Blog Content Ideas For Coaches And Therapists – Grow your Business in 2023

Finding it hard to think of life coaching blog topics to write about? You’re not alone in this. But there’s a harsh truth you have to acknowledge.

It’s almost impossible to grow your coaching business through your website and get people checking out your offers and services… unless … you’re regularly creating written, video or audio content.

(If you’re new to content marketing, don’t panic, this post is jam-packed full of ideas to help you).

Why blogging can feel like a struggle

A client once came to me in a complete fluster because she’d been working with a web designer who asked her to write three blog posts (1000 words+) to “jumpstart” her new website.

My friends this was completely ridiculous! She’d never written a blog in her life (she wasn’t quite sure exactly what the word meant)!

Cue *massive* overwhelm.

Imposter syndrome reared its ugly head and she was questioning on earth she was supposed to come up with original ideas.

Here’s the post I wished I had in my back pocket when she came to me.

But first of all, you might be asking yourself…

How are Blogs Useful?

Blogging serves a number of purposes…

1. Help visitors and search engines understand who you help

Blogging gives your site visitors a good idea of what your site is about, and it’s also essential for search engines to understand what you specialise in…

…and the more the Google spiders can find out about what you do and who you help when they crawl your website, the greater the likelihood that your articles will pop up in the search results. *You can’t help anyone if they don’t know you exist.*

Before I get into it, I’d like to dispel a myth that you might be worried about. You don’t have to like writing or be “a good writer” in order to blog!

And if you’re worrying about spelling or grammar, just remember you’re not writing an essay, there’s no red pen. So feel free to write from the heart and use tools like Grammarly or hemingwayapp to tidy your post up afterwards. These tools will help you to spot typos, spelling errors or grammar issues.

Remember that conversational posts are easier and more appealing to read, so don’t feel like you have to write a weighty, academic tome. Your readers would much prefer a personable post that’s easy to read so ditch the psychobabble and use simple terms. If you need more tips on blogging, have a look at this post where I share simple tips on blogging for beginners.

Even if writing isn’t your thing and you prefer creating video content (Facebook Lives, Reels, etc.) or podcasting you can still blog.  

If you find it easier you can transcribe audio content, edit the transcription and add it to your website in blog format. You can repurpose social media posts and make them work harder for you by adding previously created content to your website to help people find you online. 

If you’re still not convinced, read this post on the benefits of blogging where 10 thought leaders share more about why blogging can help to grow your business.

Is Blogging Dead in 2023?

Absolutely not! 77% of people who use the internet read blogs and the benefit to you is that it’s a form of organic marketing, i.e. unlike ads you don’t have to pay for it. It’s not too late to get your ideas and services out there in front of the people who need your help. Every post you write is an opportunity to get on the radar of the people who need you most.

We all know that social media posts slip down the feed. The benefit of blogging is that it gives your content greater longevity (and you can grab snippets of your blog and repurpose quotes/images, etc. for social media).

Creative Blog Content Ideas for Coaches and Therapists

There’s nothing worse than staring at a blank page, trying desperately to come up with something to talk about. Maybe you’re never stuck for a helpful resource to share with a client in your 1:1 sessions, but your mind goes blank when you try to capture your thoughts in writing?

It can be a lot easier to come up with ideas when you are bouncing them off a real-life human!

One thing I’ve learned is that if I’m feeling overwhelmed, or like I “have to” create content, it’s not going to resonate with anyone.

Instead, I pretend that I’ve bumped into a friend in the supermarket and I’m just having a chat with them and sharing a tip or resource. It takes the pressure off to create “perfect” content and it also means I don’t sound like I’m writing a dissertation.

Often we get so stuck in academic writing and we find it hard to get our message across because it’s full of acronyms and just sounds like psychobabble.

Remember that the ace up your sleeve as a coach or therapist is that you have a unique insight into the challenges that clients face. You hear them describe their issues in their own words and how they are thinking, feeling, and responding to the challenges in their lives.

Use your empathy to create content that will really resonate with someone who is looking for a solution and needs your help. If this person came to you in a session you’d be able to hold space for them and recommend helpful tools and resources. Blogging is no different, so just pretend you’re speaking to one person and giving a few tips.

Demographics vs Psychographics

A big thing in marketing is to focus on demographics – the age of your ideal client, if they’re married or single, etc. I’m much more interested in psychographics – what’s going on for them internally, what they feel stuck on, and how I can help.

You might find that thinking about psychographics makes it easier for you to come up with content that helps your ideal client and explains how the services you offer can alleviate what they’re going through. Think about common themes or patterns that past clients have worked through or challenges that you faced and overcome yourself. Write as if you’re speaking to one person and you’ll find you’ll sound more natural and the ideas will flow.

When you create content that raises awareness about how your services can solve a problem you’ll find it easier to create content that leads directly to your services and shows potential clients how they’re a fit.

