COACHES & MENTORS

🤝Business coaches and mentors can help entrepreneurs with starting a business, solving problems, developing strategies, improving sales and marketing, managing finances, building confidence, setting goals and growing a business.

Some mentoring programs are free, while professional coaches and consultants may charge by the hour, session, project or ongoing program.

🆓 FREE SMALL-BUSINESS MENTORING

SCORE — Great for U.S. small-business owners looking for free business mentoring, workshops and educational resources.
Small Business Development Centers — SBDC — Great for U.S. entrepreneurs seeking business counseling, training and assistance through local Small Business Development Centers.
SBA Local Assistance — Great starting point for finding SBA-supported business assistance and resource partners in your area.
Women's Business Centers — WBC — Provides training, counseling and other assistance to entrepreneurs through SBA-supported centers.
Veterans Business Outreach Centers — VBOC — Provides entrepreneurship assistance for eligible veterans, service members and military spouses.

🧭 FIND A BUSINESS MENTOR

If someone does not know where to begin, these are excellent starting points:

SCORE Find a Mentor — Great for connecting with volunteer business mentors.
SBA Local Assistance — Find nearby SBA resource partners and business-assistance programs.
MicroMentor — Online community designed to connect entrepreneurs and volunteer business mentors.

💼 PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS COACHES

Business coaching can focus on:

Business Strategy • Goal Setting • Leadership • Accountability • Growth • Decision-Making • Operations • Time Management • Business Development

Directories can help business owners research individual coaches rather than relying on random social-media advertisements.

International Coaching Federation — Find a Coach — Useful for searching for coaches associated with ICF and reviewing coaching credentials.
LinkedIn — Useful for researching business coaches, consultants and their professional backgrounds.
Clarity.fm — Useful for booking paid calls with professionals offering expertise across different business topics.

📣 MARKETING COACHES & CONSULTANTS

A marketing specialist may help with:

Marketing Strategy • Target Audience • Content Marketing • Social Media • Advertising • Email Marketing • Lead Generation • Customer Acquisition

Places to research specialists include:

LinkedIn Services — Useful for finding and researching professionals offering marketing and other business services.
Upwork — Great for finding independent marketing consultants and specialists for defined projects.
Fiverr — Useful for finding freelancers offering specific marketing services.
HubSpot Solutions Directory — Useful for finding agencies and service providers working with HubSpot and related marketing, sales and customer-service needs.

💰 SALES COACHES & CONSULTANTS

Sales specialists may help businesses improve:

Sales Strategy • Lead Follow-Up • Sales Calls • Pricing Conversations • Proposals • Sales Processes • CRM Systems • Closing Processes

Useful places to research sales professionals include:

🛒 E-COMMERCE CONSULTANTS

E-commerce specialists may help with:

Online Stores • Product Pages • Conversion • Shopify • WooCommerce • Email Marketing • Store Operations • Customer Experience

Shopify Partner Directory — Great for finding Shopify-focused partners and service providers.
WooCommerce Agencies — Useful for businesses seeking professional WooCommerce development services.
Upwork — Useful for finding independent e-commerce specialists.

🌐 WEBSITE & SEO CONSULTANTS

These professionals can help with:

Website Strategy • Website Design • SEO • Technical SEO • Local Search • Keyword Research • Website Performance

Places to research professionals include:

Upwork
LinkedIn Services
Fiverr
Webflow Certified Partners — Useful for businesses specifically seeking experienced Webflow professionals.

💵 FINANCIAL BUSINESS MENTORING

Business owners may need help understanding:

Cash Flow • Pricing • Expenses • Profit • Budgeting • Financial Statements • Funding Preparation

Start with:

SCORE — Useful for general business mentoring, including financial planning topics.
Small Business Development Centers — Great for small-business counseling and training.

For professional accounting or tax matters, use qualified professionals rather than treating general business coaching as accounting or tax advice.

👩💼 WOMEN ENTREPRENEUR RESOURCES

Women's Business Centers — SBA-supported centers offering counseling, training and other resources.
Association of Women's Business Centers — Supports the network of Women's Business Centers and women entrepreneurs.
National Association of Women Business Owners — NAWBO — Membership organization offering networking, education and resources for women business owners.

🌎 MINORITY BUSINESS RESOURCES

Minority Business Development Agency — MBDA — U.S. Department of Commerce agency focused on helping minority business enterprises grow and compete.
SBA Local Assistance — Useful for finding local business-development resources and counseling.

🎖️ VETERAN ENTREPRENEUR RESOURCES

Veterans Business Outreach Centers — Provides entrepreneurship training and counseling for eligible veterans, service members and military spouses.
SBA Veteran-Owned Businesses — Official SBA information and resources for veteran-owned businesses.

🎯 WHAT TYPE OF HELP DO YOU NEED?

Instead of asking:

“Where can I find a business coach?”

A business owner should first ask:

“What problem am I trying to solve?”

Starting a business → SCORE, SBDC or WBC
Business plan → SCORE or SBDC
Marketing problems → Marketing consultant
Not making enough sales → Sales consultant
Website problems → Web specialist
SEO problems → SEO specialist
Shopify problems → Shopify Partner
Accounting/taxes → Qualified accountant, CPA or tax professional
Legal questions → Qualified attorney
Business strategy/accountability → Business coach
Need general guidance → Business mentor

🆚 BUSINESS COACH VS MENTOR VS CONSULTANT

Business Mentor

Usually shares knowledge and experience to help an entrepreneur think through business challenges.

Business Coach

Typically works with the business owner on goals, accountability, decision-making and development.

Consultant

Usually provides specialized expertise and recommendations for a particular business problem.

Freelancer

Usually performs a defined service or task for the business.

These roles can overlap, so always ask exactly what services are included before paying.

⭐ GOOD STARTING CHOICES

Need free business guidance? → SCORE
Need local business assistance? → SBDC
Looking for women's business resources? → Women's Business Centers
Want an online volunteer mentor? → MicroMentor
Looking for a professional coach? → ICF directory
Need a specialist for a project? → Upwork
Need a Shopify specialist? → Shopify Partner Directory
Need a short expert consultation? → Clarity.fm

⚠️ BEFORE HIRING A COACH OR CONSULTANT

Do some research before paying.

Check:

Experience • Qualifications • Specialization • References • Reviews • Pricing • Deliverables • Contract Terms • Refund/Cancellation Policy

Also ask:

What exactly will you help me accomplish?

Be cautious about anyone promising:

Guaranteed Revenue • Guaranteed Customers • Guaranteed Funding • Guaranteed Business Success • “Secret” Systems That Guarantee Wealth

A legitimate professional should be able to explain what they provide without guaranteeing business results.