IAM526- Business Coach Helps Online Coaches Get Booked Out

Megan Yelaney is a business coach who specializes in helping online coaches get booked out with 1:1 clients and scale their businesses to six figures. She started in network marketing in 2011, building that business to six figures, and transitioned to her own health and fitness coaching in 2017, scaling that to six figures in 6 months. She has since gone full-time into business coaching and has scaled that business to multiple six figures in 1.5 years. Megan specializes in client attraction utilizing social media marketing strategies as well as launch strategies to help her clients and students have a strategic plan to launch their programs profitably and in an organized and stress-free way.

• CEO Hack: Asana
• CEO Nugget: Those who want to work with you will work with you
• CEO Defined: Boss of your life

Website: http://www.meganyelaney.com

Instagram: @meganyelaney
Facebook: www.facebook.com/meganyelaneybiz
Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megan-yelaney-66240023/

Check out one of our favorite CEO Hack’s Audible. Get your free audiobook and check out more of our favorite CEO Hacks HERE

Transcription:

The full transcription is only available to CBNation Library Members. Sign up today!

Intro 0:02

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

Gresham Harkless 0:29

Hello, this is Gresh from the I AM CEO podcast. I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Megan Yelaney of meganyelaney.com. Megan, it's awesome to have you on the show.

Megan Yelaney 0:39

Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to be here.

Gresham Harkless 0:42

Yeah, super excited to have you on, and what I want to do is just read a little bit more about Megan so you hear about all the awesome things that she's doing. Megan is a business coach who specializes in helping online coaches get booked out with 1:1 clients and scale their businesses to six figures. She started in network marketing in 2011, building that business to six figures, and transitioned to her own health and fitness coaching in 2017, scaling that to six figures in 6 months. She has since gone full-time into business coaching and has scaled that business to multiple six figures in 1.5 years.

Megan specializes in client attraction utilizing social media marketing strategies as well as launch strategies to help her clients and students have a strategic plan to launch their programs profitably and in an organized and stress-free way. Megan, are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

[restrict paid=”true”]

Megan Yelaney 1:30

Yeah, very ready.

Gresham Harkless 1:31

Awesome. Let's do it. I wanted to kick everything off with what I call your CEO story to hear a little bit more about your background and what led you to start your business.

Megan Yelaney 1:39
Cool. Yeah. So you touched on it a bit in the intro but I really got started in business with network marketing in about 2011 with Beachbody and it was very difficult with a lot number of marketers. I got into it because I just love the products. I was already a really big fan of it and sort of worked the business without getting paid. I had tonnes of people do it with me and didn't know you could get paid. I was like I'm sitting on a goldmine. So it was just such a natural transition for me it never felt salesy never felt icky, it felt really great, because I just really believed in it. I started like seriously working out in 2013. I mean, seriously, treating it like an actual business and not like a hobby and that skyrocketed. When I went all in about a year and a half, I would say I was able to quit my side jobs.

I was pursuing acting mainly musical theatre at the time. I was able to quit all those side jobs and just perform and just do that and it was awesome. It was a dream and I absolutely loved it. Then in 2016, I started to feel this pole, to start doing something else. I had done so much personal development and business growth between coaches taking courses, going to seminars, and just had a lot of things I wanted to offer people and services that I couldn't, because I could only sell them what the company had. Either the opportunity to build the business or the products, I felt a little limited. That year, we also went digital, everything went online. So my paycheck started to go down significantly.

It was one of those things, I was working harder and harder and seeing less and less. It was twofold of just not wanting to be in his position and not wanting to just say what was me the stocks, I wanted to take charge. Also just had that pull to do my own thing anyway, regardless of whether the income was going down or not. So those two things combined really inspired me to go out on my own. I joined a group coaching program and got clear on who I wanted to help.

Started my own health and fitness coaching outside of that, and then realized pretty quickly within about, I would say four months of starting that the reason I loved my business wasn't the health and fitness part. While I am a huge proponent of it, it was the business part, it was helping people build businesses, helping them find financial freedom and quit jobs, they don't like to make extra money to support their family. That's what I love and love the social media marketing part of it. So I went all in with that and haven't looked back. It's really just proof that when you are truly doing what you're meant to do, and you're passionate about it. It's going to take off and that was like the difference maker for me.

Gresham Harkless 4:14

Yeah. I love that story in the way that you've progressed to it. Because I think a lot of times, sometimes we think we wake up and we figure out exactly what we should be doing and what to do. But a lot of times we have to work through things and then we start to understand, I really enjoy this aspect of the business. So it starts to manifest and grow from there.

Megan Yelaney 4:32

Yeah, totally.

Gresham Harkless 4:34

Absolutely. I know you touched on it a little bit. Can you take us a little bit more through your coaching business, and tell us some of the people you're working with, and exactly how you work with your clients?

