3 Simple Principles for a Website for Coaches That Work
Website Strategy for Coaches
You’re starting your website for your coaching business or finally re-designing your existing site, and have no idea where to start.
Many people begin creating coaching websites by thinking about colors, fonts, and logos. In my opinion, these elements come after you’ve figured out the foundational strategy.
In this article, I’ll share three foundational principles that every designer should keep in mind when creating an effective website for coaches.
A good and effective website for coaches has these three main principles: it has a clear purpose, a message that resonates, and a natural flow that guides your visitor toward taking the next step.
Let’s break it down.
1. Every website needs a purpose
Your coaching website needs to have a purpose; ideally, it is:
Help your visitors solve a problem or meet their needs.
Your website for your coaching business isn’t just there to look nice or “exist online.” It should be working for you 24/7, showing up for your potential clients, helping them understand what you do, and why it matters to them.
2. Make it clear that you can help them and how
Many coaching websites start with personal stories about why the coach became a coach. While these stories are nice, visitors who come to these websites are usually looking for solutions for themselves; they’re not interested (yet) in reading about you.
When someone lands on a coaching website, they have one question in their head:
“Can this website help me answer my question right now?”
From the very first moment, your visitor should know, within a second, that they’re in the right place. Here is a little example for you:
When researching coaches’ websites, I often come across cases where coaches put their certifications front and center. It’s confusing for a visitor who just wants to know what problem this coach can help them solve.
What would be better instead is to first show visitors who you work with and how you can help them get what they want to get.
Focus on your purpose, for example, helping visitors overcome stress or anxiety. Once that’s clear, then yes, your credentials and everything else (colors, images, testimonials) start to support that central message.
Here’s a simple check you can do while designing your website for your coaching business:
Ask yourself:
Would a visitor, when landing on my homepage, immediately understand that their problem can be solved (or helped) by me?
If your answer is “no,” it’s time to simplify or re-design.
3. Always guide the next step and have their path in mind
Once a visitor understands that you can help, they need to know what to do next.
Good coaching website design always has a path, a flow that guides visitors from one step to the next. After reading your homepage, what happens next?
Do they book a discovery call? Join your newsletter? Read your story? Where do they click?
Your visuals, buttons, and copy should gently lead them through this journey with clear direction and no dead ends. Every step should feel intentional, logical, and easy.
And, of course, the ultimate goal of that journey should ideally lead to working with you.
In summary
If your website design feels cluttered, confusing, or just “not working,” go back to these three principles:
Give your website for your coaching business a purpose, it should work for you and your visitors.
Keep your message clear. People should instantly understand that you can help with what they struggle with.
Always have a flow. Guide their next step. Never leave your visitors wondering what to do next.
When these three come together, your coaching website stops being a static page and becomes a living part of your coaching business — one that builds trust, creates connection, and helps your ideal clients find you more easily.
If you’d like me to review your website professionally, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
We can have a free 15-minute chat, and I’ll provide a quick summary of where to focus your attention when redesigning your website.
I wish you all the best with your design! You can totally do it yourself!
But if you’d rather save your time and energy and avoid trial and error, consider getting a professional designer’s help.
It’s an investment that truly pays off in the long run.
Hi there! I’m Katerina,
I’m a strategic web designer with a marketing background and first-hand experience building an online coaching business from scratch.
Before design became my full-time focus, I was a coach myself. I know what it’s like to juggle offers, refine your niche, and try to look polished while figuring it all out solo.
Today, I combine design, strategy, and marketing to help coaches create websites that feel aligned, speak to the right clients, and grow their business with clarity and confidence.
Let’s build your digital home — one that truly reflects who you are.
Katerina DeCouto,
Strategic Web Designer
for Coaches