14 Ways to Get Clients Without Social Media (2026 Guide)
If you've ever thought I want to get clients, but without using social media, then this post is for you.
So many amazing coaches quietly sabotage their business or don't even give it a chance because they think the only way to get clients is by posting daily. But guess what, before social media, there were a lot of coaches running successful businesses without it. So it is possible for you too.
In this post, you are going to discover proven ways that successful coaches use to find clients without being glued to Instagram all day long. I’ll also share out-of-the-box strategies I’ve seen my clients use to grow their business offline.
1. Join Local Networking Groups
The first thing you can do is join local networking groups, meetups, or co-working spaces (coworking spaces always have events going on).
When I was in South Africa six years ago, I was looking for things to do on the weekends. I would go on Eventbrite or Facebook events, and I would see what local events are happening in my area that I would feel interested in attending—events about spirituality, breathwork, hiking, yoga, etc.
I would meet like-minded people and start conversing. Then they would be like, “what do you do?” I’d tell them I'm a life coach and share how I support and help people through my coaching. They would get curious and I would be creating a new client that way.
2. Organize an Event
You can offer a free workshop or do a lunch-and-learn at yoga studios, libraries, coworking spaces, or women’s groups. Lunch-and-learns are basically in-person workshops.
A personal trainer I coached wanted to work with people in the dental industry. So he started organizing lunch-and-learns at his wife’s dental office. Afterwards, he would invite people to continue working with him one-on-one.
For each workshop you do, make sure you have an invitation or a call to action. You don’t want to say, “I’m a life coach, cool, see you later.” There has to be a next step. And you have to get good at inviting people to take that next step with you.
Example of an event I’ve organized
3. Guest Write
You can write for a local magazine or an online publication.
A client of mine loves to write and lives in Boston. She’s a grief coach and has a monthly column in a local magazine where she writes about grief. At the end of the column, she has her website and her freebie. It’s a good way for her to get exposure.
If you enjoy writing, there are lots of online publications you can write for. There’s MindBodyGreen, Forbes, and lots of others.
You can share tips and strategies based on your niche. At the end, always list your website. If you have a freebie, include it. Once people experience your magic, they will want more.
4. Ask for Referrals
You can ask for referrals. You can ask current clients, past clients, and friends if they know anyone who would be a good fit for your coaching program.
Referrals are really great ways to get clients, especially from people who have already been working with you and have gotten results. They already know you, and they love you.
You can reach out and say, “Hey, I'm opening up a couple spots. Do you know anyone who is working on XYZ or could use support around XYZ?”
It helps to know your niche and the topics you enjoy helping people with.
One of my favorite quotes is “We get what we have the courage to ask for.” People don’t know to send you referrals unless you ask. So reach out.
It’s a good idea to offer a referral gift to thank anyone who sends you clients. You can give them a cash bonus, a Starbucks gift card, an Amazon gift card, or a free session. That motivates people to keep sending people to you.
5. Speak to Someone Else’s Community
You can do guest speaking on someone else's podcast. Or you can do a workshop for someone else's audience.
One of the first ways that I got coaching clients was through an online workshop for a Lula Roe team of over 100 women who were struggling with work-life balance.
Lula Roe reached out and asked if I would teach a workshop. I’d never done anything like that. But I leaped.
At the end of the event, I said, “if you want to work with me as your life coach, I have spots available.” And sure enough, people started emailing me after the event.
You can partner with therapists, yoga teachers, acupuncturists, chiropractors and offer a workshop to their communities.
There are spiritual fairs, health and wellness fairs, conferences, retreats, mastermind events, and metaphysical stores. My assistant, Mary, goes to spiritual fairs in Portland, does mini astrology readings there, and gets clients that way.
What that does is it positions you as an expert in your niche.
6. Get Flyers Out
This is a quick but easy one.
You can design and print professional flyers or postcards in Canva. Then, you put them in coffee shops, wellness spaces, or yoga studios.
One of my past students went into a bookstore and put her business cards in personal development books. Someone found one of her cards, booked a consultation, and became a client.
7. Speaking Engagements
Another thing you can do is speaking engagements.
Make out a list and think of conferences and other events where your audience gathers. This could include high schools, colleges, recovery centers, and non-profits.
Think about companies or organizations that would be complementary to your topics or your niche. You can reach out to them and speak on different topics. You could speak about stress management or work life balance or intuition, confidence, leadership.
Places are always looking for speakers.
You might not get paid a lot to speak at first—if at all. But you could make really good money eventually. Some speakers get paid like 10,000 or 15,000 or 20,000 dollars to do speaking engagements.
After that, they sometimes get one-on-one clients as well.
8. Offer Sample Sessions
You can offer free sample sessions to potential clients.
This is my number one favorite way for new coaches to get clients offline because it helps you build up your coaching hours, get your confidence up, and get your skill set locked in place. It helps other people and it helps you.
It is so much easier to show people what life coaching is than try to describe it all day long.
You can reach out to warm leads, cold leads, people that you work with, or friends, and say something like:
“Hey name, I'm opening up a few spots for free sample coaching sessions. I thought of you because I know you're working on XYZ. If you want to try a session and see what coaching can do for you, I'd love to offer you one. Want me to save you a spot.”
I actually just had this happen last week.
I was on a retreat with my coach in Tulum. The co-facilitator is a shadow work coach and we stayed in touch on WhatsApp. She followed up with me after the retreat and said she would love for me to get to know shadow work more. She asked if I would be open to a session.
She did an hour and a half session with me. After that she said if you want to keep working together, I'd love to have you as a client and these are my rates. She naturally went into a mini discovery call.
It is a really powerful method and strategy that you can use.
9. Consult Your Spiritual Business Team
Every morning, I meditate and I talk to my spiritual business team. I meditate for at least 10 minutes, do some deep breathing, and check in.
I ask: “what is the best way for me to serve my audience or to create new clients today?”
I get quiet and see what drops in. That is how I come up with some of my best business ideas of how to create new clients.
So that is something that you can try as well. All you have to do is ask.
I have built a successful coaching business and coach training company using this method by meditating and letting ideas come in.
10. Use SEO
I also really love SEO. It is super good for supercharging your website and content.
I have been working with a YouTube strategist. I put out YouTube videos a couple times a month. She does SEO so that when people search on YouTube for life coaching videos, my videos pop up first.
At the end of each video, I invite people to book an enrollment call with me. That is how they join the Born to Coach Training Academy.
You can also use SEO for your website. This helps your website show up when people google your niche.
If you don’t enjoy doing SEO, have someone do it for you. It can help you bring consults in while you are sleeping.
11. Create a Simple Freebie
I would recommend creating a freebie, like a free download or a lead magnet.
I have one called the Ultimate Get Started Checklist for New Life Coaches. I have been using it for years.
When I meet people who say they want to become a life coach and don’t know how to get started, I give them the checklist. It teaches everything you need right now to get started with coaching.
You want to create something that creates quick and easy wins for your ideal client. It needs to solve a specific problem your audience struggles with.
You can put your freebie at the end of articles you write or below every blog post and YouTube video. When people download it, they join your email list.
12. Email Marketing
The next strategy is email marketing. You don't have to be using social media, but it is still a good idea to have some sort of online presence. People are constantly searching for help and life coaches online.
So I recommend getting your email marketing list set up. There are different platforms. I use ConvertKit. You can research what is the best email marketing platform for a life coach.
You can send out a newsletter weekly or bi-weekly. If you have an event coming up, email about the workshop.
I do a bi-weekly newsletter where I give tips about how to build a successful life coaching business. I put my offers under that and I share my latest blog post and YouTube video and podcast episode.
Example of the bi-weekly newsletter I send out to my audience
13. YouTube and Podcasts
YouTube is the number one way that clients and students find me.
For almost 10 years now, I have been consistently making two YouTube videos a month.
YouTube and podcasts are online, but they are not social media. You don't have to be engaging back and forth with people, but you can still create great content and find clients.
At the end of each video, I tell people to book a call with me if they are interested in becoming a life coach and want to go through coach training. They click the link under the video and book a call.
This has been working really well for me for years.
14. Blog Posts
And then the last one is blog posts. What you’re reading actually was originally recorded as a podcast. My team then transcribed it and turned it into the present post.
