduates to pay an annual fee to remain certified- which can then become a semi-passive income. You would need to think about the benefits of this for your students and your business and what that would look like.
My biggest tip is to continue working 1:1 with a handful of clients- or move into consulting alongside this model, so that you can continue to stay up to date in your specialism and stay at the front of innovation.
Option C: Create a group program/course version of your 1:1
This is the most widely talked about version of scaling in the online space. Where you take your expertise/current offer to those who can't access your 1:1 and offer the same service in a small/large group. This can be delivered through pre-recorded content or live teachings or a combination depending on how it would work with your specialism. The secret to getting this right is to look at the end result and use this as a basis for how you design the program.
As with a certification, you may be looking at building a new audience alongside your current, however you may want to continue offering your 1:1 service or offer consulting at a higher rate for the same reasons- to ensure you are continuing to develop your expertise.
The biggest benefit to running a course or program are the profit margins. There may be an initial outlay for learning management systems/program hosting however once the set up is complete, the more students you have/frequency of running the offer can mean more profit. Ideally, you would be supporting your students to get great results so that they can do a lot of marketing for you and they fulfil any payment obligations they have with you.
So, there you have 3 ways that you can scale your expert business that will continue to showcase your expertise. The best way? Whichever is the right way for you- and what you want the future of your business to look like (which is a whole other blog post). Scaling is always going to be beneficial to your business- even though it is diving into the unknown and often will take a lot more than just changing your offer. As with any stage of business, its about learning something new, taking action and doing something different. As long as you have the same aim (to serve your clients and get them results) it will always be worth it.
Looking to start the next online obsession with your group program? Get my free guide to help you make more impact and profit by getting your clients results here.
Rachel Aiken helps experts create obsessive online programs for more impact and profit. Her skills are a combination of online business strategy, instructional design and client experience from 20 years in the UK Education Sector.