A first Coaching website can feel like a huge undertaking. There are domains to choose, platforms to compare, pages to write, images to find, and that lingering pressure to explain everything clearly before putting anything online. For many coaches, it quickly becomes one more reason to delay being visible.
But a website does not need to carry the entire weight of a Coaching business. It does not need to perfectly define a niche, sell every service, or turn strangers into paying clients overnight. At its best, a Coaching website creates a sense of connection, offers enough reassurance, and makes it simple for the right person to take the next step into a conversation.
The question is not simply, “What should go on a website?” A more useful question is: What job does this website need to do at this stage of the Coaching practice?
Table of Contents
- Table of Contents
- Before We Dive In – A Word of Caution
- Do Coaches Need a Website?
- A Website as the Start of a Conversation
- Relationships Before Transactions
- Why Simple Coaching Websites Often Work Best
- Choosing a Platform Without Overthinking It
- Using Social Media as a Website Alternative
- Define the Purpose Before Building
- Key Reflections for Coaches
- Attribution
- A Note From the “Author”:
Before We Dive In – A Word of Caution
Before you read on, please note that this article is an AI-generated summary of the above podcast episode. While prompted carefully, it’s possible that some views may be misrepresented and/or information incorrect. If you find any errors please report them to us by emailing report (a) existentialcoaching.net . If you find something that seems odd, untrue, or difficult to believe, my encouragement is for you to go to the source and listen to the episode to get the full context. If it turns out to be false or misrepresented, kindly let us know! Due to the volume of information and limited team resources, we can’t check all AI-generated articles for accuracy, but decided that these are good enough, and hence valuable resources.
Do Coaches Need a Website?
There is an assumption in business that everybody needs a website. Yet in Coaching, it is worth slowing down before accepting that as a rule. Some excellent coaches do not use websites at all. They might simply say: “I do conversations. Shall we meet?”
That response has something rather beautiful about it. Coaching is fundamentally relational. The work begins through presence, curiosity, trust, and dialogue. A polished online presence can support that, but it cannot replace it.
At the same time, a website can matter a great deal for people who are not yet personally connected to the coach. Nicki reflected on receiving a list of possible therapists from an institution. Some names came with websites, while others were only email addresses. In that relatively impersonal context, she felt more inclined to contact those who had a website. It gave her a way to get a sense of who they were before reaching out.
This is an important distinction. When someone has received a strong personal referral, a website may be secondary. The trust has already been transferred through the recommendation. But when a person is considering a coach without that relationship in place, an online presence can offer a little reassurance. It can answer the basic questions:
- Who is this person?
- What kind of Coaching do they offer?
- Do they seem credible, thoughtful, and approachable?
- Could this be a good fit?
- How can someone contact them?
A Coaching website, then, is not always essential. But it can be useful as a place where somebody can pause, get oriented, and decide whether to open a conversation.
A Website as the Start of a Conversation
One of the most helpful ways to think about a Coaching website is not as a sophisticated business card, but as a doorway. Its purpose is often to begin a conversation or continue one that has already started elsewhere.
Most people do not randomly discover a coach’s website, immediately book a session, and begin a substantial Coaching relationship. More commonly, they have met the coach at an event, encountered their work through a colleague, seen them on social media, or received a referral. Then they look the coach up.
In that moment, the website is not necessarily doing the entire job of marketing. It is helping somebody make sense of the connection already forming. It can create confidence that they have arrived at the right place.
For that reason, a first Coaching website does not need to be exhaustive. It does not need to explain every framework, qualification, service, and life experience. It needs to give a flavour of the coach and make the next step easy.
A useful basic question is: What would help a person move from curiosity to contact?
For some coaches, that may mean a clear invitation to book a consultation. For others, it may mean a contact form, an email address, or a short description of the kinds of conversations they enjoy having. There is no single correct structure, because the website needs to fit the coach’s actual way of building relationships.
Credibility can be part of that process, but credibility does not have to mean sounding overly corporate or trying to impress. A clear, human, grounded message often does more than a long list of credentials. People may be looking for competence, certainly, but they are also looking for a sense of safety and resonance.
Relationships Before Transactions
It is easy to become preoccupied with conversion rates, sales pages, and calls to action. These can all have a place in a mature Coaching business. But when someone is starting out, relationship building deserves more attention than building a highly automated sales system.
