The right business coach has experience getting people like you the result you want, a clear process, and real time for you, and you feel at ease talking to them. Before you hire, check their client results, ask how they work between sessions, and notice whether they ask about you or mostly talk about themselves on the first call.
I learned this the hard way. My first coach built me a funnel and disappeared. My second had great content but was so hands-off that I was afraid to ask questions. Here’s what I look for now, as a coach and as someone who still hires them.
There are a lot of business owners in search of a good coach or mentor in 2022. But how do you find the RIGHT business coach? There are a lot of coaches out there that have self-proclaimed business experience. If you have a new business, you need to find a business coach that best works for you and is the right fit.
Last updated: October 2026
The online business world is overflowing with potential. But the internet isn’t a magic money machine, and it definitely isn’t “turnkey.”
Most of us start as the ultimate DIYers. We build from a laptop and a wifi signal, and whatever we can’t figure out, we look up for free. Eventually, that stops working. Information overload and bad advice turn into overwhelm, and overwhelm turns into no progress.
Courses help, until they become a slow bleed: one more program, one more checkout page, and still not the results you want.
Enter: the business coach
A business coach is an experienced entrepreneur who helps you set big, realistic goals, build a clear plan to reach them, and stay accountable while you do the work. There are now 122,974 coaches worldwide, according to the 2025 ICF Global Coaching Study, so knowing what a good one actually does matters.
Below, you’ll learn what a business coach does, how coaching compares to courses and group programs, when you need a marketing coach instead, and the seven steps I use to find the right coach.
What does a business coach do?
A business coach helps a business set, reach, and exceed big goals. They’re usually a successful entrepreneur themselves who has chosen to use those skills to help other owners grow.
In practice, that means clarifying goals that are both realistic and exciting, then mapping a clear plan to hit them. A good coach stays with you the whole way: as you navigate, win, fail, course-correct, and learn from your mistakes. [INTERNAL LINK: /business-coach-female-entrepreneurs/ — “what a business coach does for women entrepreneurs”]
What are the benefits of getting a business coach?
The biggest benefits of a business coach are saved time and higher profits, but less stress, honest feedback, and freedom from limiting beliefs matter just as much. In the 2009 ICF Global Coaching Client Study, conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers, 86% of companies that could calculate it said they at least made back their coaching investment.
You save time
A business coach saves you time because they already know which skills you need, when you need them, and how to teach them to you. It’s the same reason you’d learn piano or tennis faster from a skilled teacher.
You can learn almost anything online for free. But wading through it can take years, and the mistakes along the way are expensive. The risk of running out of time and money before your business takes off is real. A good coach combines their knowledge with your passion so your business starts moving now.
You make more profit
Time is money; it’s a cliché for a reason. An entrepreneur’s time is their most valuable asset, so every month a coach saves you shows up in your bank account.
A coach can often improve your bottom line quickly, starting with a few early tweaks. Over time, the difference in cash flow can be dramatic.
You carry less stress
Picture a cross-country road trip with no itinerary and no GPS. You google a few things, gas up, and go. If you reach your destination at all, it’ll cost more and stress you out far more than it needed to.
If your business is the journey, your coach is the travel guide. They’ve made this trip many times, by many routes, with many kinds of people. Having that itinerary, built around who you are and the life you want, lifts a world of weight off your shoulders.
You get honest, constructive criticism
Business owners need someone objective who will give it to them straight. Your spouse, friends, and family care about you, but they don’t always know your next business move, and they may hesitate to call you out.
That’s a coach’s job. They can name problems in how your business runs without any personal baggage in the way.
You break through limiting beliefs
Limiting beliefs are beliefs, usually rooted in past experience, that restrict how you see the world and keep you from taking the action that’s best for you. The two that hold businesses back most are beliefs about money and beliefs about yourself.
Money beliefs push money away; focus on lack and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Beliefs about yourself convince you that you and your expertise are never enough. A good coach helps you spot both and move past them, so they don’t hobble your business for years. [INTERNAL LINK: /what-is-a-wealth-wound/ — “where money blocks really come from”]
Is business coaching better than taking a course?
Coaching gets you faster progress at a higher price; courses cost less but leave the doing, and the accountability, up to you. I love courses and still buy them, especially to fill technical gaps. They just do a different job.
How courses work
Courses are self-directed and low-touch, and they come at a lower price point. That lower investment means less financial risk, but it also makes it easier not to finish.
The data backs this up. In Justin Reich and José Ruipérez-Valiente’s 2019 analysis in Science of Harvard and MIT online courses on edX, low completion rates hadn’t improved in six years. Nobody personally holds you accountable in a course, so be honest with yourself: will you actually do this on your own?
How coaching works
With a coach, you have someone in your corner holding you to your goals, keeping both the big picture and the next steps in view. You’ll meet on a regular schedule and usually get some way to ask questions in between.
Your coach sees inside your business. They stand with you through tough decisions, new ideas, and the mindset issues that keep you stuck. The trade-off is simple: higher risk for faster, better progress, or lower risk for slower progress.
| Courses | Group coaching | 1:1 coaching | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Lowest | Middle | Highest |
| Personal support | None | Some, shared | Full, tailored to you |
| Accountability | Self | Group + coach | Coach |
| Best for | Filling specific skill gaps | Structured learning with peers | Fastest, most personalized progress |
Should you choose 1:1 or group coaching?
Group coaching costs less than 1:1 and gives you less individual support, but still more than a course. Most group programs include course content, so you work through the material alongside people at a similar level.
It’s the same trade-off again: more support at a higher cost, or less support at a lower one.
What about masterminds?
A mastermind, in its original sense, is a group of equals who meet to share ideas and experience, without a set teacher or curriculum. Today, some group coaching programs also call themselves masterminds, so get clear on what you’re buying before you sign up for anything high-ticket.
You might land in a well-supported program, or you might be paying mainly for the high-level room. That can be valuable, but it isn’t coaching.
What’s the difference between a business coach and a marketing coach?
A business coach works on your whole business, while a marketing coach specializes in visibility: finding leads, social media, and advertising strategy. Both are teachers and guides who save you time and help you avoid expensive mistakes.
A marketing coach learns your vision and goals so your marketing fits you. But building that vision, shaping your product strategy, and working on your mindset are usually outside their scope. Those bigger-picture pieces are a business coach’s territory.
Neither one does the work for you. If you want someone to take over your marketing entirely, you’re looking for a marketing consultant, not a coach.
When a marketing coach is the right call
A marketing coach is a great fit if you:
- Already have a strong vision for your business
- Already know what to sell and how to sell it
- Have solid systems and a plan in place
At that point, it’s time to turn up your visibility and scale, and a marketing coach can show you how to do that efficiently.
If you don’t yet have a strong product stack, vision, and mindset, you aren’t ready to amp up visibility. Start with a business coach who can put those pieces in place first. [INTERNAL LINK: /sustainable-business-growth/ — “the four pillars of sustainable business growth”]
How do you find a business coach?
To find a business coach, join communities, ask your network, watch who gives real value, check reviews, take a call, make sure you click, and choose someone who’s been coached themselves. I learned these the expensive way.
My first coach cost me a lot of money. They built me a funnel, then offered no support while I poured a ton into ads and barely made it back. My second coach was great and I recouped my investment quickly, but each week I got a Google Doc from her ebook and had to beg to talk to her.
What I really needed was support, answers to my questions, and coaching tailored to where I actually was. Here’s how to find that.
1. Join Facebook groups
Communities of peers give you a lot of free information. Facebook groups for bloggers, entrepreneurs, and coaches are full of value, and they give you a first look at coaches you might want to work with.
2. Ask your network
Once you’re connected with peers in your niche, start asking. Ask people you admire who they worked with, and ask people who are succeeding how they got there.
3. See who is providing value
Look past the people who are only selling themselves. On Facebook, LinkedIn, or Quora, notice who positions themselves as an authority by answering questions generously. If someone gives away helpful nuggets for free, imagine what their paid work looks like. If they only talk about themselves, keep looking.
4. Read reviews
Reviews show who has created genuinely happy clients. If you can, reach out to past clients directly. I’ve done this, and it led me to successful coaches whose clients promoted them for free because the coaching was that good.