I do not enjoy sitting down and writing. Writing is not fun for me. It requires my brain to slow down and my brain does not like to slow down. But I still want to have a blog, and I enjoy reading other people's blog posts.
So I take the transcripts from my podcast and turn them into blog posts for my site. Before I publish them, I have someone add light SEO so they are easier to find online.
This is something you can do too for repurposing your content if you don’t enjoy writing but still want to have written content.
Why Social Media Feels Hard for Many New Coaches
One thing I have heard from some of my students is that they're really nervous to start a coaching business because they're like: “I just don't want to be on social media all day.”
And I don't blame them. I don't want to either. But many times, there is something deeper going on.
Fear of Being Seen: It can bring up old visibility wounds. Maybe growing up you were told to be quiet or not make a scene. Maybe you were punished for being too much or too loud. The idea of showing up online can bring up the same feelings.
Fear of Judgment and Gossip: You may worry about what friends and family will think. You may have tried other businesses before and worry people won’t take you seriously. You may fear outgrowing your current circle.
Fear of Trolls or Harassment: There can be fear of being judged, gossiped about, or attacked online. When that happens, it can send your nervous system into fight or flight or freeze or fawn.
Personal Safety and Boundaries: I went through this myself. On Facebook I started censoring myself because I didn’t feel safe. I deleted the whole profile and created a new one with boundaries that felt better. After that I felt safer posting and showing up.
Fear About Your Job: Some people worry about sharing too much or saying the wrong thing and their job finding out. That creates anxiety and uncertainty.
Not Feeling Good Enough: Imposter syndrome is real. Thoughts like “Who am I to post advice?” or “What if people think I’m not legit?” can stop you before you start.
Burnout and Exhaustion: If you’re tired from work or taking care of your kids, the idea of being “on” all the time can feel draining.
How to Make Social Media Feel Safer
If something feels exhausting or draining, it’s not going to work for you. My coach came up with the term relaxed action. I use this all the time. I ask myself what would make creating content feel nourishing instead of stressful.
You can also adjust your environment until you feel safe. I made a new Facebook profile and set better boundaries. That helped me show up without censoring myself.
Fear, old experiences, nervous system responses, and self doubt are often what make social media feel hard. And that is something you can bring to your coach or therapist if you want to work through it.
The Minimum Effective Online Presence
Okay, so we went over a lot of strategies where you can get coaching clients without social media or without being online all day.
So what’s next?
At the very minimum, I recommend you to just choose one online platform that you're really excited to show up for and do one to two posts a week. If that sounds like a lot, start with just a couple times a month and build up from there.
In addition, make sure to have a website with some strong SEO. And then a clear call to action inviting people to work with you whenever you show up online.
And that's really it.
So bottom line: Have somewhat of an online presence, but you don't have to do everything online.
And if you want support building your coaching business and getting your first clients without social media, check out From Idea to Income, my course for turning your spiritual calling into a fulfilling life coaching business. Over the course of 9 modules, you will learn how to move past the fear of getting started, discover your unique niche, design an irresistible coaching offer, and create paying clients.
So, let's talk about fear of failure versus fear of success.
Fear of failure sounds like, “What if I'm not good enough?” Fear of success sounds like, “What if I actually am good enough?”
Fear of failure keeps us from starting. Fear of success keeps us from expanding.
Fear of failure is rooted in shame. Fear of success is rooted in guilt.
Fear of failure is fear of rejection for failing. Fear of success is fear of rejection for shining.
With fear of success, you're often afraid of outgrowing old versions of yourself or outgrowing people who once kept you safe. Change can be hard and scary.
That's often why people don't sign up to work with us, to hire us as their coach, because they're afraid. They’re afraid of changing and afraid of what will happen when they start creating the life they want.
Root Causes of Fear of Success
So, where does fear of success come from?
This fear isn't about failing. It's about succeeding and going far in life. That can frighten your nervous system..
Marianne Williamson wrote:
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous?'
Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
Here are some common root causes of fear of success:
1. Childhood conditioning around success, money, and visibility. What did your parents model and show you growing up?
2. Fear of judgment, jealousy, or abandonment.
3. Cultural or spiritual beliefs that humility means dimming your light. Some say it’s not spiritual to make a lot of money. That isn’t true.