Megan Yelaney 4:43

Yeah, for sure. So I help them with different types of online entrepreneurs but mainly focus on online coaches. So this could be anyone who's a health and fitness coach, who's a life coach relationship coach, a business, or social media. I've helped virtual assistants. So anyone who is trying to attract clients online, I personally have not worked with anyone who has a brick-and-mortar business, or who is trying to attract people to their brick-and-mortar business. But that being said, everything I teach is really about client attraction online. So it totally can apply to brick and mortar, I just teach it I just happen to mainly attract and work with online coaches and sets that aren't where I came from. I really help them.

I have programs ranging from beginner to advanced. So I help them start, if they're really brand new, they've never been in business before. But they have certifications, they know they're passionate about helping people with this thing. But they just don't know how to get it out there. I help them start that business, get their first few clients, and get a system really to attract and find them regularly. So it's not just random, and they got lucky. But it's actually like a foolproof system.

Then I have other higher-level programs for entrepreneurs who are already full-time, already making decent money, and want to really take that off in scale. Especially people who are maxed out with clients, they can't possibly take any more because of time, but they feel limited with their income and they want to grow. I help them diversify their product suite and really just use their time wisely and be able to reach more people without working all the time. Those are like the two main things I do with clients online, as well as social media marketing and speaking to your ideal client in a way that makes them go, wow, I need your service and not in a way that salesy or spammy.

Gresham Harkless 6:26
Right. That was actually what I was going to ask you. So is that part of and heard you say it a couple of times the client attraction part? Is that exactly what that means when you have those clients come to you because you're speaking their language, so to speak?

Megan Yelaney 6:37

Yeah, exactly. Yeah. 100% and I like to call it, I mean, it's market research. It's like such an old term. But it's really like reading your client's minds and we're making them think you're reading their mind. Really, you just ask them what they actually need. But then it's just like having a good conversation with someone you repeat or like a therapist, you just repeat back what they just said to you. It's pretty amazing what happens when you do because people feel heard, they feel like oh, wow, you get me You paid attention to what I said. You're not just trying to sell me this product. But you're selling you the transformation I'm actually seeking.

Switching to that like transformation focus and what you can do for the client versus like, look at this thing I have, you should get it because I'm selling it. That's the biggest client attraction that is really speaking to those deeper emotional reasons. I mainly work with women. I've worked with men before and even men too, but especially, women buy emotionally. We buy emotionally we justify logically, they have probably most men do too, though. So we're just talking logically all the time, we're going to knit such a big part of the market who's like, I just want to like pull up my heartstrings and that's really what we focus on a lot, too.

Gresham Harkless 7:47

Yeah, that makes so much sense. A lot of times we don't realize that we're necessarily doing this, but I think it's like, what is almost like we're finishing each other's sandwiches or sentences. So the same idea and same concept were vague. So people would know so much about like, what their target market who they're working with a lot of times, it's because it's an extension of who you are and what you're passionate about, that kind of connection automatically happens. So it's not like it's forced or salesy or anything like you mentioned sometimes happens when you're not paying attention to this stuff.

Megan Yelaney 8:22

Yeah, 100%. It's 90% of the time, probably even more, you're helping someone that was the previous view. That's like, when you're so passionate about it like I was with Beachbody when I started, it was so easy for me to share because it transformed my life. So I was like, Well, this is simple. I'm gonna share my story. When you're actually coaching on something you've been through, which again, most people are, you just speak your truth and you don't fabricate it, don't try to embellish it.

Especially on social media now people are more attracted to realness than the curated, perfect Instagram feed. That's like, kind of old school now. It's like people aren't as attracted to what they want. They're seeking real, authentic stories. So the more you can just bear it all and be honest about the struggles and how you overcame them. That's when people are like, wow, she gets me, she's been where I've been, or he gets me, what I'm going through and that's really attractive.

Gresham Harkless 9:15

Yeah, absolutely, especially in this day and age where we have so many choices at our fingertips that we can choose this person or that person. A lot of times you do want that deeper emotional connection so that you understand this person actually gets me and understands who I am and what I'm going through. So definitely appreciate that. Now I wanted to ask you for what I call your secret sauce and it can be for you or your business but what do you feel kind of sets you apart and makes you unique?

Megan Yelaney 9:37

Oh, I love that. So my brand is called #pretty awkward. This was developed actually when when I was a health and fitness coach I was trying to do which was two and a half years ago. I was trying to do the typical fit, Bow girl side. It's called the booty pose. I'm sure anyone who has been on Instagram can know that. I literally couldn't do it, it was just the space that it was posed that all these fitness influencers would do. My body just wouldn't do it. I couldn't do it. I couldn't turn myself into that way. I just felt really weird when I was doing I was like, this doesn't feel right. So one day, I filmed myself attempting to record it and was going to just take a screenshot when I finally got the post, never got it. I just said, You know what, I'm going to upload this video. This is such a ridiculous video of me attempting to do this thing.

