How To Start a Health Coaching Business

Want to guide someone to better health? There’s a job for that. It’s called a health coach, and it’s a growing industry. 

Health coaches are not required to be licensed medical professionals, but to their clients, they’re a crucial part of helping them set and reach their health goals. 

“It’s really important to understand the scope of practice. You do not treat or diagnose. You’re there to support and guide them,” says Nora McCaffrey, CEO of the Institute of Integrative Nutrition (IIN), a health coach certification and education organization.

Health coaching services can range from supporting goals set by your client’s physician to their personal well-being goals. And because health coaching doesn’t require a license, it’s fairly straightforward to launch your business. Keep reading to learn how to start a health coaching business in 10 steps.

What is a health coaching business?

A health coaching business uses a collaborative approach to help clients reach their health goals, typically through one-on-one virtual or in-person sessions with a health coach. 

“Health coaches help individuals define their wellness goals and provide tools and resources to create sustainable change,” Nora explains. “A coach does not prescribe or diagnose, so they’re not saying, ‘Take these and do this.’ It’s more like, ‘You want to explore this aspect of your wellness. Here are different things that you can do.’” 

The health coaching industry is broad and encompasses a range of experiences and expertise. Health coaching is not regulated, so licenses and permits are not mandatory. Training institutes offer certifications that can help health and wellness entrepreneurs be more competitive in the coaching industry. Coaches can also be licensed in the medical field, such as a registered nurse (RN) who pursues health coach certification. 

Some health coaches work out of hospitals, holistic health care centers, nursing homes, or corporations. Others take a more entrepreneurial path and start their own business. You can create a thriving health coaching business locally or globally—either online, in-person, or by adopting a hybrid model—pursue a full-time career in the field, or coach part-time for supplemental income.

Health coaching focuses

Health coaching services span a wide range of niches. Nutrition coaching and fitness coaching are specialized coaching fields, while holistic health coaching is more broad. Coaches can focus on health challenges such as:

• Weight management

• Nutrition and diet

• Stress management

• Sleep improvement

• Optimal lifestyle habits

• Energy levels

• Chronic disease management

• Fitness goals

• Maintaining a healthy work-life balance

How to start a health coaching business in 10 steps

1. Identify your niche
2. Get certified
3. Write a business plan
4. Set your pricing
5. Register your business
6. Find insurance
7. Create a marketing plan
8. Build a website
9. Start social media marketing
10. Spread the word

There are a few basics to follow to launch a successful health coaching business, regardless of location. Business registration and insurance requirements vary by state, so be sure to research your state’s guidelines.

1. Identify your niche

Having a niche can differentiate your business. Maybe it’s coaching families with multiple dietary needs through meal planning or helping people quit addictive habits. Use what you’re passionate about to inspire your niche.

You can also start a coaching business to partner with your other interests.

“Many people combine different areas,” says Nora. “For example, you can have a chef that’s also a health coach or a life coach that’s also a health coach or a trainer, a personal trainer that’s also a health coach.”

There are also coaches who specialize in working with local communities, within school systems, with health insurance companies, and in partnership with clinical practitioners. 

2. Get certified

Certification isn’t mandatory for an independent health coach, but it demonstrates your expertise to prospective clients. Health coaches can train at institutions like Nora’s IIN or Emory University, among others. Each institution has different eligibility requirements for students, class structures, and scope of study, but most prepare students for certification tests. 

The most common certification body is the National Board for Health & Wellness Coaching (NBHWC). The Health Coach Alliance (HCA) has a curriculum standard and lists approved schools on its website. The National Society of Health Coaches (NSHC) certifies people who are licensed health practitioners.

“You want to find the program that’s right for you and to consider programs that really cover the depth and breadth of content,” Nora advises. “Also, think about business training. We really want to make sure you have all of the information as well as the tools and resources on how to run a business, which is not innate at all.”

Depending on the institution, coaching program, and pace, it can take as few as nine months to be ready to take the exam for your health coach certificate. At an institution like IIN, it typically takes a year or longer. 

3. Write a business plan

The process of writing a business plan can help you build a profitable health coaching business and distill what it will offer. Creating a business plan can also surface details you need to nail down. It can help you estimate personal client capacity, consider if you should add an online health coaching program, and identify additional revenue streams like merch, meal plans, and ebooks.