4. Our nervous system sometimes isn’t calibrated for higher levels of joy, peace, or abundance. The thermostat is set. Like a thermostat on the wall: once the temperature is set, it can’t go higher. Our nervous system works the same way. It gets set at a certain level. Then it’s hard to make more money, feel good, or experience joy.
My mom grew up in poverty. There was heaviness and darkness. That set my thermostat. I couldn’t go above it. I found it hard to feel good in my body and life. One of my coaching friends asked me, “What’s the greatest amount of joy you’ve ever felt?”
5. Being addicted to struggle. In our bodies and nervous systems, success can feel unsafe. If things seem too good or too easy, we don’t know how to create that feeling. Dr. Joe Dispenza talks about how we can be addicted to struggle in his book “Becoming Supernatural.”
Every thought trains and wires our brains. Each creates emotions, i.e., chemical reactions. When we think about something stressful, our body releases chemicals of stress. Our bodies get used to operating that way. Switch to gratitude, joy, compassion, and the body resists. It’s unfamiliar. It wants to go back to anxiety or fear.
That’s where we have to think differently and rewire our brains with affirmations, plant medicine, breathwork, journaling, and meditation.
I worked on this for six months. It’s hard. I was addicted to struggle. It was hard to feel good in my body and life. To realize it’s okay to want success. There’s nothing wrong with that.
Shifting Your Relationship With Success
There are quick ways to shift your relationship with success:
Start with awareness and compassion.
You can’t heal what you can’t see. Notice the signs of fear of success. Instead of judging, get curious. Coaches are great at getting curious.
Become aware and curious when you:
• Procrastinate before breakthroughs.
• Minimize achievements.
• Deflect compliments.
• Feel guilty when things go well.
• Lose momentum after hitting goals.
• Find new problems instead of celebrating progress.
• Or feel unsafe being seen or celebrated.
That’s all you have to do.
Next, rewire your brain.
Reframe success as safety. Tell your body it’s safe to grow, shine, and be seen. Place your hand on your heart and repeat, “It’s safe for things to go well for me.”
It may sound silly, but do it. Reset your internal thermostat.
How does your not being successful help the world?
If I hadn’t climbed Kilimanjaro, done ayahuasca, gone to Tulum, and led my own retreat in St. Louis, would that have helped the world?
No. People are watching. They see me do these things and say, “If she can do it, then I can do it too.”
Use this mantra: “The more successful I am, the more others succeed, too.”
Women talk about famous coaches they’ve worked with. I want women to say that about me. That my programs changed their lives.
The more successful I am, the more others succeed, too.
Daily Practices for Overcoming Fear of Success
Some practices help regulate your energy:
• Breathwork
• Meditation
• Reiki
• EFT tapping
• Somatic coaching
In somatic training, notice how fear of success feels in your body. Move with that energy. This helps it dissipate.
And celebrate small wins.
Success is a frequency. The more you celebrate, the easier it becomes to welcome success in your life.
In the podcast episode below, I show you how to use breath, movement, and self-talk to reset your internal thermostat for success and safety.
Journal Prompts and Final Words
Here are two journal prompts to close out today (write down your answers and reflect):
1. What part of me still believes I’m safer when things are hard?
2. What would it look like to fully allow things to be easy and successful?
This will take time and work to recalibrate yourself; notice and pay attention when the signs appear.
Remember: You’re not the only one who feels this way. It’s common to fear what success might change in your life. This fear does not have to sabotage you from expanding to your next level as a professional coach. You get to decide how you redefine your relationship with success.
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Hey There! I’m Krista
A Retired Nurse Turned Professional Certified Life Coach, Spiritual Business Mentor, Hypnotherapist, World Traveler, Author & Mama to Lincoln.
I was born to be a coach and live a life beyond the white picket fence. I was never designed to struggle through a 9-5 job and sell my soul to the devil.
Now I work with heart-centered humans all over the world showing them how to become life coaches and start their own online businesses.
Hopefully one day I’ll get to work with you inside one of my coaching programs too. Because you deserve to have a life and career that brings you the ultimate freedom and flexibility so you can do the work you were born to do.
Xo,
Krista Kathleen, PCC