Siwash shared that he has bought programmes costing $10,000 and even $15,000 through a website. But those purchases did not happen because he landed cold on a sales page. They followed an established relationship with advanced coaches whose work he had already encountered repeatedly. There were videos, articles, examples of their work, and a substantial body of material that had built familiarity and trust.
By the time somebody reaches a product page in that situation, they often already know what they are buying. The website simply makes it easy to sign up.
That is very different from asking a new coach to create a website that generates clients at scale. Those are two different conversations, requiring different resources, strategies, and levels of experience.
Early in a Coaching practice, it may be far more effective to focus on meeting people, having good conversations, being visible in a way that feels sustainable, and helping interested people understand what working together could look like. A website can support this process, but it does not need to become a machine that does everything.
There is also a useful ethical dimension here. Coaching relationships are personal and often involve meaningful vulnerability. A website that pushes too hard toward an immediate purchase may not suit every practitioner or every client. Inviting a conversation can be a more relational and discerning way to begin.
Why Simple Coaching Websites Often Work Best
Many coaches get stuck because they believe the website must explain everything about them. They feel they need a flawless niche statement, a complete description of their approach, extensive content, testimonials, pricing, and a detailed account of every possible outcome.
That is a lot of pressure, particularly for someone in the first year of a Coaching business.
There is nothing wrong with a simple site that includes:
- A warm image or introduction
- A short indication of who the coach works with or what they care about
- A few words about the kind of Coaching offered
- Clear contact details
- A straightforward invitation to arrange a consultation
That may be enough. The site only needs to avoid getting in the way of the next conversation.
Nicki’s own approach is intentionally straightforward. She shares some information about who she is, why she enjoys Coaching, and the themes she likes to work with. The primary invitation is simply to get in touch and talk more.
Simple navigation matters too. A website can be beautifully designed and still feel frustrating if people cannot find their way around it. If a person follows a link to an internal page and then cannot easily return to the information they need, the website has created unnecessary friction.
Clarity is more valuable than cleverness. A person should not have to work hard to understand what the coach offers or how to contact them.
There is no universally ideal balance between words and images either. Yannick recalled considering whether his own site needed more imagery, only for someone to tell him that they appreciated the amount of text, substance, and depth. Different people resonate with different forms of communication. Some want a strong visual sense of the coach. Others want to read and think.
The goal is not to please everybody. It is to offer an authentic impression of the person and the work.
Choosing a Platform Without Overthinking It
Technical decisions can easily become another form of procrastination. A coach may spend weeks comparing website platforms when a basic site could already be online.
For a first Coaching website, a user-friendly platform can be enough. Nicki spoke positively about Wix because it made the process intuitive and manageable. It offered templates, helped with practical elements such as domains, and reduced the frustrating technical complexity that can make website-building feel overwhelming.
Wix may not be the ideal long-term solution for every ambitious website. If a coach later wants a highly customised, advanced site designed around complex client journeys, search engine strategy, and large-scale conversion, another platform or professional support may make more sense.
But that is not necessarily the question at the beginning.
First ask what is needed now, rather than trying to build the final version of the business immediately. A budget-friendly, functional website that allows people to find and contact the coach can be a perfectly good starting point. It can evolve as the Coaching practice grows.
SEO Can Help, but It Is Not the Whole Strategy
Search engine optimisation and regular content can help people find a coach, particularly when they are searching for something specific. A coach who consistently publishes an article once a week may eventually be found by someone looking for support around confidence, weight loss, or another particular concern.
Nicki had received enquiries through her own website despite not deliberately doing extensive SEO work. Basic choices such as a relevant domain name, clear page titles, and a few prompted keywords may already make some difference.
Still, there is no need to assume that every website will become a major source of traffic. Many Coaching businesses are built mostly through relationships, referrals, professional networks, and communities. SEO can be valuable, but it is not a substitute for the quality of the coach’s presence and connections.
Using Social Media as a Website Alternative
A traditional website is not the only way to create an online home for a Coaching practice. Social media profiles can serve many of the same functions, especially when coaches are beginning or when their audience already spends time on a particular platform.
At events, people increasingly exchange LinkedIn profiles rather than website addresses. Others may use Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, or another channel where they naturally enjoy showing up.
A profile can include:
- A concise description of the Coaching offered
- Relevant professional experience and studies
- Examples of ideas, articles, or videos
- A sense of personality and communication style
- A route for people to make contact
Siwash has often used Facebook as a place where people can connect with him and engage with his content over time. He is also shifting more toward Instagram and YouTube. The most suitable platform depends on the audience, but it also depends on what the coach genuinely enjoys using.
There is little benefit in forcing a presence on a platform that feels draining or inauthentic. A sustainable online presence is usually more valuable than an ambitious plan that disappears after a month.
Whatever platform a coach chooses, the underlying principle remains the same: build trust, make connection possible, and offer enough information for somebody to understand the work.
Define the Purpose Before Building
A website becomes much easier to create when its purpose is clear. Instead of beginning with design choices, start with the place the website occupies in the larger journey toward a Coaching conversation.
Is the website:
- A place for referred clients to check out the coach before getting in touch?
- A professional home that builds credibility?
- A resource hub for articles, stories, and examples of the work?
- A simple route to book an initial consultation?
- A sales page for a programme that people already understand and want?
- An online presence that can later become more sophisticated?
The answer will shape what belongs on the site. A site for personal referrals may only need a few pages. A site that supports a substantial content strategy may need regular articles, clearer pathways, testimonials, and more advanced structure.
Testimonials and client stories can be especially helpful at a later stage, provided confidentiality is carefully protected. Sharing anonymised stories or appropriately consented feedback can help prospective clients imagine what may be possible through Coaching. These stories should never expose private details, but they can offer a meaningful sense of the work’s impact.
There is no need to have every answer from day one. A coach’s niche may emerge through experience. Their language may change. Their ideal clients may become clearer. Their Coaching website can change too.
Key Reflections for Coaches
The pressure to create a perfect website can obscure the simpler question beneath it: how can a coach make it easier for the right people to begin a conversation?
A strong first Coaching website may be modest. It may have little more than a clear introduction, a glimpse of the coach’s personality, and an invitation to connect. That is not a failure of ambition. It can be a thoughtful decision to prioritise relationship over performance.
Useful reflections include:
- What would someone need to know in order to feel comfortable contacting this coach?
- Does the website reflect the coach’s actual way of working?
- Is the navigation clear and the invitation to connect easy to find?
- Is the coach trying to solve a future business problem before it exists?
- Would a simple social media profile serve the current purpose just as well?
- What could be removed to make the experience more human and straightforward?
A Coaching website can become more sophisticated over time. It can develop content, improve its search visibility, and support a larger client journey. But it does not need to begin there. Start with the conversation. Build trust. Keep it simple enough to publish. Then let the site grow alongside the work.
Perhaps this is a useful conversation to have with a Coaching colleague: what does an online presence need to do, and what does it not need to do yet? Comparing a few websites that feel resonant, substantial, clear, or warm can reveal that there is no single formula. There are simply different ways of opening the door.
Attribution
Talking about Coaching is a podcast by coaches for coaches. It does what it says on the tin: We talk about coaching. We, that is Yannick, Siawash and Nicki. We love coaching, collectively got a tonne of experience, knowledge and charm; and we all felt it was time to give something back to our wonderful coaching community. Whether you’re a life coach, work with organisations or practice any other form of coaching, you can ask us anything and we’ll discuss it for and with you so you can learn, grow and develop your practice and business skills!
Committed to helping leaders and coaches do their best work and live their best lives, Yannick Jacob, the founder of Talking about Coaching, is a Coach, Trainer & Supervisor with Masters degrees in Existential Coaching and Applied Positive Psychology. He is part of the teaching faculties at Cambridge University and the International Centre for Coaching Supervision, and he’s the Course Director of the School of Positive Transformation’s acclaimed Accredited Certificate in Integrative Coaching, for which he gathered many of the world’s most influential coaches and earliest pioneers. Formerly Programme Leader of the MSc Coaching Psychology at the University of East London, Yannick founded and hosts Yannick’s Coaching Lab which gives novice and seasoned coaches an opportunity to witness experienced coaches live in action. Yannick presents at conferences internationally, his book An Introduction to Existential Coaching was released by a leading academic publisher, and his self-study online course on the subject is now available for instant access. Across four seasons as host of Animas Centre for Coaching’s popular podcast Coaching Uncaged Yannick engaged the thought leaders of our industry in dialogue, and he passionately hosts his own podcasts Talking about Coaching and Talking about Coaching and Psychedelics.
A Note From the “Author”:
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This article was created from the video Any advice for my coaching website? – Episode 79 with the help of AI.
