Everything You Need to Know About the Ramsey Solutions Financial Coach Master Training.
Interested in signing up for the Financial Coach Master Training through Ramsey Solutions? Yeah, so was I. With the price tag it carries, even Dave himself would probably want you to look into it more deeply before dropping that kind of dough (Check their website for the most updated rates).
Before signing up for the training, I spent weeks scavenging the internet for information. What does it entail? How much business will it bring? What is the ROI? There wasn’t a lot of answers out there.
I signed up anyway and took a risk, promising myself that once I completed the on-site training, I would answer all the questions I had for anyone else that was interested in signing up.
So that’s what I’m going to do. As I type this blog post, I am on an airplane returning home from 2 ½ days at Ramsey Solutions headquarters in Nashville, TN. Here’s everything you need to know.
Update: The format of the program has changed since I took it back in 2016. It is currently all held online and no longer contains an on-site portion. I’ve updated this blog with the most current information.
What is the Role of a Financial Coach?
Before you sign up for the training, it’s important to know the role of a financial coach.
No, a coach is not the same thing as a financial advisor (I get this question all the time). While a financial advisor helps you choose investments to build wealth, a coach guides you in money making decisions that better set you up for building wealth.
This can include a number of things, such as getting out of debt, avoiding bankruptcy, creating a budget, and managing business finances, to name a few.
A coach doesn’t sell financial investments. The only product they sell is clarity and support. A coach’s job is to meet the client where they are and provide options from an unbiased point of view.
As a coach, you’re going to save marriages. You’re going prevent people from making bad financial decisions because they didn’t know their options. You’re going to set people up to create money habits that could potentially last for generations.
Sound like something you want to do? Keep reading.
The Training
When I took the training, it consisted of 3 parts: Online, On-Site, and Mentorship. Since then, they’ve combined all of these things into an online platform. While in the past the training took a minimum of 3 months to complete, you can now do it in a fraction of the time.
The videos you watch are mostly live recordings from the on-site portion of the past trainings.
When I attended live, I was pleasantly surprised to find out almost the entire training was led by Chris Hogan. The material is extremely valuable and engaging. At no point during the live sessions was I watching the clock or hoping he would wrap it up.
Each video comes with an assignment or quiz to complete. If you’re watching closely or taking notes as you go, these are usually quick and easy.
Periodically you’ll be prompted to schedule a call with one of the in-house coaches. Their role is to serve you in your development as a coach.
If you’re looking for help with the business side of coaching, you likely won’t find it here as many in-house coaches at Ramsey Solutions haven’t run a coaching business of their own.
Once the training is complete, your mentor will officially approve you to be a Ramsey Solutions Master Financial Coach.
What does that mean? If you want to use this title to market yourself, you are welcome to do so.
Truthfully, the designation itself doesn’t really offer you that much. Sure, if people know who Ramsey is, then this title might sway them to hire you. But in my experience, if they know who Ramsey is, they will likely go to Ramsey’s website to find help, not yours.
If you want to capture leads through their website, there will also be an opportunity to apply to become a Ramsey Preferred Coach, which comes with its own suite of benefits.
The Ramsey Preferred Coach Program
As you admire your FCMT certificate, you’ll immediately start wondering whether or not it makes sense to join the Ramsey Preferred Coach (RPC) Program or not.
While I can’t make that choice for you, I’ll share what it includes and whether I think it’s worth the added investment.
The most obvious perk to the RPC Program are the leads through their website, Ramsey+, EveryDollar, and other promotions.
When someone (let’s call him Jim) requests a consultation on Dave’s website, they will be matched up with you.
It is up to the coach to reach out to Jim in a timely manner and close the sale. From there, Jim decides if he wants to hire you.
The #1 question I receive is, “How many leads do you get per month?” This is hard to predict as they change the lead generation method periodically. Sometimes there are promotions they may offer in the online store or at a live event that can bump up leads.
It doesn’t matter how many leads you receive if you aren’t able to convert them into clients. I mean, you can’t fully help people if you don’t get them to sign up as a client, right?
There is tons of support from fellow coaches and the Ramsey team. There’s a private online group with hundreds of coaches, many that are doing this full time with years of experience (some over a decade). The group is incredibly supportive and will answer any question you have.
The support is fantastic for a brand new coach. If, however, you’ve been in the game for a while, you might find it lacking.
The RPC Program also hosts many group calls developmental webinars that cover topics like prospecting and sales (among others). Again, for a brand new coach the content will be helpful. However, I’ve found that the successful coaches quickly outgrow this content.
Not sure how to manage leads? They now provide you with an online CRM.
Worried about a website? RPCs are provided with a crisp looking page to get started. This is a great starting point, but I’d use this as a placeholder until you get your own website up. From a business standpoint, you don’t want to lean too heavily into someone else’s brand. Otherwise you won’t be able to stand on your own.
As of February 2023, the RPC Program runs at about $125 per month, plus $25 per lead you receive.
Is It Worth It?
Would I recommend signing up for the Financial Coach Master Training?
If you need support in growing your coaching business, I only recommend FCMT if you sign up for the RPC program simply for the leads. Lead generation is one of the most challenging obstacles for a new business, and RPC can help bridge that gap. Just be sure not to lean too heavily on these leads, but instead to use them as a support system while you generate your own.
If you are looking for a program that will give you information on financial topics, FCMT is (obviously) very skewed to Dave Ramsey’s views and principles. If that’s the way you want to go, then this is a good option.
Personally, my company helps our clients define their own philosophy and principles around money, so it doesn’t make sense for us to only use one plan toward financial freedom.
For those only looking to learn about financial topics and scaling a business, I think there are better options out there. The Financial Coach Academy has one of the best reputations for providing both financial foundations and support in growing your financial coaching business.
Or, you could always hire a coach to help you. Not only will they be able to guide you in specifically scaling your business, but you’ll also be investing in something you’re going to be asking your clients to invest in.
This speaks volumes about you as a coach since it shows you aren’t asking your clients to invest in something you won’t invest in for yourself.
Regardless of which route you take, thank you for joining in helping people find peace of mind with their finances.
