What To Do When A Client Can’t Pay

When single mom Mary Moretti* began seeing a life coach, she could easily afford the $105 per hour weekly sessions, during which she discussed the abusive ex battling her for custody of their 21-month-old daughter.

But then Moretti was laid off, and the Manhattan mom was forced to cut down from four coaching sessions per month to two. “I finally told my coach I couldn’t see her anymore,” the 36-year-old says. “It’s between diapers and life coaching. Not to mention that I’d like a manicure or bottle of wine now and then.”

Moretti is one of the nearly 10 percent of Americans who are unemployed, and one of an increasing number of clients worldwide who can’t afford coaching.

So what’s a coach to do when a client is too broke to pay?

One option is to offer free sessions. In fact, all but two of the 30 coaches polled for this article have comped some sessions over the last two years. Doing so has benefits (25 hours of pro bono work counts towards an ACC certification from the ICF).

But it also has drawbacks — one coach discovered on Facebook that her allegedly poverty-stricken client somehow had enough money for a Vegas vacation. Many coaches have found ways to make clients pay something for their services, even if it’s not always cash.

Here are some ways your coaching business can survive the recession:

1. Barter
Your clients may be short on cash, but are they rich with chickens and eggs? Ok…maybe not chicken and eggs. Coach Kathi Casey, of Otis, MA, has traded services with six clients over the last year. “I have to get my driveway plowed and teeth taken care of somehow,” she says. For example, a dentist replaced two fillings and cleaned her teeth in exchange for two hours of coaching

2. Remember that publicity can lead to payment
Michelle Ward of New York City offered 12 free phone sessions as part of her “When I grow up” scholarship. Twenty-seven people entered the contest, which she publicized on Twitter, Facebook and her blog. Five of the applicants ended up becoming paying clients.

3. Shorten the session
Dr. Anita Marchesani normally coaches people for 45 minutes or an hour. But if someone can’t afford her full rate, she’ll offer a 30 minute session. The Pennsylvania coach doesn’t feel the clients get shortchanged in the shorter session.  “The primary difference is that in shorter sessions, we only focus on one issue each time,” she says.

4. Offer discounts
Consider having a sale or a package deal. Chicago coach Daniela Schreier, Psy.D., says, “I’ll give long term clients a break on one month of sessions or offer ten sessions for a certain amount of money.”

5. Accept IOUs
Career coach Karen Rose of San Francisco has clients pay what they can up front with the remainder due after they find new employment. “If I’m any good at what I do, my clients will be able to afford to pay me at the conclusion of our work together,” she says. “And if I’m not good, they shouldn’t have to pay me anyway.”

6. Institute a sliding scale
International Coach Federation President-elect Ed Modell, PCC, offers one rate for people who make under $50,000 per year and more for those with bigger paychecks.

7. Make your office child-friendly 
Moretti ended up booking one more session because her coach said she could bring along her toddler to avoid paying a babysitter. The coach stocks her office with crayons and coloring books so she and Moretti can talk.  Moretti says, “That little offer made me willing to come again.”

* Named changed to protect privacy