5. Set up a call
Most coaches offer a free or low-cost consultation, and that call reveals a lot. Are they asking about you and trying to get to know you? Did they offer any value? How much do they talk about themselves, and how quickly did they throw out their prices?
6. Make sure you mesh
Compatible personalities make for a stronger working relationship. Did the conversation flow easily? Do you like them as a person? Do you admire what they did before coaching? [INTERNAL LINK: /how-find-right-business-coach/ — “how to tell if a coach is the right fit”]
7. Look for a coach who believes in coaches
Ask potential coaches whether they’ve been coached and what that experience was like. A coach who invests in their own coaching understands both sides of the relationship, and you’ll see it in how they run their business and support you.
Questions An Entrepreneur Could Ask To Ensure They Found The Right Coaching Service
1. How does the business coach interact with clients?
Does this business coach provide individual or group programs? Is it virtual or physical? How many phone calls do you receive every month? Do you receive assistance between calls? (This may be particularly useful if you have questions or concerns between scheduled meetings.) Do you gain access to resources or anything else through collaboration?
2. What sorts of customers does this business coach commonly serve?
Business coaching is not standardized. All businesses are different. You should ensure that the business coach you employ has expertise in assisting companies in your field. You will want to work with a business coach who supports coaches, etc. if you are a coach.
3. What are the values of the business coach?
Shared values can facilitate an effective working relationship. Consider your values and which ones are most important to you in a coaching partnership. Is open communication important? Transparency? Honesty? Responsiveness? Accountability? Share this with your potential business coach to determine compatibility.
4. What results do customers of this business coach typically achieve?
While each client is unique and client results are extremely subjective, a business coach should help their clients reach certain goals or objectives. Many business instructors are simply interested in sharing their best outcomes. However, you are curious about the most usual outcomes. Be careful to check about the current status of their former clientele to get a sense of the results they can produce. You need to ensure that your coach will help you achieve business success.
5. What characteristics does this business coach want in a client?
Yes, this is a crucial point! The optimal coaching relationship is one in which both the client and coach say “yes.” You might inquire with the business coach about the sorts of customers they enjoy working with to determine whether you fit their client profile. This is a partnership, and like all relationships, it requires the commitment of both parties for its success.
6. When will this business coach begin accepting new clients?
It might be disappointing to learn on a consult call that a coach is not accepting new customers for the next three to six months. Whether you want to begin immediately or next month, make sure to share this information with your potential business coach to see whether they can begin working with you.
Go here to see how much a business coach costs.
About the author: Alison Reeves is a holistic business coach with more than 15 years in marketing and nearly a decade coaching entrepreneurs. She’s trained in somatic and trauma-informed coaching and is the author of Embodied Abundance. Work with Alison
FAQs: business coaches
Q: What does a business coach actually do day to day? A: A business coach meets with you on a regular schedule, reviews your numbers and goals, and helps you build and adjust a plan to reach them. Most also offer a way to ask questions between sessions, plus honest feedback and accountability as you work.
Q: Is a business coach worth the money? A: For many owners, yes. In the 2009 ICF Global Coaching Client Study, 86% of companies that could calculate ROI said they at least made back their investment. The value depends on the coach’s fit, your readiness to act, and how much support the program includes.
Q: What’s the difference between a business coach and a business consultant? A: A business coach teaches and guides you while you do the work. A consultant does the work for you. If you want someone to take over a function like marketing entirely, hire a consultant; if you want to build the skills yourself, hire a coach.
Q: How do I know if I need a business coach or a marketing coach? A: Choose a marketing coach if your vision, offers, and systems are already solid and you need more visibility. Choose a business coach if you’re still shaping your vision, product stack, or mindset, because more visibility won’t help until those pieces are in place.
Q: What’s the difference between a business coach and a consultant? A: A consultant usually diagnoses problems and tells you what to do, or does it for you. A business coach helps you find and implement the right answers yourself, building your skills and confidence along the way. Many coaches, including holistic business coaches, blend both.
Ready to find the right coach?
If you’re looking for a holistic business coach who works on strategy and the patterns underneath it, here’s how I work with clients.
Keep growing your business
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Thinking about coaching? See how I work with clients.
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