An evidence-first directory, explained.
True North Vibe helps you find a business coach or consultant by how they work, what they can evidence, and whether they fit your situation — not by who paid to rank. This page explains exactly how the directory operates, in the same plain terms we hold providers to.
Where the profiles come from
This is not an open submission dump. We started from 3,582 raw listings gathered from public sources, de-duplicated them to 1,866 unique candidates, verified 667 as genuinely in-niche by reading their own websites, and serve 844 public providers today. Profiles are built from what each provider publishes about themselves — a claim is kept only when it appears in the provider's own public material.
Curation is continuous: every new self-added listing is reviewed against the same bar before it goes public, and anything uncertain is escalated to a human.
How providers claim their profiles
Claiming is free. A provider proves they control the website we list for them (a verification file or DNS record), or — when there's no website — our team verifies them by hand. A claimed profile speaks in the provider's own words, and those words are labeled as exactly that: their own account.
How public information is used
Unclaimed profiles show what the provider already publishes publicly — their specialties, credentials, and services as their own site states them. Every signal on a profile is labeled by how it was obtained, so you always know whether you're reading something proven or something claimed. Providers can correct anything, free.
What the signal tiers mean
Four tiers, lowest to highest. Providers control the first; the platform controls the rest — nobody, free or paying, can type their way up:
- Stated The provider says so. Honest, labeled, unverified.
- Vouched A named third party stands behind the claim.
- Shown An inspectable artifact backs it — case studies, testimonials, evidence we found in their own published material.
- Measured Verified outcome data. The rarest tier, minted only by the platform.
How introductions work
Take the 3-minute interview and you get a written report of your situation plus matched providers. Shortlist up to three, and request an introduction to the ones you choose. The provider sees what you need first, then accepts — you're never cold-contacted, and you never pay anything.
What "Request intro" means
Requesting an introduction is explicit permission — for that provider, and only that provider, to receive your request. No provider sees your information unless you ask to be introduced to them.
What providers can pay for
Listing is free and claiming is free. Providers can pay to unlock the introduction requests they receive, and for visibility: labeled featured placement and enhanced profile cards. Every paid placement is visually labeled so you can always tell it from an organic result.
What payment cannot influence
A provider can pay to be seen. A provider cannot pay to be trusted. Paid placement never changes a signal tier, never reorders the evidence-sorted list, and never touches how a provider is assessed. The ranked results are not for sale.
How you stay in control
Browse without an account. The interview asks about your situation only to write your report and find your matches. Leaving an email is optional — it gets you your report and a brief follow-up, every message carries a one-click unsubscribe, and your contact details go only to providers you explicitly request an introduction to.
How errors get fixed
Spot something wrong? If it's your practice, claim the profile and correct it directly — corrections are free. Anyone else can report an error to [email protected] and a human looks at it.
A note from the founder
I built True North Vibe because hiring a coach or consultant is hard to evaluate from branding alone. Anyone can claim a title; the dominant signals are marketing polish and follower counts. The goal here is to make the search more evidence-based, more transparent, and more useful for both sides — seekers who need real help, and providers doing real work who deserve to be found for it.
If you want the longer version of where that conviction comes from, I wrote it up: What 25 years of software engineering taught me about running any practice.
— Matthew Renodin, founder
Start where it starts
A coach or consultant yourself? See how the directory works for providers.