I talked to my friend while I was doing it. It ended up like for my account anyway, going viral, and people like, going, Whoa, this is hysterical and I just make fun of the fitness industry. This is so weird and this is like, pretty awkward. One of my friends helped me come up with that plan, it was really just about embracing your quirks and embracing what makes you actually build your business. Because at the end of the day, everyone I know is pretty awkward, we just don't say it. I was just kind of calling it out. I think that's been my secret sauce and that's what I help my clients really with is like, let's find what makes you, you and that is a unique gem, and let's just go full force with that. Because I don't want you to copy what everyone else is doing.

You're just going to be one of many verses like, oh, that's her thing. Then when you operate from that way, that secret sauce, I never have to fake anything. I never have to worry if it's gonna look weird, because that's part of my brand. I joke around when I mess up. It's actually part of my brand. I have way more people who love that. So yeah, it's like me being quirky and weird. I just started doing these singing videos. I'm a singer and an actress so I started doing these like business singing videos, and people are loving that. Just thinking outside the box and trying to be like unique, but not trying to think too much outside of yourself to get that if that makes sense.

Gresham Harkless 11:49

Absolutely. I wanted to switch gears a little bit and I want to ask you for what I call a CEO hack. So this could be an app or book or a habit that you have. But what's something that makes you more effective and efficient?

Megan Yelaney 11:59

Yeah, so a couple of ones. I love this question. The biggest one, I'd say this year that I've implemented is Asana and that's been it's such a simple tool to use, you can get it on your phone or your computer, and it's just an organization system for your team. I think Trello is very similar, but it has helped me to organize, it's really helped as our teams have grown to assign tasks and set due dates, and even little things like picking up dry cleaning, like going to run an errand. I put everything in there and it really helps me just organize my life. Basically, if there's not a task in there doesn't get done. It's like my bread and butter, my Bible. It's just been amazing for myself and my clients too.

Gresham Harkless 12:37

Now what to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. So this is like a word of wisdom or a piece of advice that can be related to client attraction or anything business-related. But what's something you would tell your younger business self or something you find yourself telling clients as well?

Megan Yelaney 12:50

Oh, yeah, this quote was something that one of my best friends always says, and I've heard it from many entrepreneurs, but it's what is for me shall not pass me. I think it's just a good life lesson. But also for business, especially if you're attracting clients and you have a lot of friends who are doing something similar, you can be very competitive, and you can feel that comparison really seep in. This is how I've lived this year 100%, if someone is meant to work with me, they're meant to work with me if they're if they're meant to work with someone else. That's what they're meant to do.

It is one that helps me attract way more people but I also like, not to be disheartened if someone doesn't sign up with me and signed up with a great friend of mine, and am happy for them and encourage it. That has come so full force back to serve me in a really great way. I have a very abundant mindset because of it.

Gresham Harkless 13:43

Awesome. Now I wanted to ask you my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO and we're hoping to have different quote-unquote, CEOs on this show. So Megan, what does being a CEO mean to you?

Megan Yelaney 13:53

Oh, love this. Being a CEO means being the boss of your own life, taking charge, and deciding what you truly want your life-to-life legacy specifically to look like. Then going out there and taking charge and getting out of your comfort zone, not giving up when things get hard, and realizing that your purpose is so much more than just you. As a CEO, you're responsible for so many other things, so many other people and it's got to be bigger than just you. Having that bigger vision, I think that's a huge thing that a CEO has to embody.

Gresham Harkless 14:28

Yeah, absolutely. It puts everything holistically and in one perspective because I think a lot of times we think the day-to-day, the mundane tasks and things that we're doing or we're not doing but a lot of times as you said, if you have team members, if you have people that you're providing services for, they need what you're able to provide and you're not doing that. It's cheating, not just yourself, but it's also cheating in the world of the greatness that you are so I think that's the incredible definition, definitely an incredible perspective.

Megan Yelaney 14:55

Cool, thanks. Yeah.

Gresham Harkless 14:56

No problem. Well, I definitely appreciate that and I appreciate your time even more. What I wanted to do was pass you the mic so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional. You want to let our readers and listeners know. Then of course how best they can get ahold of you to find out everything you're working on.

Megan Yelaney 15:09

Yeah, so that you can find me at meganyelaney.com and then hang out a lot on Instagram. Instagram Stories is really fun @meganyelaney of same m e g a n y e l a n e y, same on Facebook as well getting into LinkedIn now. Mainly, Instagram and website, I would say. Then I also have a podcast called the #pretty awkward entrepreneur podcast. We talked about a lot of what we just talked about today. That's just been like a passion project. I absolutely love doing it. It's so much fun and really fun featuring a lot of people. So that's been a really fun platform.

I have a great freebie, how I attracted five high-ticket clients in one week with zero paid advertising and that's on my website as well as a pop-up. You can just go to meganyelaney.com/highticketclients with an app. But yeah, that's all the goods there. We have a lot of free resources and just really good blogs and tips for you to get started with your business.

Gresham Harkless 16:09

Nice. Well, I definitely appreciate that Megan, and we will have those links in the show notes as well too, so that everybody can follow up with you. Subscribe to the podcast, and hear all the awesome things you're doing. I appreciate you again and I hope you have a phenomenal day.

Outro 16:20

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

[/restrict]