The digital revolution has empowered coaches to reach a global audience, share their expertise, and build impactful communities. Platforms like Patreon played a key role in helping coaches monetize their content by offering a way to earn directly from their clients and supporters. However, Patreon’s golden era may now be over. From UI changes to extortionate incoming fees, changes at Patreon are restricting coaches’ businesses. As the coaching industry evolves, many are realizing that sustainable growth demands more than content monetization platforms like Patreon can provide.
Increasingly, coaches are seeking solutions that align with their long-term ambitions, foster deeper connections with their clients, and give them full control over their business. This shift marks the beginning of a new era, where coaches are focused on building meaningful, long-lasting relationships in a space they truly own.
The evolution of online coaching monetization
The journey of digital monetization for coaches has seen significant change. Initially, many coaches relied on one-time session fees or ad revenue from online content, both of which were unpredictable and limiting. This left many coaches struggling to find consistent income and establish a stable business model.
Patreon emerged as a game-changer, offering a subscription model that allowed coaches to earn recurring revenue directly from online clients. Coaches could now focus on delivering value to more people through exclusive content and services. Patreon’s subscription-based model revolutionized how coaches earned, providing financial stability and a direct relationship with a wider audience who valued their services.
For years, Patreon served as the cornerstone of this new model, helping countless coaches turn their expertise into full-time businesses. However, as the platform matured, its limitations became more evident. Coaches began to encounter high fees, limited customization options, and restrictive policies, which left them wondering if this was truly the best path for their growing businesses.
The coaching landscape has evolved, and today’s coaches need platforms that offer flexibility, control, and more comprehensive tools for fostering strong, engaged communities. What worked in the past isn’t enough for the future of coaching.
The cracks in the foundation of Patreon
Although Patreon was a trailblazer for coaches looking to monetize their services, its ability to keep up with the changing needs of coaches has come into question. Several key issues have caused dissatisfaction among users:
- High fees: Patreon charges a platform fee of 8-12% and includes additional payment processing fees. This is set to increase further in 2024 with Apple’s new 30% tax on iOS in-app subscriptions, eating into the income of coaches already burdened by existing fees. More on this in the next section.
- Platform control: Patreon controls aspects of how coaches interact with their clients. Policies like promoting other creators alongside your content can dilute the focused relationships coaches work hard to build with their clients.
- User experience issues: Patreon has a terrible reputation among users, with a Trustpilot score of only 1.3 stars. User reviews cite poor customer service and concerns around personal data handling as key reasons that they do not trust the platform. As a coach, trust is critical when building your business. Therefore by building on a third-party platform where trust is so low, you are potentially undermining the core of your business.
These problems aren’t unique to Patreon. Any platform where coaches don’t have full control over their business exposes them to similar risks—be it policy changes, fee increases, or poor user experiences.
Unpicking the Apple tax
One of the major challenges Patreon creators will face in 2024 is the impending 30% Apple tax. Starting in November 2024, new patrons who subscribe via the iOS app will face this additional cost. This puts coaches in a difficult position: either absorb the cost yourself or raise prices and risk losing clients.
Patreon operates as a centralized platform under its own brand, meaning that any subscription through their app is technically an in-app purchase with Patreon. This means the 30% Apple commission applies, in line with Apple’s App Store policies for large companies.
On top of the Apple tax, Patreon also takes a platform fee of 8-12% of your earnings significantly reducing the revenue you actually receive. This is especially problematic for small and mid-sized coaches who can’t afford to lose a total of 40% or more of their income to platform and transaction fees.
If these coaches weren’t associated with Patreon (because they had built their own independent platform) their fees would be halved. That’s because under Apple’s small business program, businesses earning under $1 million per year have access to a reduced commission rate of 15%.
The new 30% tax only affects coaches using Patreon and other intermediaries, who have no way to avoid the tax because they do not own the platform they operate on. The Apple tax is just another reminder of the vulnerability coaches face when they depend on third-party platforms.
Rethinking independence for coaches
Digital coaching is evolving similarly to the fashion industry’s shift toward direct-to-consumer models. Fashion brands once depended heavily on department stores and third-party retailers to sell their products, sacrificing control over pricing, branding, and customer experience. As e-commerce grew, many brands bypassed intermediaries, selling directly to their audience, allowing for greater autonomy, better margins, and a stronger relationship with customers. Coaches, too, are recognizing the benefits of owning their digital space and moving away from third-party platforms.
When your business depends on a platform you don’t own, you’re constantly at risk. From changes in fees to unexpected policy shifts, operating in a rented space limits your ability to grow freely. This realization is pushing many coaches to explore alternatives that provide more autonomy.
A better approach: Building on your own land
There’s a growing movement among coaches to move from third-party platforms to independent, coach-owned spaces. The analogy is simple: when you build your business on a platform like Patreon, it’s like renting space in a building. The landlord can raise the rent, change the rules, or even evict you. But when you own your platform, you control the experience, the costs, and the future.
This movement towards ownership isn’t just about financial security; it’s about having the creative freedom to deliver your coaching services in the best way possible. Independent platforms allow for the kind of flexibility and customization that modern coaches need to grow their businesses and connect deeply with their clients.
Creating your own platform used to be something that was out of reach of most coaches. It was expensive and technically complex. However, companies like Disciple have completely changed this, enabling you to build your own white-labelled web and mobile app that is fully optimised towards growing a sustainable business and helping your members develop.
Beyond monetization: The need for a comprehensive solution
Today’s coaches need more than just tools to monetize their services. They need platforms that support the full scope of their businesses—brand building, community engagement, and personal development. Crucial features for success includes the ability to livestream directly to your audience and ways of organising your content for an optimised experience. The future belongs to those who can create an entire ecosystem that fosters meaningful interactions and long-term client relationships.
Coaching is no longer just about providing content or selling sessions. It’s about creating transformative experiences and helping clients achieve real growth. How many times have you started an online course and not seen it through? It’s not your fault, it’s just extremely difficult to implement real change in your life on the basis of theory alone. Instead, people make those changes with the support, inspiration and accountability of expert leadership and a community of likeminded individuals around them.
The platforms that succeed in the future will be those that help coaches facilitate these transformations in a way that’s aligned with their goals and values.
The future of coaching platforms
As the coaching industry continues to grow, more coaches will take ownership of their digital businesses. The platforms that offer autonomy, control, and sustainability will lead this new era. Coaches must look beyond simple monetization platforms and seek solutions that support their full business vision.
The future of coaching is about empowerment—owning your platform means owning your future. It’s time for coaches to take control, ensuring that the tools they use serve their clients’ needs and their own long-term success.
