Hello and welcome to this week's episode of The OBM Educator. I'm so excited for you to be here this week because I am going to be talking about why 2024 is the year to become an OBM. I'm going to be backing up what I say with data because I was thinking last night, when I was thinking of a topic for today, that there's so many things I can talk about, but I always want it to be something pertinent to like what's going on in our industry, and I was seeing all of these trends and these data points and I was like these are some really good reasons why someone would become an OBM right now, and so that is what I'm going to be talking about today. And then, after I share the data and all of the things in today's episode, I am going to be sharing about my new program that is enrolling this week. Doors will be closing tomorrow, august 2nd, so stick with me till the end so you can hear about the course and check it out. But first let's get into why you should become an OBM in 2024. Welcome to The OBM Educator. I'm your host, Amanda McVicker, a veteran OBM who serves six and seven figure entrepreneurs as well as educates new OBM Educator. I'm your host, Amanda McVicker, a veteran OBM who serves six and seven-figure entrepreneurs as well as educates new OBMs with the skills and confidence they need to start and grow their own successful online business management business. Follow along as I share valuable insights behind the scenes, sneak peeks and proven strategies to help you build a better OBM business. If I was going to be completely honest, you probably you build a better OBM business. If I was going to be completely honest, you probably should have become an OBM in like 2013,. Maybe, you know, like 1997 or whatever, when the internet started. But here we are 2024.
01:38
The online space is booming and it's not just the online space that needs OBMs, but a lot of I talk about on this podcast, and what I will be specifically talking about today is the online business industry. So, like coaches, creative service providers, course creators, people like that, that is the industry that I will be talking about today. But the industry is booming. We have had a steady rise since 2019, 2020, especially when COVID happened. People were laid off, people were at home, people were looking for something new, something different that provided them flexibility. They were with their kids, so they needed to have some good work-life balance, and the online business and industry gives them all of that. It gives them the flexibility, it gives them the ability to be home I can speak from experience. It gives you the ability to have a business with your kids running around around you. It gives you a business that you are in control of, not someone else.
02:41
And so, first fun data fact coming at you according to the ICF Global Coaching, the coaching market has grown 62% since 2019. And I talk about coaching a lot because they are kind of like the ideal client than OBM. They have programs, they have one-on-one coaching, they have podcasts and products and social media all of those things that are in an OBM's wheelhouse coaches have. And so a lot of the facts that I have are based around the coaching industry, because as the coaching industry grows, so do the opportunities for OBMs. Right now, according to IBIS World, the business coaching industry within the US is worth over $14.2 billion and it is growing. And so what does it mean? That, if the coaching industry or the online business industry is growing, that we come in as OBMs and you know we're just another person in the crowd. But that's not true. As a service provider, we have a unique vantage point in that we are servicing all of these new businesses.
03:57
As people come into the online space, they are bringing in their talents, they're bringing in their zone of genius and I can bet you that for the majority of them, that is not setting up funnels, setting up systems, managing team right. They want to do what they're good at, what they started their business doing, and as they get more and more successful, all of those backend things become more and more necessary. In the beginning of your business, you can kind of get away with skipping over some stuff, but as you get more and more successful and you're making more and more money, your systems need to be on lock. And so, as all of these people are coming into the industry and becoming successful and making more money, that need for OBMs grow. And so, while you might think that, okay, if I get in now, it's actually oversaturated. The oversaturation I wouldn't even say it really is oversaturated. But that is on the coaching, the course creators, the creative side, not necessarily on the service provider side and especially not on the OBM side.
05:11
I say this all the time, but we are in desperate need for more good OBMs. I talk to business owners all the time who have gotten burned by OBMs and this isn't just OBMs, it's all across the board. People get burned by people a lot in this industry, but for someone who is good at what they do, able to do the job well and then also able to be a partner at that higher level, it's not rare, but there is definitely a lot of room for people like that to enter into this industry. So the reason I say 2024 right now is the time to become an OBM, to transition to OBM, to get your foot in this door is because, as the coaching industry keeps growing, you're going to be able to be a constant. You're going to be able to provide so much more insight as you continue in your business, which kind of leads into the next one.
06:18
The next reason that you would want to start a business now is the platform explosion that we are going through right now. New platforms are coming out all the time to either solve new problems that are maybe AI focused or funnels focused, since those are a big thing right now, or just to improve upon what is already existing, like CRMs or email marketing. All of these new programs, new platforms, are coming out every day. Getting in now as an OBM in 2024, you are able to have a grasp on what is all going on. We are just going to be getting new platforms. They are just going to keep coming in.
07:01
At some point it's going to be really overwhelming on what do I choose? What works best, what do I need for my business as an OEM? Now I'm able to take a look at what exists and what comes out and kind of analyze and strategize on what my clients need. What I need because I have a grasp of what's going on. Clients need what I need because I have a grasp of what's going on. If I were to come in two, three years from now down the road when there are 50 different CRMs to choose from for a solopreneur, that's confusing, that's overwhelming. But if I come in now, I know okay, yeah, dubsado, honeybook, those are kind of the top contenders. Oh, this new one's coming out. Well, let's compare it to what I already know about these two. Oh, it has this new feature. That's pretty cool. Oh, but it doesn't do this. Oh, they have a special beta pricing. Maybe I can jump in and see what the difference is. Right, you have that ability if you can get in now to be learning those tools versus waiting now to be learning those tools versus waiting.
08:07
And then the last reason to become an OBM in 2024 is really because, like I joked earlier on, 2013 probably would have been a good time. As we move forward, you're missing opportunities. I don't want to like say FOMO or anything like that, but the opportunities that you have now are not going to be there in a year, are not going to be there in six months. They might be different or new opportunities, but you would be able to have the experience to have the knowledge to handle those new opportunities in the future. So now is always a great time to start, and you can start slow, you can start small, but I think that if you have an inkling of thought around starting an OBM business, now is the time to do it. And so that leads into talking about my new program, which is called the Six Week OBM. I'm really excited about this. It is taking everything that I know about being an OBM but putting it into a very easy to go through format. The program is six modules that take you through the starting an OBM business journey.
09:17
Right, we're going to talk about what is an OBM. What are the industries that benefit from an OBM. What are the services that OBMs do and what do you like doing out of those services? And then we're going to talk about figuring out your offer. What are the common packages and pricing that OBMs have? How can you present your specific offer to potential new clients? How can you package that up so that it's not confusing, so that clients are ready to say yes and so that you can get started as an OBM?
09:50
Then we're going to talk about the essential platforms that are needed to know as an OBM. I am a big proponent of not needing to know everything, but there are some things that you do need to know. We're going to talk about that. We're going to talk about best practices. We're going to talk about how to use this tech to support your clients. Then we're going to talk about how to actually find the OBM clients. How are you going to attract them on socials or in your network? How are you going to ace your discovery calls right? How are you going to get them to say yes? And then, how are you going to transition from VA to OBM? Then we're going to talk about managing clients, making sure that you are on top of your project organization and communicating with clients, how to get testimonials, how to increase your retention so you have long-term clients. And then, finally, we're going to talk about cultivating an OBM mindset. So we're going to talk about journaling and affirmations and all of those things that really can help you step into the OBM mindset so that you can do this for the long haul without getting burnt out, without getting overwhelmed and without wanting to burn down your business.
11:05
So that is the module portion of it. But we are also doing, in this first round that I am running, we are going to be doing weekly group calls for three months, so 12 weeks of group calls, switching between hot seat coaching and office hours so that you know you can bring what's going on in your business during, like the coaching portions and then bringing over like tech problems, client questions, things like that, during the office hours. We're also going to have a group Slack channel so that everyone can collaborate and connect and celebrate all of that together. And then what I'm really excited about. So we have the modules where you'll learn like that, but with it, you know, you'll get worksheets and templates. So templates being like what email you should send to your clients when you want to transition from VA to OBM. What email you should send to your clients when you're increasing your rate. What is the onboarding system and onboarding questionnaire you should send to your clients? How should you conduct your initial strategy? Call Like questions that you ask there. All of that stuff will be in the templates, but then we'll also have cheat sheets. So this will be for kind of those common OBM things that you'll learn over time and you'll get more familiar with are going to be on these cheat sheets that you can just reference whenever you need them. So all of that is in the six-week OBM this first time that I am running it. I'm very excited about it.
12:37
If becoming an OBM is something that you know is on your 2024 list, is something that you are really thinking about, I encourage you to check it out. Send me an email or a DM if you have any questions on it, and I would love to have you join us. We start on Monday, august 5th, and it's going to be so much fun. Thank you for joining me for today's episode on why 2024 is the year to become an OBM. I hope you enjoyed it. I hope it gave you some stuff to think about Again if you're interested in joining the six-week OBM, send me a message, click the link in the show notes and I will talk with you guys next week.
13:14
Bye, thanks for joining me for this episode of The OBM Educator. I hope what you heard today is helpful for you on your OBM journey. If you loved today's episode, I would so appreciate you sharing it and leaving a review on your favorite podcast platform. Want to be a guest on The OBM Educator? Fill out the form in the show notes and I'll be in touch. Join us next time on The OBM Educator. Thank you.