A coaching application form is a short set of questions people answer before they can buy your coaching. You read each application, approve the people you can help, and only then ask them to pay. On WithMe, turn on Enable Apply Process? on a 1:1 Coaching product: people apply instead of paying straight away, and you approve or decline each one from the Applications tab on the Customers page.
WithMe is $25 per month billed annually (UK £25), with a 14-day trial and 0% WithMe commission. Stripe and PayPal fees still apply. More than 8,000 creators use it.
Why use an application for high-ticket coaching?
- You only work with people you can help. A bad-fit client at a high price is a refund request or a bad review waiting to happen.
- Applicants commit before they pay. Writing a few honest answers makes people think about whether they are ready.
- You start informed. You know their goal, their situation and what they have tried before the first session.
- It protects your capacity. When you are nearly full, an application lets you take only the clients you have room for.
When should you not use an application?
Skip it for low-priced or group offers. A course, a membership or a single coaching call should be quick to buy, and an extra step loses sales.
Skip it if you cannot reply quickly. An application that waits a week goes cold. Decide within a day or two, or say on the page when people will hear back.
What should you ask on a coaching application?
Keep it to five questions or fewer. Ask what you need to decide and to start well, not everything you could know. Each of these fits in 60 characters, so you can paste it straight in:
- What is the one result you want from coaching?
- Where are you now, and what have you tried?
- What has stopped you getting there so far?
- Why is now the right time to start?
- How many hours a week can you give this?
- Is there anything I should know about your health?
- Are you ready to invest in coaching if it is a fit?
Pick the five that matter most for your niche. A fitness coach may need the health question; a business coach may swap it for one about revenue. Put the price on the sales page, so the investment question gets an honest answer.
How do coaching applications work on WithMe?
- The applicant opens your 1:1 Coaching page and clicks to apply instead of paying.
- They answer your questions and create an account, or sign in, as they apply.
- WithMe emails you, and the application appears under Needs review on the Applications tab, with a count on the tab.
- You open it and read their answers, next to What your client will pay.
- You approve or decline. Approved applicants are emailed a payment link.
- When they complete checkout, they become a client and coaching starts.
How do you review and decide?
The Applications tab has three filters: Needs review, Awaiting payment and Closed. Each row shows the applicant, the product and the date they applied.
Open an application to see their answers, in the order you asked the questions. Before you decide, the Message button opens your coaching workspace, where applicants appear alongside your clients, so you can ask a follow-up question.
Click Approve & invite to pay to email them a payment link, or Decline application to close it. A declined applicant is emailed. Changed your mind? Reopen application puts it back for review.
How does payment work after you accept?
What your client will pay shows exactly what the approved applicant will be charged, taken from the coaching product's prices: an amount due today, and then the recurring amount, or a one-off fee. If the product has a payment plan, it shows the payment due today, the number of payments and the total.
The invitation email comes from you via WithMe and links to your coaching checkout. They pay as any buyer would, including choosing your payment plan if you offer one. The money goes to your own Stripe account, and WithMe takes 0% commission.
While you wait, the application sits under Awaiting payment. You can copy the payment link to send yourself, or click Resend invitation, up to 5 invitations, at most one every 10 minutes. If the product has no price yet, WithMe asks you to add one before you approve; Edit pricing takes you there.
How do you follow up with applicants?
Create an email sequence that starts after a coaching application, so applicants hear from you while you review: a thank-you, what happens next, and a client story.
Reply to every applicant, including the ones you decline. A kind no, with a pointer to a course or a group offer, keeps the door open.
How do you set up an application on WithMe?
- Create or edit a 1:1 Coaching product and set its price. A payment plan can sit next to the one-time fee.
- Turn on Enable Apply Process?.
- Under Checkout Fields, choose what to ask: name, address, phone and up to five custom questions, each of which you can make required.
- Say on the sales page who the coaching is for, the price, and when applicants will hear back.
- Add an email sequence that starts after a coaching application.
What is not included?
Applications work on 1:1 Coaching only, not on Coaching Calls, webinars, courses or communities. There is no scoring or automatic approval: you decide each one. There is no booking of a sales call inside the application; if you want a call first, offer a free Coaching Call and send the link. There are no contracts to sign.
How much does WithMe cost?
WithMe is $25 per month billed annually (UK £25), with a 14-day trial and 0% WithMe commission. Stripe and PayPal fees still apply. Applications, 1:1 Coaching, payment plans and email sequences are all on the same plan. Free migration of up to 10 GB of your courses and members comes with the yearly plan.
Coaching application questions
What is a coaching application form?
A short set of questions people answer before they can buy your coaching. You review each one and invite only the people you approve to pay.
How many questions should a coaching application have?
Five or fewer. Ask about their goal, where they are now, what has stopped them, their timing and their commitment. On WithMe you can add up to five custom questions.
Can I approve coaching clients before they pay on WithMe?
Yes. Turn on Enable Apply Process? on a 1:1 Coaching product. People apply, and you approve and invite them to pay, or decline, from the Applications tab on the Customers page.
Can approved applicants pay in instalments?
Yes, if the coaching product has a payment plan. The application shows the payment due today, the number of payments and the total, and the applicant chooses the plan at checkout.
What does WithMe cost?
$25 per month billed annually (UK £25), with a 14-day trial. WithMe takes 0% commission. Stripe and PayPal fees still apply.
Start your 14-day trial at https://www.withme.so/become-a-creator.
Related reading
- Start your 14-day trial
- How to run a 1:1 coaching programme online
- How to offer payment plans for coaching
- How much to charge for online coaching
- How to take coaching bookings without Calendly
- How to write a welcome email sequence
- CRM for coaches
- Lead magnet ideas for coaches
- Coaching platform
- What is WithMe?