Business plans typically include:

• Services offered, such as one-on-one sessions or workshops on plant-based meal plans, fitness training, or stress management 

• A market analysis, such as studying how other health coaches operate in the area where you want to coach

• Your marketing strategy, such as social media marketing, email marketing, or hiring a professional advertising agency

• Logistics and operational details, such as how you provide health coaching services and how many clients you’ll coach per session

• A financial plan, such as expected revenue and expenses, as well as the amount of initial capital you need

4. Set your pricing

Health coaching is not covered by most medical insurance providers, so clients pay out of pocket based on prices set by the local market.

“Your annual income depends on experience, certifications, and location” Nora says. “The average salary in the US is $66,000, but many coaches make over $100,000.”

In metropolitan areas, $100 to $400 an hour is a common rate range. Offering a variety of health coaching packages with tiered pricing—which may include a mix of client calls, in-person sessions, group workshops, and one-on-one sessions—can be an attractive entry point for new clients.

5. Register your business

A health coach entrepreneur typically chooses between a limited liability company (LLC) or a sole proprietorship for their business structure. An LLC protects you from personal liability. A sole proprietorship does not, but is quick to establish. And even though you don’t need a license or permit to start coaching, you often need to register your business with your state.

If you’re planning on opening a business bank account, you’ll need an employer identification number (EIN) from the IRS. It’s free, can be completed online, and most banks require it to open a business account.

6. Find insurance

Nora encourages coaches to explore limited liability insurance and determine what makes sense for them and their program offering. Professional liability insurance protects you if a client sues you regarding your advice; general liability insurance protects you if a client gets hurt in a physical space.

This is also a good time to get other contracts ready, including service agreements, terms of service, or liability waivers. You can find boilerplate contracts online, but consult a lawyer for quality assurance.

7. Create a marketing plan

A marketing plan details how you’ll attract customers to your health coaching business. Your marketing plan should include:

• Market research. Define your target audience, analyze the competition, and figure out where your service fits in.

• Marketing strategy. Lay out the avenues you’ll use to bring in and retain customers, such as your social media presence, paid advertising, newsletters and email campaigns, and attending industry networking events.

• Budget and revenue projections. Your projections might include how much capital is needed to launch, an estimate of earnings per quarter or month, and expenditures. 

8. Build a website

Your health coaching website should list detailed coaching services, include your contact information, and be easy to navigate. Building your website might be a work in progress—you’ll add client testimonials as soon as you have them—but it should always look professional and supply accurate information to your future and existing clients.

Highlight your niche areas, including whether or not you’re a certified health coach. Clarify if you work online, in-person, or both. The About section is where potential clients often go to review your professional history, business values, and mission statement. Include links to your social media platforms on your homepage.

You can create a Shopify website to book and manage appointments, sell add-on products and services, create a content marketing blog, and tell your clients about yourself and your business.

9. Start social media marketing

Use social media marketing to communicate what your business offers, convey your personal coaching style, and start building brand awareness. Research the most popular social media platforms for your industry or niche and build a presence there.

Social posts can help you attract potential clients and make professional connections with podcast producers, bloggers, and peers in adjacent industries like personal trainers and nutritionists.

A few tips to keep in mind:

• Be authentic. Your social media posts should reflect your personality, whether the content is playful or practical. Share your thoughts on relevant topics like your favorite wellness podcasts or healthy cooking channels.

• Share useful tips with your audience. Provide helpful, actionable tips in various formats, from videos to written posts with links. Interact with your audience by answering their questions in the comments or polling your audience about their goals.

• Engage with other coaches. You can share successful health coaching tips from your coaching business journey and promote in-person event ideas like wellness book clubs or yoga in the park to network with others in your industry. Engage with posts from peers in your field by commenting, liking, and reposting.

10. Spread the word

Don’t be shy about spreading the word of your new business to friends, family, colleagues, and health care professionals. Go where your target market gathers, virtually or in person—spaces like symposiums, business launches, parties, and workshops. Consider enticing first-time clients with a free introductory consultation or a discounted new customer package.

You can also network within your industry at meetups or association events where you can pick up health coaching advice and learn how your peers retain clients. You may also find resources for finding clients provided by health coaching institutions and associations.