Article
People looking for coaching care more about the person than about referrals
For the first time, the new RAUEN coaching market analysis also surveyed clients. Their view differs clearly from that of coaches. In five charts, I show what that means for your personal brand.
Ask coaches how their clients find them, and the answer is almost always the same: through referrals. That’s true, but it’s only half the story. The other half is told by the people looking for coaching.
For the first time, the RAUEN coaching market analysis 2025/2026, a long-running survey of the German coaching market, asked not only 916 coaches but also 101 people who use coaching or buy it for their company. Their view differs at decisive points.
Referrals open the door, the person makes the decision
The question was why coaches get approached. The coaches themselves mainly name referrals: through mutual acquaintances (20.5 % of all mentions) and through HR or line managers (10.2 %). For clients, referrals play a much smaller role. At the top of their list are fit, integrity, outlook and attitude, and likeability.
That doesn’t make referrals unimportant. They get the contact started. The decision comes afterwards, and it’s about the person: does this person suit me, can I trust them, do they share my attitude? A personal brand answers exactly these questions long before the first conversation.
Coaches underestimate their own website
The gap becomes even clearer when it comes to which marketing measures bring in work. Coaches attribute almost a third of the effect to word of mouth from satisfied clients (30.2 %), clients only 9 %. Instead, clients credit other measures with far more impact than coaches do.
The study’s explanation: people looking for coaching want convincing information about the person, and they expect to find it on the website. References and case stories show that what’s promised works in practice. Clients also credit a regular newsletter with more impact. Coaches, the study suspects, mainly see the effort involved.
On social media, clients look more widely
Among social networks, LinkedIn is far ahead for coaches: 57 % of the attributed effect goes to the platform. Clients also put LinkedIn first, but spread their assessment more widely. Instagram gets 20.5 % from them, YouTube 16.8 %. Coaches give YouTube just 2.8 %.
The study thinks clients may be going by their own usage here. But it also stresses that video in particular builds likeability, closeness and trust, which is exactly what matters when people choose a coach. If you mainly work with private clients, don’t write off Instagram and video. If you advise companies, LinkedIn is the right place.
From the first post to the referral
Winning new clients is one of the biggest hurdles for coaches. Asked about the biggest barriers to entry, respondents name, besides a lack of experience, market saturation (24.8 %), client acquisition (24.5 %) and visibility and trust (17.8 %). Their most common advice after solid training: position yourself clearly.
A personal brand combines both: a clear position and a path on which people get to know you before they book you. Referrals stay important along the way. They close the loop.
An example from my work
For VANSOL, Katrin van Sol’s brand for hypnosis sessions, workshops and trainings, I built exactly this kind of system. Fixed formats go out every week: the “hypnosis of the week” as a newsletter and carousel, quote posts and campaigns for workshops and live sessions. Everything is planned and approved in a shared cockpit, and approved posts go out to Instagram automatically.
Katrin approves; planning, production and sending run in the background. That keeps the brand visible every week without planning everything from scratch each time.
Where to start
You don’t have to launch on every channel at once. These three steps have the biggest leverage:
- A website that shows your stance. Not just services and prices, but who you are, how you work and what you stand for. Add references and short case stories, anonymized and with consent.
- A newsletter as a bridge. People who follow you on social media or land on your website need a next step. A regular newsletter keeps in touch until the right moment for coaching comes.
- One channel, on a fixed rhythm. Better one network that suits your audience, with fixed formats every week, than five channels without a plan.
That’s exactly where I support coaches, therapists, trainers and other personal brands: with websites and landing pages, newsletters and funnels and a marketing system for personal brands that runs every week. If you want to know where to start, get in touch.
Sources
- Rauen, C., Barczynski, D., Ebermann, D., Plath, A. & Tanzil, I. (2026): RAUEN Coaching-Marktanalyse 2025/2026 (coaching market analysis, in German). Version of 5 October 2026; 916 coaches, 91 clients and 10 coaching buyers. rauen.de/cma
