
How do you get clients as a health coach without constantly posting on social media, sending cold DMs, or feeling like a pushy salesperson?
If you're a health coach, nutrition coach, or Functional Diagnostic Nutrition (FDN) practitioner struggling to attract clients, market your services, or grow your coaching business, this episode of the Health Detective Podcast is for you.
Michele Scarlet, FDNP, CPT, sits down with nutrition coach and business mentor Mike Millner to explore how to build trust, find coaching clients, and grow a sustainable health coaching business without complicated marketing strategies or high-pressure sales tactics.
Mike shares how his personal transformation, from gaining 80 pounds and struggling with restrictive dieting, yo-yo weight loss, and body image to building a nutrition coaching business, taught him the power of storytelling, vulnerability, and genuine human connection.
Together, Michele and Mike explore:
How to get your first health coaching clients with a small audience or no email list
How to market your health coaching business without posting on social media every day
Why storytelling and vulnerability help attract clients and build trust
How live workshops can turn interested prospects into paying coaching clients
How to sell health coaching services without feeling uncomfortable or salesy
Why AI-generated content and misinformation are contributing to a "trust recession"
How to use client conversations to create better marketing content
How to promote workshops through paid advertising and personal outreach
What to do when workshop attendance or conversions are lower than expected
Why tracking business metrics can help you improve without getting discouraged
Mike also shares his biggest workshop mistake, realistic expectations for new health coaches, and why personal connection may be your greatest competitive advantage in an increasingly AI-driven world.
Whether you're just starting your health coaching business, working toward your first five clients, or looking for a better way to grow an established functional health practice, this conversation offers practical strategies you can start using right away.
🎧 EPISODE CHAPTERS
00:00 Why Building Trust Matters for Health Coaches
00:37 Meet Mike Millner: Nutrition Coach and Business Mentor
01:07 From Yo-Yo Dieting to Becoming a Health Coach
08:06 How Storytelling Helps Health Coaches Attract Clients
10:44 Why Marketing and Sales Feel So Hard for Health Coaches
14:29 How to Get Health Coaching Clients With Live Workshops
17:09 The Trust Recession: AI, Misinformation and Health Coaching
21:40 How to Sell Health Coaching Without Feeling Salesy
25:34 How Client Questions Can Improve Your Marketing
29:28 How to Get Your First Health Coaching Clients With No Audience
36:34 How to Promote a Workshop With Paid Ads and Personal Outreach
40:04 Mike's Biggest Workshop Mistake and Lessons Learned
43:28 The Best Way for New Health Coaches to Build Trust
46:20 Connect With Mike Millner and Final Takeaways
CONNECT WITH MIKE MILLNER
Instagram: @coach_mike_millner
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See you October 19–23!
ABOUT THE HEALTH DETECTIVE PODCAST
The Health Detective Podcast explores functional health, root-cause investigation, functional lab te