Ability to set you up to reach your (realistic) goals while working around your schedule and within your constraints. Ability to adjust the schedule on the fly, as needed based on things that come up. Also, supplies the level and type of communication you specifically require. And, of course, fits your budget.

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Blog: https://davidkoppeltriathlon.blogspot.com/
Coaching: https://dkendurance.com/

The obvious and worst answer - it depends.
It depends on the current ability of the athlete, their goals, and their budget among many other things. Not all coaches can have the knowledge of Dan Lorang, and not all athletes can afford to be coached by someone like Dan Lorang so they must assess what a “good enough” coach looks like.

I’d say this far from the worst answer, as specificity to a particular athlete and their goals, and creating that understanding and coach-athlete relationship is such a big part of successful coaching.
In my experience, the best coaches I’ve had have been those who seem to ‘buy in’ to my goals, and it feels like tackling a challenge together. I’d argue having the most knowledge isn’t the auto-qualifier for the best coach; as the ability to communicate and deliver that information in a way that your athlete can understand and relate to is so crucial to it being effective.

I like the analogy of a primary vs secondary teacher (very young vs mid/late teens for any other countries school systems). The primary teacher may have less in depth knowledge of their subject as they aren’t teaching to that depth, but they’re equally skilled in my eyes. They need to be able to deliver learning and maintain engagement in a very different environment with a potentially more easily distracted/less used to school as such group. Compare this to a GCSE optional module teacher; they are teaching in far more depth, but to a group that has chosen to do their subject, and is (hopefully) more focused in a learning environment.
Two different skill sets, requiring different levels of subject knowledge but also arguably different levels of pedagogical knowledge to cater to their different pupils.

Just an analogy that shows imo the importance of how differing skill sets make a better practitioner in different environments, whether that be within education or coaching.

Please tell me if I’ve made sense; it’s been a long day and I can’t tell if it does or not haha

Perfect sense, and a good analogy.

I can tell you what makes a bad coach... trying to sell you something other than coaching services.

Books
Testing services
Nutrition products
Pseudoscientific crap like crystals, horoscopes, chiropractic, homeopathy, anti-aging, etc.
Advocating for specific diets like HCLF, vegan, keto, raw food, etc.

For some reason I just thought of Ben Greenfield.

Maybe this will help

https://forum.slowtwitch.com/...ood%20coach#p7706549

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden