How to Package, Price, and Keep Your Coaching Clients (Even After the Program Ends)
A coach in my community sent me this question last week:
"How have you kept your clients coming back for more insight, realistic transformation, and support after the program ends?"
It's a great question. And the answer starts way earlier than you'd think. It starts the day you build your package.
Because this part stings a little. If your clients disappear after week 12, there's a good chance you designed a program she was supposed to leave.
No judgment. I did the exact same thing. When I started out, I just wanted one or two clients. So I built a three-month package and never thought about what came after.
Or maybe you're on the other end. You have a folder full of beautifully crafted packages, a membership idea, a workshop outline... and not one of them has been sold.
Either way, you probably ended up in the same place. Guessing. Guessing how many sessions to offer. Guessing what to charge. Guessing what happens when it ends.
So in this post, I'm walking you through all three:
How to build your coaching package
How to price it so it feels good to say out loud
How to keep clients after the program ends
Rather Listen to The Show?
Part 1: How to Build Your Coaching Package
There are three elements to a strong package. Grab a pen.
1. Choose your container
Your container is the duration of your program and how often you meet.
It's tempting to start with a year-long program. I get it. A long commitment means you're not constantly chasing the next client.
But if it's hard to get someone to commit to you for four weeks, it's going to be a lot harder to get them to commit for twelve months.
Think about walking into a restaurant. Nobody brings out the main course the second you sit down. You start with an appetizer or a soup to warm you up. Then the main course. Then dessert.
(Confession: I usually skip the appetizer and go straight for the main course. And some of your clients will too. They'll show up ready for the three-month package.)
But plenty of people want a smaller first bite. So your container might be four weeks as an appetizer, or six, eight, or twelve weeks for your main offer.
Then decide how often you meet. Weekly or every other week?
Look at the people you serve. If your clients are corporate leaders with packed calendars, ask yourself: if I were her, would I want a coaching call on my calendar every single week? Showing up to a coaching call takes energy and commitment. Every other week might fit her life better.
And look at your own life, too. If you're still working a full-time job while you build your coaching business, you might not have the energy for back-to-back sessions every weeknight. You love this work. You're also human. Build in recovery time.
2. Break it into steps
I'm a structure person. I like knowing step one, step two, step three. It's like running errands. First the gas station, then the bakery to pick up the cake, then the grocery store.
Your client's outcome is the destination. Let's say she wants to feel more confident. What are the stops along the way?
What did she need to learn, think about, or accomplish to get there? Map it out, one step leading to the next.
What you want to avoid: "She'll feel more confident, so I'll throw in nine sessions and call it a day." A session count is a schedule. A step-by-step path is a program.
3. Decide what to cut and what to keep
This one is personal for me.
I have a habit of throwing everything into a package. Extra access to me, email support, a community, worksheets, bonus exercises. A past client once told me she felt like she'd been fire-hosed.
She wasn't wrong. She walked away with a ton of value... and no idea what to do first. All that generosity created overwhelm.
The opposite is a problem too. I've bought programs so bare-bones that I felt cheated.
So sit down with what you've built and ask: does this feel simple and doable? Then cut what's too advanced for a beginner. And if you're building for intermediate clients, cut the beginner material they already know. That's another place people feel cheated.
One more thing. Test your package with five to ten clients before you start building something new.
Part 2: How to Price Your Coaching Package
Pricing is tricky because there's no standard number in the coaching world. So we guess. And then we worry we guessed wrong.
When I started, I priced by the session. Nine sessions for around $1,800 works out to roughly $200 a session. Sounds like a solid start.
Until the inner dialogue kicks in. "$200 a session? That coach I know only charges $100."
That hourly thinking comes from every job we've ever had. Jobs pay by the hour. So we carry that into our business and compare ourselves hour for hour.
When you look at the transformation you deliver, that $200 a session is often seriously undercharged. Here are three things to consider instead.
1. Price the outcome
If you're a career coach helping a client step into management, what does landing that promotion mean to her? It might be the dream job she's wanted for years.
If you're a confidence coach, picture a client who has lived with a harsh inner critic dictating every move. You help her stop letting that voice run her life. What is that worth to her?
Think back to before you had the skills you have now. How much would you have paid someone to solve the exact problem you were struggling with?
During the live, someone in the chat shared that they invested $7,500 in coaching when their marriage was in trouble, and it was absolutely worth it.
That's the kind of value you're pricing. And whatever number you land on as a new coach is your floor. As your experience grows, you build up from there.
2. Pick a number you can say out loud
I can suggest a number. Another coach can promise you'll make $10K a month. None of that is your number unless you can say it confidently.
Yes, you can look at averages. The International Coaching Federation publishes a Global Coaching Study every few years with data on what coaches charge, and it's a helpful reference point.
But you'll need to say your price at the end of a discovery call when you invite someone to work with you. If you can't say it without flinching, it isn't your number yet.
3. Know who you're saying it to
What are your dream clients' spending habits? What do they typically invest in personal development? Some can buy a $2,000 TV without blinking.
Others are struggling to pay rent. I would never offer someone in that situation a $5,000 package and push her to put it on a credit card. Nobody should go into debt to work with you. That's not what coaching is about.
And if the people you want to serve can't afford one-on-one coaching, maybe one-on-one isn't your model. A membership or group format might let you support them and still get paid well for your work. There's more than one way to build a coaching business.
Part 3: How to Keep Clients After the Program Ends
Back to the original question.
She didn't leave because she was done. She left because nobody asked her what was next.
Your client paid you. She trusts you. And at the end of your time together, she's sitting there wondering, "Okay... where do I go from here?" She didn't say no. You just never asked.
Plant the seed along the way
Don't wait until the final session. Around week 10 of a 12-week program, and really throughout the whole relationship, mention the other ways you support people.
For example, I help newer coaches with their niche, their package, and a simple content strategy. I'm also a professional speaker, and I help coaches get onto bigger stages with a signature talk and speaker profile. A coach working on her first package isn't ready for that today. But down the road? It plants a seed.
Simply ask
As your time together wraps up, try something like:
"I know our time is coming to an end. What would feel supportive from here, and how would you like to keep going?"
She'll tell you exactly what she needs.
Build for month four
She needs you more in month four than she did in month one.
Month one, she's excited. She's taking action and doing everything. Month four, the calls have stopped and she's trying to use what she learned out in the real world. That's when the dip hits. She feels like a deflated balloon.
That's where you come in. After the program ends, you can be her:
Accountability coach, keeping her on track
Execution coach, helping her act on what she learned
Integration coach, making sure the skills stick in real life
Whether you coach leadership, mindset, relationships, or marketing like I do, the work is always about mastery. There are always more advanced skills on the other side of the first program.
So what does mastery look like after your program? It could be:
Every-other-week or monthly sessions
A group program or mastermind
A membership
Voxer or audio support between sessions
The client who just finished with you is the warmest person in your world. You don't have to sell her. You just have to invite her.
Your Action Step This Week
Think of one person you've coached who has finished working with you. Paid, free, practice client. Doesn't matter.
Send her this message:
"Hey, I was thinking about you. How's ______ going since we wrapped up?"
Fill in the blank with what she was working on. (This is where your session notes come in handy.)
This message does two things. It holds her accountable, which is part of your job as a coach. And it reopens a conversation you didn't know was still there.
If she says "Great!" ask what made it great. You're not selling anything. If she wants more support, she'll tell you. I once sent a check-in like this and my client wrote back, "I need you again in my life."
And if she's thriving on her own? Celebrate with her. That's her success and yours. She'll remember the coach who checked in, and she'll be happy to send people your way.
Want Feedback on Your Package?
Inside The Builder Room, you can bring your package (your first one or your next one) and I'll look at how you've put it together. It's $27 a month with a weekly live Q&A and three action steps you can take that week. Join at builderroomforcoaches.com.
And join me live for Office Hours with Michelle, every Saturday at 9 AM PT on YouTube. One question from one coach, 30 minutes, three action steps. Next week, I'm taking you behind the scenes of my Notion content calendar and how I plan what to post on social media. Save your spot at coachwithclients.co/office-hours.
Cheers,
Michelle
