Many life coaches and consultants provide an initial complimentary session to prospective clients. Here are some tips to make the most of that session.

Before you even meet with your prospective client, you must have a system or approach that you can describe – not just “we meet and play it by ear, whatever comes up”. People feel more secure and hopeful knowing that the professional adviser has a plan.

Once you have a methodology that you can describe with confidence, you will pass that confidence on to your client. You client will knows specifically what you can do for them, and what results they will get from working with you.

The best advice I can give you for during the meeting is: don’t try too hard. Although that might sound contradictory (shouldn’t we always do our best?), it’s actually sound advice.

Let me explain. What I mean is don’t overwhelm your prospective client with too much information. It will only confuse them, and by the end of the session their head will be swimming.

You don’t want your prospect feeling overwhelmed. You want them to leave the complimentary session feeling clear about their next step (hiring you!), not confused by too much information.

This next tip may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised how many life coaches in particular fail to do this: interact as a professional, not as a friend. Your prospect has plenty of buddies they can talk with; what they are looking for is a coach or consultant that can help them move forward in a professional way.

During the consultation, don’t be afraid of offending the potential client – if you hear or sense something that you think might be a blind spot for them, point it out in a neutral manner. That will provide huge value to them and differentiate you from “talking with a friend”.

Mentor Coach Barbra Sundquist specializes in life coach training. Visit her website “Become A Certified Coach” to get solid advice on how to become a life coach.. This article, Top 5 Tips for Complimentary Sessions is released under a creative commons attribution license.