SOP templates for a coaching business

A coaching practice sells expertise, but clients experience it through a series of admin steps: booking, onboarding, sessions and follow-up. These SOPs cover that path in order, plus onboarding an assistant. Replace the [bracketed] values with your own tools and program details.

Lead acquisition: publish content and ask for referrals

Purpose: Keep a steady flow of the right people into your calendar.

1. Publish one useful piece of content each [week] on [main channel], answering a question your clients ask.
2. End each piece with one clear next step, such as booking a call or joining your list.
3. Ask for referrals from clients at natural high points, such as a milestone or renewal.
4. Thank referrers personally, whether or not the referral becomes a client.
5. Track sources of every new inquiry in [CRM].

Lead nurture: run a discovery call

Purpose: Find out whether you can help this person, and let them experience how you work.

1. Send a short intake form with the booking confirmation.
2. Read the form before the call.
3. On the call, ask about their goal, what is in the way, what they have tried and what would change if it worked.
4. Decide honestly whether you are a fit. If not, say so and suggest another route.
5. If you are a fit, explain the program that matches and its investment.

Sales execution: enroll a client

Purpose: Make joining simple and clear, with terms agreed in writing.

1. Send the agreement within 1 business day of a yes, covering program, length, sessions, price, payment schedule, cancellation and confidentiality.
2. Send the payment link with the agreement.
3. Follow up at [2 days] if either is not complete.
4. On signature and payment, add the client to [CRM] as active and trigger onboarding.

Fulfillment: onboard a new client

Purpose: Get the client set up and clear on how the program works before the first session.

1. Send the welcome email within 1 business day: how sessions work, how to book, how to reach you between sessions, and what to prepare.
2. Send the onboarding questionnaire about goals, background and preferences.
3. Set up the client’s shared folder or portal and session notes document.
4. Book the first session within [7 days] of enrollment.
5. Read the questionnaire and prepare before the first session.

Fulfillment: deliver a coaching session

Purpose: Run every session with the same preparation and follow-through.

1. Review the client’s last session notes and actions [15 minutes] before.
2. Open by checking progress on last session’s actions.
3. Work on the focus for the session, following your methodology.
4. Agree actions with the client before the end, with dates.
5. Write session notes within [24 hours] and send the client their action summary.

Retention: renew or complete a program

Purpose: End each engagement on purpose, with either a renewal or a clean finish.

1. Book a review session [3 to 4 weeks] before the program ends.
2. Review progress against the goals from onboarding, using the client’s own words.
3. Recommend the next step: renewal, a different program, or completion.
4. Send the renewal agreement, or a completion note with resources.
5. Ask for a testimonial only with permission to use it, and record exactly what they agreed to.

Company: onboard an assistant

Purpose: Get a new assistant working independently on admin without learning by trial and error.

1. List every task the assistant will own, and link the SOP for each one.
2. Grant access to [email, calendar, CRM, payment tool] with the least access needed, using [password manager] for shared logins.
3. Assign the SOPs with staggered due dates: a few per day in week one, starting with scheduling and client communication.
4. Shadow, then reverse shadow: the assistant watches you do each task, then does it while you watch.
5. Check in daily in week one and weekly for the first [month], and update SOPs wherever the assistant got stuck.