Content Creation Prompts

Now that you’re feeling a bit less anxious about content creation, grab your favourite notebook and pen, a Google doc, or use the voice recorder on your phone. Reflect on these prompts below and make a note of what comes up for you.

• What happens in the first session? Explain how it’s a bit different. Let potential clients know about how to find the Centre/what happens if you have technical problems if you’re working online, where to park, public transport, assessment, contracting, etc.
• How to find the right coach/therapist for you It’s really important to let clients know that they have a choice when it comes to working with you.
• Think of what is going on for your ideal client right now. How are they feeling? Can you share general helpful practical tips that can help them to cope with the presenting issue?
• What are some signs and symptoms that they are experiencing the issue? Share some tips to help them cope with what’s going on for them.
• What could happen if they ignore the problem?
• What’s life like for them trying to cope with this? What does the evidence tell us about tools they could try?
• What podcasts or other resources would you recommend to them to help them to understand more about what’s going on for them?
• Write a book review about a book that would be meaningful for your people
• What’s a common misconception people have about your area of specialist knowledge?
• Share coping strategies that could help them to handle what’s going on for them right now, e.g. breathing exercises, journalling activities, self-care techniques, etc.
• Give this blog topic generator a go to see if it sparks inspiration or give this therapy blog post idea generator a whirl.

The next step is to come up with a few broad content categories or pillars that you’re going to focus on.

Blog Content Ideas for Coaches – Category Example

Pick some main themes that you are going to focus on (linked to your niche and the services you offer) e.g a life coach might pick the following categories:

1. Overcoming overwhelm
2. Goal-setting
3. Self-esteem

As you can see from the example above, your categories will be fairly broad, don’t worry I’ll talk about how to refine these down in a minute! Ideally, you’ll come up with five or six main categories (content pillars) that are directly tied to your services.

Now let’s see how you can use these pillars to come up with potential blog post ideas. For example, a life coach who has chosen “self-esteem” as a category/content pillar could choose the following topics to blog about –

1. books to improve self-esteem
2. challenging negative self-talk
3. identifying limiting beliefs
4. signs you have poor self-esteem

Do Some Research – How Does your Ideal Client Base Describe the Issue?

Even if you can’t think of a theme that your ideal client base might struggle with, you can try “social listening ” – researching FAQs about your topic in online forums, and Facebook groups or even looking up the table of contents in a book for inspiration.

Market research can help you to get an insight into what your audience is stuck on and how your offers can match their needs.

Remember how I talked about using a conversational tone and avoiding psychobabble? Make a note of any phrases that are repeated over and over again so that you’re naming the struggles in words the reader will recognise.

Let’s take another example. Let’s say you’re a bereavement specialist and you want to talk about coping with the death of a pet.

Instead of “I’m experiencing disenfranchised grief” a client might say “I’m sad because my dog died and other people don’t get it”

When you think about how a client might talk about the issue, it can help you to come up with content ideas. For example:

Tools and Resources you Recommend *all the time*

Make a list and then see if you can come up with some blog post topics

Here are some examples:

Next, think about the types of blog post formats that would best suit each type of content that you’re thinking of creating.

Types of blog post content that can help to nurture potential clients and showcase your expertise:

1. How-to Posts
2. Infographics
3. Guides
4. List Posts
5. Links to useful therapeutic resources, coping tools, apps, etc.

Don’t overthink it, set a timer and scribble down what comes to mind – your future self will thank you!

It makes life so much easier when you have a bank of ideas to refer to on the days when writer’s block is kicking in. Even better, you can repurpose these ideas to make Facebook lives, reels, and other content.

Grow your audience with blogging

Sometimes, the problem is that you have a tiny audience and need more eyeballs on your blog. In that case, it’s time to connect with other experts in your field and those working in industries that complement what you do.

Here are my top tips to grow your audience:

1. Get in touch with industry experts and request an interview. They might just say “yes”! Visit their website and fill in their contact form or pop them an email. Maybe there’s a lecturer you had in college that you really admired? Or an author whose book you loved? I have used this strategy more than once and even experts appreciate being featured on other blogs.
2. Pitch podcasts, radio and other blogs related to your niche. This is a great way to get backlinks to your website. More than likely, you’ll notice it boosts traffic to your website too. Make sure you have a related freebie featured prominently on your site so that potential clients can sign up to your newsletter.

And if you’re feeling uninspired, listen to your body and brain, maybe you need to recharge your batteries, spend time in nature or take a nap. It could be that you just need to rest or have some fun to reignite your creativity.

Believe me, there’s no point trying to write if you’re teetering on the brink of burnout. The picture above shows a lovely haven I found when I was craving time away from my computer!

Now that you’ve got plenty of ideas, tell me what you’re going to write about, I’d love to hear.

If you’re looking for more blogging tips and resources, check out these posts: