The Story Behind Sarah Design Agency
How facing my own turning point inspired me to help coaches step boldly into theirs
Sarah Guilliot, Founder of Sarah Design Agency (SDA)
This was never the plan.
For 20 years, I was a UX architect building multi-million-dollar websites and campaigns for companies like Microsoft, Amazon, T-Mobile, and GoDaddy. Good work, good pay, and I figured that was it for me. Set for life!
But when I was at GoDaddy, I got to watch all these really cool entrepreneurs building their own businesses...and I started to think that maybe I could do that too.
Except I was scared. What if I failed? What did I know about starting a business? So I stayed in my safe corporate job, building other people's dreams while mine just sat there collecting dust in business plan drafts and cover-to-cover journal entries.
Until one morning when my husband shook me awake, clutching at his throat. He couldn't speak. He was having a stroke…
He's totally fine now - fully recovered! Don’t worry :-) But from that day forward…
…everything changed.
I remember sitting there watching him sleep in his dimly lit hospital room, with all those machines beeping and nurses coming in and out, when I had this moment of absolute clarity.
I didn't want to get to the end of my life and realize I never even TRIED to follow my dreams. I couldn't let fear hold me back anymore.
So I decided I was gonna go for it and DO THE THING.
Turns out, taking a leap like this isn’t a perfect unfolding of all your dreams lol!
There's no straight line from A to B in business...surprise, surprise!
Over the next 10 years I tried everything; Etsy shops, product businesses, creating and selling online courses, memberships, and coaching programs. I was all over the place, trying to figure out what would stick. (And learning along the way)
And the funny thing is, no matter what I tried, I kept coming back to design, copy, and strategy. The stuff I'd been doing for 20 years! My reluctant zone of genius ;-) So I started focusing on that…but for coaches.
Working with coaches taught me so much about what they actually need in a website.
I had a solid foundation from corporate...but coaching businesses have their own set of requirements. They need websites that build trust, communicate transformation, and guide people through a buying journey - not just look professional.
So I dove deep into studying what made coaching websites actually work…all the nuances. What made people stop scrolling and start buying. How to structure pages so visitors felt understood and excited to work with someone. How to clearly communicate the value of their offers.
And my clients kept coming back! They'd hire me again and again because they always got their return on investment when they worked with me.
A website that actually sells isn't just about pretty design - it's about user experience, messaging that hits people right in the feels, sales psychology, and strategy that all work together.
Most people only know one piece of that puzzle. Designers focus on making things pretty. Copywriters focus on words. Strategists think big picture.
But I'd spent years learning ALL of it.
The big breakthrough
That's when I pulled together everything I'd learned in 30 years. All the UX knowledge, funnel strategy, copywriting, design, messaging…and created one streamlined website solution built just for coaches.
And Coach Liftoff was born!
At Sarah Design Agency, we make websites simple for coaches.
We build the site, set up the systems, and make sure you feel confident running it all, so you can start making a bigger impact and a great living, now.
If you’re ready for a professional website (without the stress!) I’d love to show you how Coach Liftoff works. Click the button to book your call…