You must be joking, right? How could I ever have too many clients?

But, as a coach, it’s likely that you make most of your money through one-on-one services.

Or, maybe you’re doing a combination of one-on-one, and group programs, but if you’re running a group forum (like a Facebook group or group coaching calls), there is still a lot of time that is being sucked up by your clients.

And sometimes you hit a ceiling.

If you’ve realized that your business is at the point where your literally cannot take on one new client – BUT – your income level still isn’t where you want it to be, there are a few  ways to boost through this glass ceiling in your coaching business.

Set Your Office Hours

A lot of coaches don’t like to say, “No”, especially to paying clients. So, you end up over-promising, under delivering, and being chained to your email inbox answering their questions 24/7.

As you preach self-care to your clients, you neglect to listen to your own advice!

It’s important to set the tone with your new clients right when they start working with you, and state your Office Hours. Just like you wouldn’t expect your bank to return your call at 9 pm on a weeknight, your clients shouldn’t expect you to be on-call 24/7 to answer their emails, calls and texts.

Let your clients know when you’ll be available to them, so that they can expect responses 9-5 on Monday – Thursday, but they know you take Friday – Sunday to spend with your family.

For existing clients, prepare a personal email to each (this is not a job for your MailChimp list), and let them know that in order to serve them better, you’re taking a little more time for yourself.

For me, I prefer emails, but clients can text in an emergency (like if their website crashes, or a digital product didn’t deliver). But, if it’s not an emergency, the work request comes in to my inbox, and they know I’ll take care of it first thing in the morning.

Another great way to set your office hours is by using a calendar scheduling system for taking client calls, as well as those introductory calls. I’m a bit of a grump on Monday morning, so I don’t take calls with new consultations on Mondays. But, I do have a few hours for existing clients in the afternoon.

It’s important to block times out for yourself, so that you have time to recharge your batteries and build a little more mental capacity for your clients.

Raise Your Prices

If you have too many clients, group or otherwise, it means you’ve got the sales cycle down. You’re probably comfortable on the sales calls and consultation calls, your copy is resonating with your ideal clients, and people are flocking to work with you.

That’s fantastic, and you deserve a reward for all of your hard work.

So, why not celebrate by raising your rates?

If you’re filling up with one-on-one clients, then it may be that you’re priced almost too affordable. Not that you want to price your services unfairly, but any individual access to you should be guarded. You’re the expert, and you deserve to be compensated for your time.

For me, I hit a wall last October when I was still a VA. My first package was $200, and I had 21 clients (and planning my wedding!). Needless to say, I was way past capacity, and I paid for it dearly with bad customer service reviews…and a lot of refunds.

So, after adjusting my approach, and taking some new training, I revamped my minimum package to $500, and since then I’ve had a steady, manageable stream of clients. And, they are happy because I can over-deliver (like I desire to), and I am able to meet my income goals with fewer clients.

So, if you’re overwhelmed with too many clients and client requests, block yourself off a little and leave room for those VIP clients. And, direct runoff to your digital products or group programs, where you can still serve them, but will have the time you need.

Hire Support

When you’re running a one-woman show, you can reach capacity with too many clients pretty quickly.

How many clients can you realistically serve if you’re also responsible for blogging, social media marketing, drafting newsletters, managing the Facebook group for your programs, answering customer service emails, (are you exhausted yet?), etc.!

So, if you’re finding yourself at capacity – it’s time to hire support.

Because, if you hired out your marketing tasks, or customer service tasks, or the whole enchilada of running your online business, think about how much capacity would be freed up to serve new clients! Plus, you’ll enjoy your work more because now you’re focused on what you really want to do (I know you didn’t really want to be a social media manager when you signed up to be a coach!)

You can start with a VA, who maybe tackles answering emails and scheduling your social posts. Or, you can hire an OBM (like me!) to be your partner, and take over all the day-to-day tasks that need done in your business.

But, whichever you choose, hiring support will instantly clear your schedule to get more clients, and pay for itself in no time.

Leave a Comment: If you’re at capacity with clients, which of these strategies do you plan to implement in your business? If you’re still looking for more clients, make sure you’re setting up your office hours with your current and incoming clients, so you can prepare ahead of time for reaching that ceiling!